REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND TO THE COUNCIL The memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes in Europe
Date: 2010-12-22
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, authoritarian regime, citizens' Europe, crime against humanity, history of Europe, public awareness campaign, restorative justice

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 22.12.2010 
COM(2010) 783 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
TO THE COUNCIL  

The memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes in Europe 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Throughout history, totalitarian regimes have resulted in violations of fundamental rights and 
in  the  complete  denial  of  any  semblance  of  human  dignity.  Most  Member  States  have 
experienced such a tragic past. Now, as stated in the 2007 Berlin Declaration on the occasion 
of  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  signature  of  the  Treaties  of  Rome,  "European  integration 
shows that we have learnt the painful lessons of a history marked by bloody conflict. Today 
we live together as was never possible before." 

The memory of Europe's history is the common heritage of all Europeans, today and of future 
generations.  Reconciliation  with  the  legacy  of  the  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes 
requires  sharing  and  promoting  this  memory.  The  Stockholm  Programme1,  underlines  that 
"The Union is an area of shared values, values which are incompatible with crimes against 
humanity,  genocide  and  war  crimes,  including  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes. 
Each Member State has its own approach to this issue but, in the interests of reconciliation, 
the  memory  of  those  crimes  must  be  a  collective  memory,  shared  and  promoted,  where 
possible, by us all. The Union must play the role of facilitator."  

In November 2008 the Council adopted the Framework Decision on combating certain forms 
and  expressions  of  racism  and  xenophobia  by  means  of  criminal  law.  The  Framework 
Decision is limited to crimes committed on the grounds of race, colour, religion, descent or 
national or ethnic origin. It does not cover crimes committed on other grounds, for example 
by totalitarian regimes. The statement added to the minutes of the Council at the moment of 
adoption of the Framework Decision requested the Commission to examine and to report to 
the Council within two years after the entry into force of the Framework Decision whether an 
additional instrument is needed, to cover publicly condoning, denying or grossly trivializing 
crimes  of  genocide,  crimes  against  humanity  and  war  crimes  directed  against  a  group  of 
persons defined by reference to criteria other than race, colour, religion, descent or national or 
ethnic origin, such as social status or political convictions. This request was reiterated in the 
Stockholm Programme. 

The  importance  of  keeping  the  memories  of  the past  alive  has  also  been  highlighted  by  the 
European  Parliament  in  its  Resolution  of  2  April  2009  on  "European  conscience  and 
totalitarianism".  The  European  Parliament  underlines  that  this  is  particularly  important 
because there can be no reconciliation without truth and remembrance. 

Member  States  have  dealt  with,  and  are  continuing  to  deal  with,  the  sensitive  and  complex 
issue of how best to establish  the truth and how to record history so that future generations 
can learn from the horrors and crimes that have happened in the past. Each Member State has 
found its own way to deal with these issues and the Commission can facilitate this process by 
encouraging discussion and sharing of experiences and promoting best practices. 

This  report  aims  to  present  how  the  Commission  intends  to  play  a  meaningful  role  in  this 
process  and  to  provide  a  basis  for  further  discussion  on  how  the  European  Union  can 
contribute to promoting the memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes. It also 
aims to answer the request from the Council to report on the need of an additional instrument 
in this area. 

1 

Adopted by the European Council on 10/11 December 2009; OJ C 115 , 04/05/2010 P. 0001 - 0038 

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1.1. 

Preparation of the Report 

In  order  to  prepare  this  report  the  Commission  took  a  number  of  preparatory  initiatives.  In 
November 2007, the Commission organised a high level seminar in Brussels on " How to deal 
with the totalitarian memory of Europe: Victims and reconciliation".2  

The  statement  added  to  the  minutes  of  the  Council  at  the  moment  of  adoption  of  the 
Framework Decision indicated that the Commission will organize a public European hearing 
on  crimes  of  genocide,  crimes  against  humanity  and  war  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian 
regimes as well as those who publicly condone, deny, grossly trivialize them, and emphasizes 
the  need  for  appropriate  redress  of  injustice  and-if  appropriate-submits  a  proposal  for  a 
framework decision on these crimes. This hearing was held in Brussels on 8 April 2008 and 
was organised jointly by the Commission with the Slovenian Presidency3.  

