The question of anti-Semitism in the Polish Army, which was discussed in the House of Commons last week, will shortly be raised in the House of Lords, it was announced here today by Tom Driberg, Independent member of Commons.
“The question of the mistreatment of Jewish soldiers in the Polish armed forces is by no means settled,” Driberg said. “The attempts on the part of the Polish inquiry commission to minimize the anti-Semitic outbreaks would be more convincing if the constitution and the procedure of this commission were clearly shown to be impartial. The commission of five included four officers of the Polish Army and not even one Jew. Nor was any Allied liason officer invited to join this commission, despite the interest taken by the British Government in the matter.”
“We shall continue to draw the Government’s attention to this blot on the Allied war effort until it is removed by the transfer of the Jewish men to an army where they will be treated as human beings,” Driberg declared.
POLISH AUTHORITIES BAR JEW FROM PARTY PERFORMING FOR TROOPS
Sir Herbert Hunnico, who is in charge of arranging concerts by the government-sponsored ENSA organization for the entertainment of British and Allied troops, today revealed that the Polish authorities did not allow him to include a Jew in a concert program which was to be given for Polish soldiers.
The Jewish Chronicle in a leading article featured under the title “Back to the Jungle” today analyzes the Jewish position in the Polish Army. It is pessimistic with regard to Polish-Jewish relations, and assails the decision to leave the Polish Jewish soldiers in the inferno of murderous hatred and deny them access to British ranks.” The paper suggests that the problem be solved by establishing special Jewish units in the British armed forces into which the Jewish soldiers could be transferred. Emphasizing that polish anti-Semitism did not start with the present war, the Jewish Chronicle expresses the hope that British pressure will not be exerted “to make exiled Polish Jews go down to hall again.”
Dziennik Polski, official organ of the Polish Government, today expresses regret that the debate in Commons on the question of anti-Semitism in the Polish Army has received so much publicity. “In the present situation, every attempt to destroy solidarity between Jews and Poles who are fighting the same enemy for the same cause must be met with condemnation,” the paper writes.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
