(2004/C 33 E/004)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1954/02

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(3 July 2002)

Subject:   European Year of Remembrance and Reconciliation

What consideration is the Commission giving to whether it would be desirable to designate 2005 as the European Year of Remembrance and Reconciliation in order to positively mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(7 October 2002)

The Commission has given careful consideration to the suggestion that 2005 should be designated as the ‘European Year of Remembrance and Reconciliation’.

It is clearly desirable that the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War — the end of war within the boundaries of our Union — should be marked in a positive way. The Commission believes, however, that the process of enlargement including the welcoming of new Members of the Parliament and new Members of the Commission is its most tangible demonstration of reconciliation. It is, of course, precisely because it remembers the First and Second World Wars and the sacrifices made by its fellow Europeans that the Commission is determined to ensure the peace, security and stability of an enlarged Union.

Whilst the Commission is not proposing to designate 2005 as the European Year of Remembrance and Reconciliation as suggested by the Honourable Member, it is considering the possibility of focusing activities on 9 May 2005 on these specific themes. This would be an effective means of informing citizens of the very essence of the Union, of the values on which the Union was founded and which continue to guide the aims and objectives of the enlarged Union. The celebration of the peaceful enlarged Union of 2005 would be fitting act of remembrance.