In  2009  the  Commission  financed  a  study  by  an  independent  institute  with  the  aim  of 
providing  a  factual  overview  of  the  methods  used  in  Member  States  to  deal  with  issues 
relating  to  the  memory  of  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes4.  This  "Study  how  the 
memory of crimes committed by totalitarian regimes in Europe is  dealt with in the Member 
States"  ('the  study')  has  been  achieved  at  the  beginning  of  2010  and  transmitted  to  the 
Member States and the European Parliament. The study is available on the Commission web 
site. 

In  May  2010  a  questionnaire  was  sent  to  the  Member  States  aiming  to  obtain  factual 
information on the situation in the Member States regarding the memory of crimes committed 
by totalitarian regimes5. 

2. 

THE  MEMORY  OF  THE  CRIMES  COMMITTED  BY  TOTALITARIAN  REGIMES  – 
SITUATION IN THE MEMBER STATES 

2.1. 

Overview 

The  study  reveals  that  all  Member  States  concerned  have  taken  measures  to  deal  with  the 
legacy of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes. Member States have adopted different 
approaches according to their history, specific circumstances, culture and legal systems. The 
study  shows  that  there  is  no  one-size-fits-all  model,  and  that  the  mix  of  instruments  and 
methods used in each Member State (justice for victims, justice for perpetrators, truth seeking, 
preservation  of  the  memory,  awareness-raising  initiatives,  etc.)  is  country-specific.  Even 
among Member States that have suffered the same kind of totalitarian regimes, the choice of 
instruments, measures and practices adopted may differ significantly. 

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The aim of the seminar was to help the Commission attain a greater knowledge of the various aspects 
related to these issues and to identify the subjects to be discussed at the public European hearing. 
The  hearing  was  organised  around  the  two  key  issues  of  recognition  and  reconciliation.  The 
SlovenianPresidency published the reports of this hearing: "Crimes committed by totalitarian regimes". 
Reports and proceedings of the 8 April European public hearing on crimes committed by totalitarian 
regimes" Edited by Peter Jambrek.  
Study on how the memory of crimes committed by totalitarian regimes in Europe is dealt with in the 
Member States. Submitted by Prof. Dr. Carlos Closa Montero. Institute for Public Goods and Policy.  
Centre 
Spain. 
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/doc_centre/rights/studies/docs/memory_of_crimes_en.pdf 
16  Member  States  have  answered  to  the  questionnaire:  LV,  LT,  EE,  PL,  HU,  SK,  SL,  BG,  RO,  BE, 
IRL, SE, FI, PT, ES, DE. 

Sciences. 

Madrid, 

Human 

Social 

CSIC. 

and 

of 

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Justice for victims is important for the successful transition from totalitarianism to democracy. 
Trials  of  perpetrators,  truth-seeking  mechanisms,  the  opening  of  archives,  lustration 
procedures,  rehabilitation  and  compensations  of  victims  and  restitution  of  confiscated 
properties are among the main tools for achieving this objective. The study also reveals the 
variety of interested parties involved, in particular NGO, official and non official bodies. For 
instance,  Estonia,  Latvia,  Poland  and  Slovenia  have  created  official  bodies  with  general 
competence whilst other Member States created specialised bodies.  

Preserving and promoting the memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes is also 
crucial,  in  particular  to  educate  younger  generations  on  the  importance  of  promoting 
democracy and fundamental rights. The study shows that this conviction is one of the few red 
threads  across  the  EU  in  dealing  with  the  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes.  A  well 
preserved,  organised  and  accessible  memory  of  the  horrors  of  the  past  can  become  a  real 
instrument  for  awareness-raising  and  education  purposes.  The  study  also  reveals  the  crucial 
role played by the NGOs in this field.  

