It was possible to predict situation in Crimea much earlier, but western countries did not want to see what was going on there. That was a statement of the Finnish writer Sofi Oksanen, participant of the conference “Totalitarian Legacy today”. The Conference took place these days in Prague.
Crises in Ukraine is in the centre of attention at Prague conference. Participants discussed questions of saving national memory, the necessity to study crimes of the totalitarian regimes.
Milushe Gorska, Senate Vice Head (higher hall of Czech Parliament), pointed on the necessity to “keep in memory times, when freedom was not evident; and 25 years after “metal curtain” fall it is still necessary to pay attention to the countries where totalitarian legacy pauses real threat”.
“Ukrainian lesson shows that totalitarianism does not disappear, it can raise its head and revenge” Volodymyr Viatrovych, Director of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, emphasised. “Twenty three years of the independence showed that totalitarian legacy, which was not overcome, distort today’s reality, making it close to its distorted standards.
During the conference Ukraine was considered an important element of Europe, in particular ex Speaker of the Lithuanian Parliament, EU Parliament Member, Vytautas Landsbergis stated: “Ukraine struggles for its existence now. The future of the whole Europe depends whether it manages to withstand in struggle with Russia”.
Andriy Kohut, Vice Head of the Center for Research on the Liberation Movement, analysing the totalitarian legacy in Ukraine in the contest of EuroMaidan history, has summarised: “Searching and striving for Ukraine in Europe, Ukraine has managed to find Europe in Ukraine. And this is the achievement, which opens new perspective for us and makes us important not only for the East, but for the West as well.”
Prague conference had among its participants former Lithuania President Vytautas Landsbergis, Ukrainian historian Volodymyr Viatrovych, Crimean Tatars leader Mustafa Dzhemilev, Russian dissident Oleksander Podrabinek, Polish researcher from the National Memory Institute Krzysztof Persak, Head of Czech Confederation of political prisoners Nadezhda Kavalirova, and a number of researchers, scientists, dissidents from Germany, Sweden, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Estonia.
Crimean Tatars leader Mustafa Dzhemilev was awarded a reward of the Platform of European Memory and Conscience for personal contribution and tireless efforts in human rights and fundamental democratic values and freedoms protection during times of totalitarian Soviet Union and independent Ukraine.
Two days international conference in Prague “Totalitarian legacy today” was organised by the Platform of European Memory and Conscience under the patronage of the Czech Parliament Senate Head Milushe Gorska in cooperation with the International Vyshegrad Foundation, Czech institute on study of totalitarian regimes under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture of Czech Republic.
