A libel case brought by far-right businessman Jan Kobylanski against prominent journalists and ambassadors began in Warsaw today.

In November 2007, the 86 year old Kobylanski brought a law suit against 18 well-known journalists and ambassadors, who he has accused of defamation and has demanded 100,000 zlotys in compensation plus court costs.  

Among many other accusations, newspapers reported four years ago that Kobylanski denounced Jews to the Nazis during WW II..

Jan Kobylanski is a Polish millionaire residing in Uruguay who was removed from his post in 2000 as honorary council in Paraguay after ambassadors in the region complained about his behaviour and alleged anti-Semitic statements he made.

Kobylanski  - a long time sponsor of the ultra-conservative Catholic radio station Radio Maryja - is a founder of the Union of Polish Associations and Organizations in Latin America (USOPAL), the largest immigrant organization in Latin America.

Four years ago newspapers in Poland reported anti-Semitic statements that he was alleged to have made and wrote about the Institute of National Remembrance’s suspicions that the Polish businessman denounced Jews to Nazis during WW II. 

Over thirty people gathered in the Mokotow District Court in Warsaw today. The prosecutor stated that the publications had defamed and humiliated Kobylanski, representing him as “a spy, denouncer, forger, adulterer, cheat, bribe-taker and megalomaniac.”

In reality, said his legal representative, he is “a genuine Polish patriot”. 

Among those accused of libeling Kobylanski are: Adam Michnik (an editor-in-chief of a daily Gazeta Wyborcza), Jerzy Baczynski (an editor-in-chief of a weekly Polityka), Grzegorz Gauden (a former editor-in-chief of a daily Rzeczpospolita), Tomasz Wroblewski (a former editor-in-chief of a weekly Newsweek Polska), Ryszard Schnepf (an ambassador to Madrid), Daniel Passent (a former ambassador to Chile and a journalist) Jaroslaw Gugala (a former ambassador to Uruguay and a journalist).

The case continues. (mg/pg)