3 . Utah Beach D-Day landing site , towards the south . Manche , Normandy , France .. Picture by Jebulon , CC0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Pomeranian town of Demmin . The local museum presented them as victims of “ acts of war and disease ”, while the destruction of the historic centre was claimed to result from the self-defence of the “ Soviet friends ” who had liberated the population from fascism . The Christian Democrat municipal team elected after reunification set the record straight , particularly by collecting testimonies . However , the memory of this tragedy has been ( and still is ) exploited by the AfD , the far-right party that organises an annual demonstration “ in memory of the many innocent children , women and men who lost their lives in April-May 1945 ”. That said , other categories of victims are still awaiting justice . Often of Korean origin , the so-called “ comfort women ” who had been forced into prostitution in Japanese brothels have still not received the symbolic and material recognition that they were entitled to expect from their tormentors . The truth is that the Japanese authorities are reluctant to stitch the open and bleeding wounds of the past .
Divergent policies
In fact , the public authorities have conducted divergent — if not antagonistic — policies in terms of memory . As we have said , the Second World War left a deep mark on contemporaries . Such had been the case , though to a lesser extent , of the millions of combatants in the First World War . In order to deal with the pain , resentment and claims of these wounded people , states ’ only alternative is to try to appease the anger or to make cynical use of it .
The first option was taken in Western Europe . Rather than stoking the flames of hatred , the authorities tried to extinguish them . This policy was notably followed by France and Germany , which were anxious for reconciliation , deemed essential after three deadly conflicts . The construction of Europe provided both a framework and a perspective , but the impetus was also bilateral . On 14 September 1958 , Charles de Gaulle invited Konrad Adenauer to his secondary residence , La Boisserie , while the Élysée Treaty signed in 1963
EUROPE INSIGHT
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