2.2. 

Education and awareness raising 

Active  citizenship  education  has  a  major  role  to  play  in  fostering  young  peoples'  civic 
competences  and  democratic  values.  Recent  research  shows  that  education  is  positively  and 
significantly  correlated  with  active  citizenship  behaviour.  Initiatives  aiming  to  inform  and 
educate  about  the  past  include  visits  to  museums,  to  sites  of  martyrdom  and  extermination 
camps, projection of fiction films and documentaries in schools, support for cultural activities 
and artistic creations. Based on the information received by the Commission, it would appear 
that activities related to the awareness and education of the crimes committed by totalitarian 
communist regimes are only in place in the Member States concerned. 

Memorials and monuments dedicated to the memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian 
regimes  exist  basically  in  all  Member  States.  Martyrdom  places,  concentration  and  death 
camps  can  be  found  in  almost  all  Member  States  which  experienced  totalitarianism.  For 
example,  in  some  Member  States  specialised  museums  have  been  dedicated  to  the  crimes 
committed by totalitarian communist regimes (for example, in the Czech Republic,  Estonia, 
Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Romania). 

2.3. 

Remembrance Days 

The  study  highlights  that  remembrance  days  concerning  the  same  events  may  differ  among 
the  Member  States.  For  example,  18  Member  States  commemorate  the  Holocaust  on  27 
January  (international  Holocaust  commemoration  day),  whilst  in  6  Member  States  another 
date was chosen. Five Member States commemorate the day of remembrance of the victims of 
totalitarian regimes (23 August), which was proposed by the European Parliament.  

2.4. 

Research projects 

The  study  reveals  that  the  number  of  research  topics  and  projects  in  this  field  is  important. 
Official  bodies  have  developed  extensive  research  programmes  in  some  Member  States. 
Universities,  private  institutions  and  foundations  have  developed  more  specific  projects. 
Research  projects  focus  in  particular  on  the  establishment  of  historical  facts  concerning 
totalitarian crimes, or on analysing policies in the area of transitional justice. Research on the 
crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  communist  regimes  is  significantly  more  developed  in  the 
Member States which experienced such crimes. 

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2.5. 

The symbols of totalitarianism 

According to the study Member States concerned accomplished in general relatively quickly 
the  removal  of  all  symbols  related  to  their  repressive  past  (e.g.  change  of  street  names, 
removal  of  symbols  from  public  places,  etc).  In  some  Member  States  the  use  of  symbols 
connected with totalitarian regimes is prohibited by the law in explicit terms. For example, in 
three  Member  States  (Hungary,  Lithuania  and  Poland)  this  prohibition  refers  to  the  use  of 
symbols of the communist past. 

2.6. 

The legal framework on the denial of crimes  

The study and the replies to the questionnaires sent by the Commission to the Member States 
reveal the complexity and the divergent approaches of the legal framework applicable in the 
Member  States  to  the  issue  of  the  condoning,  denial  or  the  gross  trivialisation  of  genocide, 
crimes  against  humanity  and  war  crimes  directed  against  a  group  of  persons  defined  by 
reference to criteria other than race, colour, religion, descent or national or ethnic origin, such 
as social status or political convictions 6. The following schematic picture can be drawn.  

Four  Member  States  have  national  legislation  on  the  denial  of  crimes  committed  by 
totalitarian regimes which explicitly includes the crimes committed by totalitarian communist 
regimes: 

–  In  the  Czech  Republic  the  criminal  code  contains  a  specific  offence  for  a  person  who 
publicly denies, puts in doubt, approves or tries to justify nazi or communist genocide or 
other crimes of nazis or communists against humanity7. 

–  In Poland the public and counterfactual denial of nazi crimes, communist crimes and other 

crimes against peace and humanity or war crimes is a criminal offence8. 

–  In Hungary the public denial, call into question or trivialisation of the fact of the genocide 
and  other  crimes  against  humanity  committed  by  the  national  socialist  and  communist 
regimes is a criminal offence9.  

