All news

Russian NGOs present report on Nazi glorification in Baltic states

A co-author of report said it was "a task of great importance to put the end to any possibility of revival of Nazi ideology and glorification of Nazi collaborators"

GENEVA, July 10. /TASS/. Russian non-governmental organizations presented a report about glorification of the Nazi regime in Baltic countries on the sidelines of the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva

"At present, several hundred of people who were possibly involved in Nazi war crimes are still living in the Baltic states and other countries. Prosecuting them is an important task," a co-author of the report, head of the Historical Memory foundation Alexander Dyukov, said at the presentation. "We are also convinced that the policy of glorifying Nazi criminals, conducted by Baltic governments, gives grounds for raising the question of those states’ responsibilities for some of the crimes committed."

He also called upon ensuring Latvia’s implementation of the Terezin Declaration on Holocaust Era Assets and Related Issues, adopted at a conference in Czech Republic in June 2009, which calls for the return the property of victims of Holocaust and other Nazi crimes to their legitimate owners. According to Dyukov, the majority of eastern European countries observed provisions of this document, but Riga did not.

In turn, Mikhail Chernov, who chairs the Foundation for the Support and Development of Jewish Culture, Traditions, Education and Science, said it was "a task of great importance to put the end to any possibility of revival of Nazi ideology and glorification of Nazi collaborators in Europe and everywhere else in the world."

"Inside the European Union there are states and territories where glorification of Nazi collaborators and the Nazis is a part of state agenda," he said.

"We can mention the Baltic states and unfortunately add to them Ukraine. These states show ignorance of the international law and the basic principles of the EU policies in this regard," Chernov continued. "These states emerged as a sanctuary for antihuman and antisemitic ideas".

These ideas "are legitimized within Baltic states and get direct support from the governments," he added.

In an interview to TASS, Chernov said it was particularly important to present the report in Geneva.

"We must remember the past and must not let this happen again," he said. "To prevent this from happening, we need to crack down on Nazi supporters by legitimate means wherever we can.".