European Parliament resolution on the importance of European historical awareness for the future of Europe (2019/2819 (RSP))

The resolution of the European Parliament on the importance of European historical awareness for the future of Europe (2019/2819 (RSP)) is a resolution of the European Parliament of 19 September 2019. The occasion was the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the beginning of the Second World War on 1 September 1939, the day the German Wehrmacht invaded Poland .

The resolution was the joint motion for a resolution of the three largest parliamentary groups, the European People's Party (EPP), the Progressive Alliance of Social Democrats (S&D) and Renew Europe - formerly the group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) - and the second smallest group, European Conservatives and Reformers (EKR).

535 MPs voted for the resolution, 66 against and 52 abstained.

content

On the one hand, the resolution condemns the resurgence of right-wing, fascist parties in Europe. On the other hand, it equates the inhuman and racist National Socialism , which it sees itself as inhuman , with Soviet communism and describes the Hitler-Stalin Pact concluded on August 23, 1939, as the starting point of the Second World War.

With reference to the fundamental values of the European Union, it reminds us that “the National Socialist and Communist regimes carried out mass murders, genocide and deportations and in the 20th century caused a loss of human life and freedom that had never been seen in human history” and “condemned in the sharpest acts of aggression, the crimes against humanity and the massive human rights violations that were committed by the National Socialists, Communists and other totalitarian regimes. "

A common culture of remembrance and cultural education measures by all member states on the atrocities committed in World War II are intended to strengthen the resistance - especially of the younger generation - to current threats to democracy. It is important to “promote the diversity of our society and our common history.” The document also indicates that there are still monuments and memorials in the public space of some Member States (e.g. in parks, in squares or in streets) who glorify totalitarian regimes, which opens the door to the falsification of historical facts about the causes, course and consequences of World War II. "

In summary, the resolution condemns all forms of expression and any spread of totalitarian ideologies such as National Socialism and Stalinism in the European Union.

criticism

Both the equation of National Socialism with communism and socialism and the portrayal that the Hitler-Stalin Pact was the starting point of the Second World War have provoked criticism on the social left .