STEVANDIĆ: EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ADDRESSES NDH AND USTASHA CRIMES FOR FIRST TIME

STRASBOURG, APRIL 27 /SRNA/ – The exhibition "Jasenovac Concentration Camp: Memory and Legacy" opened this evening in Strasbourg, marking the first time that the NDH and Ustasha crimes have been addressed in the European Parliament, Speaker of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska Nenad Stevandić has stated.

"We must shed light on this historical revisionism and condemn not only the NDH system and Nazism as one of the bloodiest periods in human history", said Stevandić, who attended the opening in Strasbourg with a National Assembly delegation. He stressed that Serb victims must not remain without remembrance and respect. "We Serbs have long waited for the opportunity for this truth to go beyond our borders, not to lament among ourselves, but to challenge historical revisionism from a place where Croatia and the Balkans can be seen more clearly", Stevandić said. He noted that the exhibition is a good way to present the truth beyond national borders, with the aim of preventing the glorification of the Ustasha movement, including concerts held in their name and countering historical revisionism as a political trend in the Balkans, particularly in Croatia, which he said has shown disrespect for all victims. According to him, Serbs do not show animosity or hatred toward any nation, but point out that double standards are unacceptable - presenting oneself as European while celebrating Nazis or fascists in Croatia or BiH. He reminded that the glorification of such ideologies is banned in Europe, noting that Marko Perković Thompson would not be able to hold concerts elsewhere in Europe, but does so in Croatia. "It is important that this was jointly prepared by the Archives of Republika Srpska and Vojvodina, making it a major joint project of Republika Srpska and Serbia. The European Parliament session begins tomorrow and over the next three days the exhibition will be available to all members of the European Parliament", Stevandić pointed out. He added that Republika Srpska and Serbia are historically, civilizationally and culturally among the oldest parts of Europe. Stevandić is leading a National Assembly delegation that includes MPs Mladen Ilić, Milan Trninić, and Maja Dragojević-Stojić.