–  In  Lithuania  the  publicly  condoning,  denying  or  grossly  trivialising  international  crimes 
and crimes committed by the USSR or nazi Germany against the Republic of Lithuania or 
residents thereof it is a criminal offence10.  

In the other Member States, with the exception of Latvia11, it seems impossible or difficult to 
envisage a situation where the condoning, denial or the gross trivialisation of genocide, crimes 
against humanity and war crimes directed against a group of persons defined by reference to 
criteria  other  than  race,  colour,  religion,  descent  or  national  or  ethnic  origin  could  be 
incriminated. This is because of the absence of legislation on the denial of crimes of genocide, 

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The study present a systematic overview of the situation in Member States (see § 3.3.) 
New criminal code (in effect from January 1, 2010) § 405. 
Article 55  of  the  Act  establishing  the  Institute  of  National  Remembrance  -  Commission  for  the 
Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation of 18 December 1998. 
Amendment to the Criminal Code entered into force on 24 July 2010. 
Article 170 of the Criminal Code. 
The  reply  from  Latvia  to  the  questionnaire  indicates  that,  on  the  basis  of  Articles  74  and  71  of  the 
Criminal  law,  the  denial  of  genocide,  crimes  against  humanity,  crimes  against  peace  and  war  crimes 
based, among others, on political belief or social class could be considered as a criminal offence.  

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crimes  against  humanity  or  war  crimes  (irrespective  of  the  grounds)  or  because  the 
incrimination for such conduct excludes the grounds of social status or political convictions or 
because such incrimination would have implication on the freedom of expression. However, 
certain  replies  to  the  questionnaire  mention  that  an  incrimination  on  the  basis  of  other 
provision of criminal law could not be excluded, for example on the basis of the prohibition of 
incitement to hatred or for having violated the "memory of deceased persons". 

From the study and the replies to the questionnaire, it would appear that there is no case in 
which a national court  would  have  condemned  a  person  for  publicly  condoning,  denying  or 
grossly  trivializing  crimes  of  genocide,  crimes  against  humanity  and  war  crimes  directed 
against  a  group  of  persons  defined  by  reference  to  criteria  other  than  race,  colour,  religion, 
descent or national or ethnic origin. 

3. 

ACTION AT EU LEVEL TO PRESERVE AND PROMOTE THE MEMORY 

In its Resolution of 2 April 2009 the European Parliament underlined the importance of the 
issue of promoting the  memory of  totalitarian crimes. On 16 June 2009 the General Affairs 
Council  adopted  conclusions  stating  that,  "in  order  to  strengthen  European  awareness  of 
crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes,  the  memory  of  Europe’s  troubled  past  must  be 
preserved, as reconciliation would be difficult without remembrance". 

The idea of promoting across the EU a shared memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian 
regimes  was  also  expressed  at  the  hearing  organised  by  the  Commission  and  the  Slovenian 
Presidency in April 2008. This hearing and other conferences have brought to light a strong 
feeling that the Member States in Western Europe should be more aware of the tragic past of 
the Member States in Eastern Europe. 

A number of international conferences has also underlined the importance of this dimension, 
such as the international conference in the Senate of the Czech Republic in June 2008 which 
adopted a declaration on "European Conscience and Communism" (the "Prague Declaration") 
or the Conference on "Crimes of Communism" organised in February 2010 by the "Institute 
for  the  Study  of  Totalitarian  Regimes,  the  conference  "Europe  70  years  after  the  Molotov-
Ribbentrop  Pact"  organised  in  October  2009  by  the  Baltic  States  under  the  auspices  of  the 
President  of  the  European  Parliament.  In  the  European  Parliament,  an  informal  group  of 
MEPs on "Reconciliation of European Histories" has been established whose main objective 
is  to  reconcile  the  different  historical  narratives  in  Europe  and  to  consolidate  them  into  a 
united European memory of the past. 

