Europees verbod op Nazi-symbolen onwaarschijnlijk (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The European Commission on Tuesday (8 February) said that an EU-wide ban on Nazi symbols would be 'unwise'.

A justice spokesperson said it would be "unexplainable and unwise" to try and harmonise a ban at the EU level.

"What we could at most envisage is a general reference to a prohibition of using materials ... which could lead to racism or xenophobia".

He added that this would be the perfect time for the EU to leave member states to deal with the details at national level.

Speaking about an EU law against racism and xenophobia to be discussed by justice ministers later this month, and which would refer to Nazi symbols, the spokesperson said that the "detailed implementation and the transposition of that general rule" would be left to the 25 member states".

It would be up to them to decide "when and which symbols would lead to such criminal offences".

His words represent a stepping back for the Commission. Last month justice commissioner Franco Frattini had spoken generally in favour of such a ban.

However, EU officials say that an EU ban on either Nazi or Soviet symbols would be extremely difficult to put into place.

It would be hard to legislate so that satirical articles or cartoons containing the symbols would not fall foul of the law.

Mr Frattini also rebuffed calls by MEPs from central and Eastern Europe for an EU-wide ban on Soviet symbols.

In a long letter to the two MEPs who had made the request, Mr Frattini instead called for a "wide-ranging European debate".

His letter to Jozsef Szajer and Vytautas Landsbergis, from Hungary and Lithuania, said "ultimately together we all belong, whether in the west or in the east, to the same history and are free to judge our past, as a common past".

Mr Frattini also pointed out that there has often been disagreement between historians about whether Soviet and Nazi era crimes could be compared.

The two MEPs had said that if Nazi symbols are to be banned at EU level, then Soviet symbols ought to be as well.

The whole discussion was sparked off by the UK's Prince Harry who attended a fancy dress party last month in a German soldier's uniform with a swastika.