On Saturday, 22 November, European Parliament member Grzegorz Braun held a press conference in Oświęcim where he lambasted the government’s National Strategy Against Antisemitism 2025‑2030 and made offensive remarks targeting Jews.
Braun’s Oświęcim Press Conference
During a meeting in Oświęcim, Braun criticised the government’s “National Strategy Against Antisemitism and Support of Jewish Life 2025‑2030,” claiming the document establishes inequality before the law and discriminates against non‑Jewish Polish citizens.
He went further, alleging that “Jews want to be supermen in Poland” and predicting a police “gang” would harass Polish citizens by calling them “Jews,” a statement he characterised as a threat to the Polish nation.
Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek’s Response
In a statement to the Polish Press Agency, Minister Żurek said, “I will not relent. The prosecutor’s office will prove that there is no place for antisemitism in Poland, and such statements damage the Polish state internationally and domestically.”
He noted that Braun has retained parliamentary immunity, but that a request had been made in September to lift that immunity over Holocaust‑denial allegations. He also recalled that Braun had previously been removed from the Polish Sejm’s grant of immunity.
European Parliament Strikes to Strip Braun of Immunity
The EU Parliament voted to remove Braun’s immunity over accusations tied to a crime committed on 16 April 2025 at the Powiatowy Zespół Szpitali in Oleśnica.
The allegations include unlawful detention of gynecologist Gisela Jagielska in her office, hindering her work and endangering patients, as well as insults and libel. The case also involves public incitement of religious hatred and an incident that disrupted Chanukah celebrations on Polish Parliament grounds.
Consequences for Braun’s Parliamentary Status
The immunity lift means Braun can no longer claim parliamentary protection in the European Parliament. He also lost similar immunity in the Polish Sejm following these accusations, preventing him from evading judicial scrutiny for the alleged offenses.
