Party in antisemitism row should be blocked: Lithuanian Jewish leaders

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(Bloomberg) — Lithuaniaâ€s Jewish community urged the Baltic nationâ€s president to intervene to prevent a party involved in an antisemitic scandal from becoming part of a new ruling coalition.

The surprise decision by the Social Democratic Party, winners of Octoberâ€s election, to invite the Dawn of Nemunas – whose leader is on trial for making antisemitic remarks – to join its governing coalition has rattled the Baltic nation. Before the election, the Social Democrats promised to keep the Dawn of Nemunas away from power.

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President Gitanas Nauseda warned earlier about potential damage to the countryâ€s international standing should the populist party enter government. Still, a president in Lithuania has no power over how coalitions are assembled.

“The involvement of an antisemite in the ruling coalition and government activities also discredits Lithuania in the eyes of its foreign partners, whose support is vitally important to our nation and citizens,†the countryâ€s Jewish community said in a statement released Saturday.

The Social Democrats†move has raised concerns internationally. Michael Roth, a German Social Democrat who chairs the parliamentary foreign affairs committee, warned Lithuaniaâ€s counterparts that they risk losing affiliation with the Party of European Socialists.

U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a statement that a coalition that includes Dawn of Nemunas “undermines the core values that unite our nations.â€

Lithuaniaâ€s constitutional court this year ruled that Remigijus Zemaitaitis, a former deputy speaker of parliament, violated his oath as a representative by using antisemitic language in a Facebook post criticizing Israelâ€s actions in Gaza.

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Zemaitaitis rejected the accusations. In September, the authorities opened a criminal case against him for allegedly inciting hatred. The 42-year-old denies any wrongdoing.

“This individualâ€s statements deny and distort the Holocaust and attempt to rewrite Lithuaniaâ€s history, inciting Lithuanians against their Jewish compatriots,†the Jewish community said. “These actions are not one-off ‘citations of folklore,†as some political figures try to justify. Instead, this is a systematic approach that has triggered a wave of antisemitism in the country, leaving the small Lithuanian Jewish community feeling humiliated and unsafe.â€

The issue has particular historical resonance for the Baltic nation, where local collaborators helped the Nazis murder some 90% of the Lithuanian Jewish population in the Holocaust.

The decision to walk back a pre-election promise is the second about-face from the Social Democratic Party in less than two weeks. Party Chairwoman Vilija Blinkeviciute unexpectedly declined to become prime minister last week, despite her partyâ€s election victory. Her move was widely criticized by the media.

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