Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-03-30-Speech-2-213"
Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
---|---|
rdf:type | |
dcterms:Date | |
dcterms:Is Part Of | |
dcterms:Language | |
lpv:document identification number |
"en.20040330.6.2-213"2
|
lpv:hasSubsequent | |
lpv:speaker | |
lpv:spokenAs | |
lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, as we have maintained and pointed out to this Parliament and the Council on many occasions, the latest tragedies that have taken place in Kosovo show that peace and democracy are not things that are obtained for ever, not even in Europe, but objectives that must be reconfirmed every day. Not only peace and democracy are being challenged but also the dignity of the person and respect for a common cultural heritage.
The destruction of monasteries in Kosovo, carried out with the sole aim of destroying the symbols of a culture that has the same roots as the European Union, shows how there is a set political agenda at the basis of international terrorism and the resulting guerrilla warfare in some countries, against which our inertia is not just a sign of dangerous weakness but also a harbinger of further tragedies.
The Union must step up its presence in Kosovo and call on the Albanian, Serbian and Montenegrin authorities to defend the rights of the minorities and protect Serbian Orthodox cultural sites. It does not make sense to have quite rightly protested against the Buddha being destroyed by the Taliban in Afghanistan if then the politicians and intellectuals remain shamefully silent about the destruction of so many Orthodox churches and monuments, which belong to a culture that embodies the values that we are endeavouring to protect. The valuable frescoes that have for centuries adorned the Orthodox temples and monasteries in the Balkan region are the heritage of humankind as a whole and must be safeguarded and protected from any risk of destructive folly, as we have stressed in our resolution. The Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs did well to make more men available to NATO to strengthen the contingent charged with keeping the peace and guaranteeing safety. For its part, the United Nations should provide for a programme to reconstruct the destroyed resources and to outline Kosovo’s final statute. What we also want, however, is a stronger presence for Europe, and this is why we would point out that a European army, as called for by the Convention, is an objective that cannot be put off any longer."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples