Doc. 10447

26 January 2005

Establishment of a European remembrance centre for victims of forced population movements and ethnic cleansing

Opinion¹

Committee on Culture, Science and Education

Rapporteur: Mr Lluis Maria de Puig, Spain, Socialist Group

The Committee on Culture, Science and Education acknowledges history as part of the individual and collective cultural identity of contemporary Europeans. The new draft Council of Europe Framework Convention on the value of cultural heritage for society sees memory as part of heritage and recognises the cultural heritage of communities. While stressing the importance of historical awareness, we would also insist on a critical approach to the political manipulation of history and on the need to avoid the unnecessary reawakening of past disputes. Reference to the historical perspective is appropriate when this is in the spirit of promoting present-day tolerance and as a means of avoiding the recurrence of past crimes against humanity. This is the stated aim of the draft recommendation (paragraph 5) and can be supported. To avoid unnecessary controversy, however, the specific references (paragraph 2) would best be dropped.

Much work is already being done in this general area by the Council of Europe. The European Ministers of Education (meeting in Strasbourg in October 2002) proposed a day of Holocaust remembrance and the prevention of crimes against humanity. A project now exists on “Teaching remembrance - Education for the prevention of crimes against humanity” further to Recommendation (2001) 15 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on history teaching in twenty-first-century Europe. The Council of Europe also has a body dedicated to the on-going fight against racism and intolerance (ECRI). Reference should be made to these activities.

A difficulty with the present report is that it relates to a specific category of persons (victims of forced population movement), a specific date (during or after World War II) and a specific centre. We would have preferred a wider context for a centre that is given such importance in our Assembly deliberations and especially if it is to be mentioned as an item in the Declaration to be adopted at the Third Summit.

Proposed changes to the draft recommendation in Doc. 10378

A. In paragraph 1, insert after “by reason of their ethnicity” the words “or political and religious.beliefs”.

B. Delete paragraph 2.

C. Replace paragraphs 7.i.c.D and 7.iii by a new sub-paragraph 7.v “support the development of a network of relevant national and international institutions in the context of the Council of Europe’s ongoing project on teaching remembrance”.

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Reporting committee: Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population

Committee for opinion: Committee on Culture, Science and Education

Reference to committee: Doc. 9945, Reference No. 2880 of 25 November 2003

Opinion approved by the committee on 25 January 2005

Secretaries to the committee: MM. Grayson, Ary, Mrs Theophilova-Perpaul, Mr Chahbazian

¹ See Doc. 10378 tabled by the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population