Joint Statement of the OSCE participating States

Andorra, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Holy See, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States of America

ON THE 75th ANNIVERSARY OF THE HOLODOMOR OF 1932 AND 1933 IN UKRAINE

(Madrid, 30 November 2007)

In 2007 we remember the 75th anniversary of the Holodomor of 1932 and 1933 in Ukraine. This tragedy took innocent lives of millions of Ukrainians as a result of the mass starvation brought about by the cruel actions and policies of the totalitarian Stalinist regime. We pay tribute to the memory of the victims of this national tragedy of the Ukrainian people.

We acknowledge the efforts undertaken in the recent years to raise awareness of the Holodomor, including in the United Nations, its specialized agencies and in the OSCE participating States, in particular the adoption by consensus on 1 November 2007 of the relevant UNESCO Resolution by 193 Member States. We also welcome the initiative of Ukraine on organizing the commemorations on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Holodomor. We will consider taking part in relevant events and invite other OSCE participating States to do the same.

Given the OSCE commitment to “clearly and unequivocally condemn totalitarianism” (1990 Copenhagen Document) we once again underline the importance of raising public awareness of the tragic events of our common past, of promoting tolerance and non-discrimination, of strengthening the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for the prevention of human tragedies in the future.