On April 2nd, the European Parliament asked to “proclaim August 23rd as the European Memorial Day for the Victims of Stalinism and Nazism, to commemorate them in a dignified and unbiased way”. So the Justice and Peace Commission of the Slovenian Bishops Conference invited the Slovenian public opinion to celebrate, yesterday, the European Memorial Day for the Slovenian Victims of Totalitarian and Dictatorial Regimes: first and foremost, the victims of the Nazi and Fascist occupation, then the revolution carried out by the Communist Party. “We Slovenians – reads the document signed by mgr. Anton Stres, archbishop coadjutor of Maribor and president of the Justice and Peace Commission – are one of those European peoples that have been hit hardest by the fascist, Nazi and communist terror and violence. In Slovenian public opinion, Nazism and fascism are appropriately rated and rejected, while for the totalitarian communist regime we are still waiting for an unequivocal condemnation”. “The reasons – the text reads – are varied. One can be found in the fact communism stayed in power for a long time in Slovenia, hiding its real face”.

© SIR - August 24 2009