Poles abroad asked to report "anti-Polish" statements

Poland's senate leader has appealed to Poles living abroad to report to the authorities any statements deemed "anti-Polish" or hurt "Poland's good name."

The letter posted on the Senate's website is part of a wider campaign by Poland's nationalist government, which says it is defending Poland's good name against historical untruth. It is linked to a controversial new law that penalizes blaming Poland for World War II crimes committed by Nazi Germany.

Israel says that law could whitewash the role some Poles played in the Holocaust.

In his letter sent to Polish organizations in the world, Senate Speaker Stanislaw Karczewski appealed to their members to "document" anti-Polish sentiment and to report them to Polish diplomatic missions.