At  these  events  a  number  of  requests  for  action  have  been  formulated  as  regards  the 
preservation of memory and promotion of awareness on the crimes committed by totalitarian 
communist  regimes.  An  example  of  the  wide  range  of  measures  and  expectations  can  be 
found  in  the  "Contribution  of  the  first  European  Hearing  on  "Crimes  Committed  by 
totalitarian regimes" signed by a number of participants at the hearing of 8 April12. 

In its Resolution of 2 April 2009, the European Parliament called for the Proclamation of 23 
August  as  a  Europe-wide  Day  of  Remembrance  for  the  victims  of  all  totalitarian  and 

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Reproduced in the Report and proceedings of the hearing published by the Slovenian Presidency (see 
above) 

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authoritarian  regimes,  to  be  commemorated  with  dignity  and  impartiality.  Estonia,  Latvia, 
Lithuania, Slovenia and Sweden already observed this Day of Remembrance. 

The  Commission  is  committed  to  contributing,  in  line  with  its  responsibilities,  to  the 
promotion  of  the  memory  of  the  crimes  committed  by  totalitarian  regimes  in  Europe.  The 
Commission  considers  that  it  is  important  to  address  knowledge  gaps  concerning  the 
totalitarian past of all Member States, and especially concerning the period of time in which 
Eastern  and  Western  Europe  have  lived  two  different  experiences.  The  memory  and 
awareness of the tragic past and of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes should bring 
together the peoples of Europe. It is important to contribute to the recognition of, and support 
for, all victims of the totalitarian regimes that have devastated Europe. The Commission can 
facilitate  the  exchange  of  experiences  and  practices  in  this  area.  This  will  also  confirm  the 
importance of the values of respect for human dignity, freedom and democracy on which the 
European Union is founded. 

3.1. 

The full use of EU financial programmes 

The  Commission  is  ready  to  use  its  financial  programmes  to  assist  interested  parties  to 
support and promote the memory of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes. EU funding 
can be particularly relevant to promote cross border and European projects.  

3.1.1.  The "Europe for Citizens" programme 

Action  4  "Active  European  Remembrance"  of  the  Europe  for  Citizens  programme13  is 
designed to keep alive the memory of the victims of nazism and stalinism and to improve the 
knowledge  about  what  took  place  in  the  camps  and  other  places  of  mass  extermination  of 
civilians.  This  action  supports  projects  for  the preservation  of  the  main  sites  and  memorials 
associated  with  mass  deportations,  former  concentration  camps  and  other  large-scale 
martyrdom  and  extermination  sites  of  nazism,  as  well  as  the  archives  documenting  these 
events and for keeping alive the memory of the victims, as well as the memory of those who, 
under  extreme  conditions,  rescued  people  from  the  Holocaust.  This  action  supports  also 
projects for the commemoration of the victims of mass exterminations and mass deportations 
associated  with  Stalinism,  as  well  as  the  preservation  of  the  memorials  and  archives 
documenting  these  events.  The  decision  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council 
establishing  the  Programme,  in  its  annex,  allocates  to  "Active  European  Remembrance" 
approximately 4% of the total resources of the programme (the global amount for the period 
2007-2013 being 215 million).  

•  Given its strategic importance for promoting the values upon which the Union is founded 
and considering the increasing number of high quality proposals, for the future Programme 
2014-2020,  the  Commission  will  examine  how  this  action  could  dispose  of  sufficient 
resources  in  the  future.  The  Commission  has  already  started  its  preparation  for  the  next 
programme generation. 

•  As part of the structured dialogue carried out in the framework of the Europe for Citizens 
programme, the Commission is considering holding regular meetings dedicated to Active 
European  Remembrance  with  a  view  to  exchanging  experiences,  analyse  best  practices, 
bringing together key beneficiaries and stakeholders including academic and independent 
researchers and experts in that area. 

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Decision  n°  1904/2006/CE  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  12  December  2006 
establishing for the period 2007 to 2013 the programme" Europe for Citizens". 

