Anthony Rota, Canada's Speaker, resigns following a Nazi in parliament row

 

Canada's Speaker of the House of Commons, Anthony Rota, has resigned after inviting a Ukrainian man who fought for a Nazi unit to parliament and praising him. The incident last Friday drew global condemnation, with Ukraine's President Volodomyr Zelensky receiving a standing ovation from Rota. Rota has said he did not know of Hunka's Nazi ties and made a mistake in inviting him to attend the event. Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident "extremely upsetting" and said it was deeply embarrassing to the parliament of Canada and by extension to all Canadians. Hunka served in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division during World War Two, a voluntary unit mostly of ethnic Ukrainians under Nazi command. The division members are accused of killing Polish and Jewish civilians, although the unit has not been found guilty of any war crimes by a tribunal. Poland's Education Minister Przemysław Czarnek has taken steps towards extraditing Hunka. Members of Trudeau's cabinet had joined cross-party calls on Tuesday for Rota to step down. Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly called the mistake "completely unacceptable" and suggested that Rota should listen to members of the House and step down. House leader for Canada's New Democratic Party Peter Julian applauded Rota's resignation, calling it the "right decision." Canadian Jewish organizations also welcomed Rota's decision to step aside. Critics from Canada's opposition leader, Pierre Poilievre, have not slowed Rota's resignation, arguing that the responsibility fell on Trudeau to reverse the massive damage done to the country's international reputation.