Gość: awalk
IP: *.warszawa.sdi.tpnet.pl
25.09.03, 19:55
The row over the proposed opening of a Centre to highlight the suffering of Germans at the hands of Poles and Czechs after the end of the Second World War reached fever pitch this week. Erika Steinbach, a chairwoman of the German Association of the Expelled, told a panel during discussion in Warsaw that she was highly disturbed by the overwhelmingly negative Polish reactions to the idea, adding that the Centre would not be a way to negate Germany?s role in starting the war, as many Polish commentators feel it would be. ?I would not want Poles to think that we want to change the history,? she told the panel, organised by the daily Rzeczpospolita and the Adenauer Foundation. ?Just the opposite. We know that without Hitler, the expulsions would not have happened.? Her arguments, though clearly toned down for the Polish audience, did not convince many of the participants. Many Polish politicians felt that the dispute over the Centre might even damage recent Polish-German rapprochement. ?It?s as if a bandit publicly showed off the wounds inflicted by the victim,? said Law and Justice (PiS) MP Marcin Libicki. ?Absolutely not. We can?t agree to this.? In recent weeks, leading German politicians, including President Johannes Rau and Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, have spoken out against the idea of the Centre to accent the suffering of Germans in currently Polish and Czech lands. Most feel the idea would be tenable if it showed the injustice of forced expulsions without concentrating on particular nationalities.
So, what do you think?
I think this lady really has the nerve.
First, I don't think it was just Hitler but also the German nation that supported him.
Secondly, who's talking? Who is supposed to be disturbed?
Finally, watching the discussion I had the feeling that Ms Steinbach was completely unprepared to have discussion based on the facts. So what did she count on? Did she want to create another Oprah talk show? Well, this is my impression.
