Czarnecki removed as the European Parliament VP

Law and Justice (PiS) MEP Ryszard Czarnecki has been dismissed from his post as the European Parliament Vice President after MEPs voted by 447 in favor and 196 against his early termination. Last month, Czarnecki in his blog post compared Civic Platform (PO) MEP Róża Thun to a Nazi collaborator who handed over Jews for money (szmalcownik), he used this word claiming that Thun collaborated with the EU by denunciating Polish government and its actions which, according to him were damaging to Poland’s reputation. A number of MEPs said that Czarnecki’s words were unacceptable. “Attacking other members with Nazi slogans is a no go,” said Jo Leinen from the Social Democrats party. According to Poland’s Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz,  Czarnecki had gone “too far” but his dismissal is a violation of the freedom of speech. The Parliament will now have to elect a new vice president from the European Conservatives and Reformists group and it’s likely that he will be a Pole and a member of PiS as well.