Serbia' President Tomislav Nikolic was urged to apologize for a controversial remark he made during a ceremony in Belgrade to commemorate the Holocaust and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. He declared that the Nazis targeted the Jews because of their "overrepresentation" of Jews in certain prestigious professions.
Although the main focus of the Nikolic's speech was the importance of remembrance, he also said that ‘’for the Nazis the biggest threat was seen in the Jewish people, probably on the account of their characteristics and being prominent in the prestigious professions in the domains of finances, art and science.”
The statement signed by the human rights groups and activists stopped short of saying that Nikolic, whose politics are nationalist, is anti-Semitic, instead suggesting that his aides were ill-prepared.
Rights groups called on the president to publically renounce the statement and said the remarks “testify to the extremely bad preparation for public statements, ignorance and insensitivity to human rights.’’
Nikolic, who is friendly to Israel and spoke in the presence of the Israeli ambassador Yosef Levy, members of Serbia’s Jewish community, and Holocaust survivors, also said : “The Holocaust was the most shameful and abominable event in the human history.In the manner unique for its fanaticism and cruelty, a huge number of human lives perished in a short time, and it must never be forgotten.”
Earlier, Israel’s ambassador expressed his gratitude and admiration for the manner in which Serbian officials honor the memory of Holocaust victims, adding, however, that many citizens are unaware of the Holocaust in Serbia.
‘’Today we are facing a tide of extremely violent anti-Semitism. This is not 1938 or 1939, but again we hear people saying that Europe is no place for Jews,’’ the ambassador said.