Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-04-04-Speech-2-336"
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"en.20060404.24.2-336"2
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"Mr President, Mr Figel’, Mr Takkula, ladies and gentlemen, in the last century the distinguished historian Hannah Arendt concluded, with wonderful simplicity, but accurately, that nothing is in principle more characteristic of totalitarian regimes and dictators than the astonishingly short space of time it takes for their crimes against humanity to be forgotten and, just as astonishingly, the fact that new tyrants can calmly appear in their place.
The chance to observe new Stalins and Hitlers has unfortunately not disappeared even to this day. For precisely this reason our shared duty is not to allow the crimes committed by the Nazis and Soviet totalitarian Communism to be forgotten. We must remember the horror that occurred when the insane ideas of two tyrants subjected the peoples of Europe to mass murders, people slaughtered in death camps and the distortion of destiny, blackening the pages of Europe’s history.
Regardless of the difference in their individual ideas, both totalitarian regimes can be considered equal. Both Hitler and Stalin organised mass deportations, set up death camps and ordered mass murders, slaughtering millions of people, among them defenceless children. I can say with certainty that nearly every European family has a story to tell about the blighted fates of fathers, brothers or sisters. The crimes of Hitler’s Nazis and of Stalinism cannot and must not be forgotten, particularly this year, when 14 June will mark the passing of 65 years since the start of the ruthless mass deportations from the Baltic states. Thank you, Christopher Beazley, for reminding us of these facts.
Today we should foster among Europe’s peoples understanding of the principles of respect for democracy, freedom and human rights. We should do this so that no contemporary copycat Stalin could ever even dream that he would go unpunished.
We must actively support projects that preserve the memory of Nazism and Stalinism, mass deportations and the dead. We must show our children the places connected with mass deportations and concentration camps and we must preserve the memories of the victims.
I call upon you to vote for a reunification of Europe’s history!"@en1
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