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3.1.2.  Other European Union Programmes 

Other programmes can contribute to the promotion of the memory of the crimes committed by 
totalitarian regimes: 

–  Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development. This 
programme  can  fund  actions  related  to  the  totalitarian  past  of  Europe.  The  Work 
Programme for 2010 under theme 8, "Socioeconomic sciences and humanities" includes a 
specific call for proposals on the topic: "Democracy and the shadows of totalitarianism and 
populism:  the  European  experience".14  This  call  will  support  a  large  scale  collaborative 
project  involving  research  institutes  in  several  EU  Member  States  which  aim  to  help  to 
overcome the heritage of the "divided continent" in which the experience and memories of 
recent  totalitarianism  differ  from  one  group  of  Member  States  to  the  other.  The 
Commission  has  received  10  proposals  under  this  topic  and  negotiation  is  ongoing 
following the evaluation by the independent experts and the selection procedure. 

–  MEDIA 2007 is a programme for the European audiovisual industry. Its objectives are to 
preserve  and  enhance  the  European  cultural  diversity  and  its  cinematographic  and 
audiovisual  heritage,  to  guarantee  accessibility  to  this  for  Europeans,  and  to  promote 
intercultural  dialogue  and  increase  the  circulation  of  European  audiovisual  works  inside 
and outside the European Union. In line with these objectives, MEDIA 2007 can support 
films  and  other  audiovisual  work  dealing  with  issues  related  to  the  totalitarian  past.  (e.g. 
the  film  "The  Life  Of  The  Others"  Das  Leben  der  Anderen  was  supported  by  this 
programme). Funding under MEDIA can also include (but not exclusively) the cost of the 
subtitling  of  audiovisual  works,  which  is  crucial  for  facilitating  the  circulation  between 
Member States of audiovisual works on these issues. 

–  The  Information  and  Communication  Technologies  Support  Programme  (ICT-PSP) 
supports the targeted digitisation of cultural material under one of the objectives related to 
Europeana15.  This  programme  could  be  useful  to  digitise  content  relating  to  totalitarian 
crimes (e.g. books, audiovisual, sound, archival records). Projects financed must be held by 
cultural institutions from different European countries, and the themes must be of interest 
to  a  broad  public  or  content  should  be  made  available  for  citizens  through  Europeana 
immediately after digitisation. 

–  The EU Lifelong Learning programme supports transnational projects promoting active 
citizenship education towards tolerance values, better knowledge of European history and 
cultural  heritage  and  democratic  behaviour.  The  Commission  is  also  working  on  an 
analytical model of active citizenship education covering two composite indicators, one for 
adults and one on civic skills of pupils. The working definition of active citizenship used 
for  this  purpose  is  'participation  in  civil  society,  community  and/or  political  life, 
characterised  by  mutual  respect  and  non-violence  and  in  accordance  with  human  rights 
and  democracy'.  Promoting  active  citizenship  education  in  formal,  informal  and  non-
formal learning settings enables tolerance values, democratic behaviour and mutual respect 
in cultural and historical terms. Civic competences based on knowledge of the concepts of 
democracy,  justice,  equality,  citizenship  and  human  rights  are  part  of  the  European  Key 

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ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/fp7/docs/wp/cooperation/ssh/h_wp_201001_en.pdf 
Multi-lingual  online  collection  of  millions  of  digitized  items  from  European  museums,  libraries, 
archives and multi-media collections. 

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Competences Reference Framework adopted by the Education Council16 and implemented 
at national level.. 

•  The Commission will better inform the potential beneficiaries dealing with the memory of 
totalitarian crimes of the existence of the possibility of funding under these programmes. 

3.2. 

23 August as a Europe-wide Day of Remembrance  

The  Europe-wide  Day  of  Remembrance  for  the  victims  of  all  totalitarian  and  authoritarian 
regimes proclaimed by the European Parliament has been observed so far in Estonia, Latvia, 
Lithuania, Slovenia and Sweden.  

The Commission encourages the Member States to examine the possibility to adhere to this 
initiative in the light of their own history and specificities. 

3.3. 

