Dan Șova

Dan Șova

Dan Șova (born April 9, 1973 in Bucharest , Romania ) is a Romanian politician of the Social Democratic Party (PSD). He has been a Senator since 2008 and a Minister in the Ponta Cabinet since August 2012 .

His term of office coincides with the Romanian state crisis in 2012 .

life and work

In addition to law Şova studied in Bucharest and History . He worked as a lawyer and since 2008 senator of the social democratic party PSD for the district of Olt .

Holocaust denial

Șova had lost his position as PSD spokesman in March 2012 after publicly denying the Iași pogrom and glorifying Ion Antonescu , dictator in the Kingdom of Romania . Although there is unequivocal historical evidence that the pogrom in Romania killed more than 13,000 people, Șova claimed that “historical facts show that 24 Romanian citizens of Jewish descent were killed by German soldiers in Iași. […] Romanian soldiers were not involved. ”In a press release distributed by the National Institute for the Study of the Romanian Holocaust Elie Wiesel (INSHR-EW), the statements of the social democratic politician were sharply criticized and described as a violation of Romanian legal provisions. The Roma organization Romani CRISS and the MCA (Center for Combating Anti-Semitism in Romania) filed charges against the Senator for denying the Holocaust. After a public apology from Victor Ponta, Șova was sent to Washington, DC , so that he could find out about the historical facts at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum .

Șova was appointed the new Minister for Relations with Parliament on August 6, 2012. His acceptance into the Romanian government met with heavy criticism. Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in New York said on Romanian television that the decision was "absolutely outrageous" and "embarrassing for the government and the country". When asked how he explained it to himself that a young politician in Romania could deny the Holocaust, Zuroff said: "That comes from ignorance, probably from racism and anti-Semitism, maybe also from ultra-nationalism."

Șova is one of the closest confidants of about the same age as Victor Ponta. He himself complained that his statements had been “distorted” and “taken out of context” and that he had never intended to deny the Holocaust in Romania. He attributed the negative international reactions to misunderstandings and merely admitted that he might have made mistakes in communication.

A law has been in force in Romania since 2006 that punishes denial of the Holocaust with up to five years in prison.

Corruption allegation

In early 2015, the Social Democratic majority in parliament refused to lift Șova's immunity . Șovas was to be investigated for serious corruption.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ www.halbjahresschrift Der Fall Antonescu. Post-communist Antonescu cult, in: Semi-annual publication for Southeast European history, literature and politics - hjs-online .
2. ↑ tt.com , Tiroler Tageszeitung: New members of the Romanian government sworn in , August 7, 2012, accessed on March 6, 2020
3. ↑ punkto.ro  ( page no longer available , search in web archives ), Punkto: Sozi boss Ponta temporarily removes party spokesman Șova from office for denial of the Holocaust and After Holocaust denial: Sozi spokesman Şova apologizes half-heartedly , March 7, 2012, Retrieved August 7, 2012
4. ↑ sueddeutsche.de Oliver Das Guptan: Premier Ponta elects Holocaust denier minister August 9, 2012, accessed on August 9, 2012
5. ↑ faz.net : Wiesenthal Center criticizes Ponta: Ministerial dignity for Romanian Holocaust deniers , August 8, 2012, accessed on August 8, 2012.
6. ↑ The Constitutional Court to rule in the Dan Şova case , Radio Romania International , March 27, 2015
7. ↑ Florian Hassel: Korrupte Kontrollure , in: Süddeutsche Zeitung , June 10, 2015, p. 4