ĐOKIĆ: LAGUMDŽIJA'S MOVE UNACCEPTABLE AND DISTURBING

BANJA LUKA, NOVEMBER 13 /SRNA/ - Petar Đokić, president of the Socialist Party /SP/, said that the move by BiH Ambassador to the UN, Zlatko Lagumdžija, to vote against the amended draft resolution on combating the glorification of Nazism and neo-Nazism at the UN General Assembly's committee was utterly unacceptable and deeply disturbing.

"People in this region did not learn about Nazism from books. They experienced it through suffering, persecution, concentration camps, and mass atrocities," Đokić stressed.

Đokić said that it was therefore incomprehensible that anyone today would fail to clearly and unequivocally commit to condemning an ideology that left millions of victims and indelible scars on human history.

"Of particular concern is the fact that this position is being taken at a time when attempts to relativize Nazi crimes and glorify the ideologies defeated in the Second World War are becoming increasingly prevalent across Europe and the region," Đokić stressed.

Đokić said there must be no political manoeuvring or excuses when it comes to condemning Nazism, as this is not a question of East or West, but of basic human and civilizational responsibility, the Socialist Party said in a statement.

"Anyone who is not prepared to unreservedly support the fight against the glorification of Nazism is sending an extremely bad and dangerous message to future generations," Đokić stressed.

He said that the Socialist Party remains firmly committed to preserving anti-fascist values and a culture of remembrance for the victims of Nazi and fascist ideology, and will always oppose any attempt to relativize or justify them.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution titled Combating the Glorification of Nazism, Neo-Nazism and Other Practices that Contribute to Fueling Contemporary Forms of Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, proposed by Russia.

The document was supported by 117 countries, including Serbia, while 53 countries voted against it, among them the United States, NATO member states and Ukraine, as well as BiH, Croatia and Montenegro.