Platform of European Memory and Conscience 

In its Resolution of 2 April 2009, the European Parliament has called for the establishment of 
a  Platform  of  European  Memory  and  Conscience  to  provide  support  for  networking  and 
cooperation  among  national  research  institutes  specialising  in  the  subject  of  totalitarian 
history, and for the creation of a pan-European documentation centre/memorial for the victims 
of  all  totalitarian  regimes.  It  also  calls  for  a  strengthening  of  the  existing  relevant  financial 
instruments with a view to providing support for professional historical research on the issues 
outlined above. The conclusions of the GAERC Council on 16 June 2009 have welcomed this 
initiative that would provide support for networking and cooperation among national bodies 
related  to  the  examination  and  remembrance  of  totalitarian  regimes.  Bringing  together  all 
actors from all Member States, including academic and independent researchers and experts, 
in  order  to  exchange  experiences,  analysis  and  best  practices,  including  on  how  Member 
States  promote  collective  memory  through  educational  curricula,  is  a  way  to  contribute  to 
promote awareness and exchange of experiences in this area. 

•  Such a Platform could be eligible, after one year of formal legal existence, to apply for an 
annual  operating  grant  under  the  Europe  for  Citizens  programme.  The  Commission 
considers that it is important that exchange of experiences and best practices bring together 
all  actors  from  all  Member  States,  including  academic  and  independent  researchers  and 
experts. 

3.4. 

Scope for harmonisation at EU level? 

The  Council  asked  the  Commission  to  examine  whether  an  instrument,  additional  to  the 
Framework  Decision  on  racism  and  xenophobia,  is  needed  to  cover  publicly  condoning, 
denying  or  grossly  trivializing  crimes  of  genocide,  crimes  against  humanity  and  war  crimes 
directed  against  a  group  of  persons  defined  by  reference  to  criteria  other  than  race,  colour, 
religion, descent or national or ethnic origin, such as social status or political convictions. 

Article 83 TFEU is the legal basis for the definition of criminal offences and sanctions in the 
areas of particularly serious crime with a cross border dimension resulting from the nature or 
impact of such offences or from a special need to combat them on a common basis. Article 83 
(1)  TFEU  lists  these  areas.  Public  condoning,  denying  or  grossly  trivializing  crimes  of 

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genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes directed against a group of persons defined 
by reference to criteria other than race, colour, religion, descent or national or ethnic origin is 
not  one  of  these  areas.  The  list  of  areas  can  be  extended  unanimously  by  the  Council,  after 
obtaining the consent of the European Parliament on the basis of developments in crime. 

The study showed that for the time being each Member State has adopted different measures 
(e.g.  justice  for  victims,  justice  for  perpetrators,  fact-finding,  symbolic  policies,  etc.) 
depending  on  its  specific  national  circumstances.  Even  among  Member  States  with  similar 
experiences of totalitarian regimes, the legal instruments, measures and practices adopted may 
be  different  as  may  be  the  timing  for  their  adoption  and  implementation.  The  Commission 
considers therefore that at this stage the conditions to use this possibility have not been met 
but it will keep the matter under review.  

4. 

CONCLUSIONS 

The Commission is convinced that the European Union has a role to play, within the scope of 
its powers in this area, to contribute to the processes engaged in the Member States to face up 
to  the  legacy  of  totalitarian  crimes.  The  European  Union  is  founded  on  the  respect  of 
fundamental  rights  and  is  a  constant  inspiration  and  source  of  encouragement  to  all  nations 
struggling to come to terms with the sufferings of their past. The memory of the horrors of the 
past  must  be  a  shared  endeavour  for  all  in  the  European  Union  to  make  a  reality  of  the 
expression "Your past is our past". Keeping this memory alive is our collective duty as a sign 
of tribute and respect for all victims who have suffered and died and as a way to ensure that it 
never  happen  again.  This  memory  nourishes  the  commitment  of  the  European  Union  to 
democracy and the respect of fundamental rights, and to fight against modern manifestations 
of intolerance and extremism. 

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