Totalitarianism Memorial Planned Near EU Parliament

A new memorial dedicated to the millions of victims of communist, Nazi and other totalitarian regimes of the 20th century could be built next to the European Parliament in Brussels.

The project, called An Echo in Time, would display hundreds of letters from victims of totalitarianism, engraved on large paving slabs.

The installation is planned for the Esplanade Solidarność near the European Parliament. The initiative is led by Lithuania, which wants to make historical memory one of the EU’s priorities during its presidency of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2027.

The memorial would include around 500 letters selected by an international panel of historians from tens of thousands of documents. They include correspondence from Holocaust victims, Soviet gulag prisoners and other persecuted people.

Lithuania, Albania, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Latvia and Estonia have already pledged financial support. Poland, Ukraine and Canada have also taken part in preparatory talks. Organizers estimate the cost at around €4m ($4.7m), with about €200,000 ($235,000) pledged so far.

The initiative is backed by the Prague-based Platform of European Memory and Conscience.

(euractiv, bak)