European Parliament tackles its Nazi imagery problem
BRUSSELS - The European Parliament has sanctioned an Italian lawmaker who wore a T-shirt with an image combining Adolf Hitler and German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a plenary session two weeks ago.
The assembly said in a statement on Tuesday that it fined Gianluca Buonanno 3,060 euros ($3,378) and suspended him from activities in parliament for 10 days. He is still allowed to vote.
During a later debate with Merkel present, Buonanno wore a Hitler-style moustache and gave a Nazi salute.
Guardate che maglietta ho indossato al Parlamento Europeo mentre si parlava di Volkswagen... E scoppia il caos!!! pic.twitter.com/ylRZezRe9e
— Gianluca Buonanno (@BuonannoG) October 6, 2015
Polish deputy Janusz Korwin-Mikke received the same sanction for using a Nazi salute in the assembly in July.
Korwin-Mikke also referred to migrants as "human garbage."
The arrival of hundreds of thousands of migrants in Europe this year has sparked an outcry among far-right politicians.