VE Day: We must never appease fascism
Speaking in a Scottish Government debate Commemorating the 80th Anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day, Scottish Green Co-leader Patrick Harvie reflected on the horrors of WW2 and warned against appeasing fascism.
Patrick Harvie said:
“The motion reminds us of the hundreds of thousands of UK forces, and the tens of thousands of civilians, whose lives were lost in WW2.
“Beyond that, the war caused up to 85 million deaths worldwide - around 3% of the global population at the time - including six million Jews, and millions of others exterminated by the Nazis. And an estimated 40 to 60 million people were displaced.
“But mere statistics aren’t enough to truly comprehend the scale of what had to be done in the defeat of Nazism and Fascism, the sacrifice of those who fought, and the scale of the impact on the millions of lives affected.
“I don’t think I can imagine the emotional release that must have come with the announcement of VE day, and the end of the fighting in Europe.
“In the wake of such suffering, it led to new beginnings -
“In recognising that they had fought together, and survived together, people decided to rebuild their society together, with a welfare state & and NHS, an astonishing legacy for that generation to leave us.
“But also the creation of international institutions of peace, a framework for international law, human rights, and what eventually became the European Union.
“But it’s important to remember too that VE day was not the end of the story.
“Not for those still enduring war in other parts of the world.
“Not for East Germany, which went from Nazi to Communist control; it would be decades before they would achieve freedom, and join a peaceful and democratic family of European nations
“Not for the gay men liberated from the Nazi concentration camps, who were re-imprisoned by the Allies
“We must remember too that the struggle to defeat fascism remains our responsibility today.
“As we see an expansionist war against Ukraine being rewarded on the world stage
“As we see the horrific images of genocide from Gaza
“As we see the brutality of immigration detention camps and imprisonment without trial in countries claiming to be democracies.
“As we see far right ideology growing around the world, and the arrest of Nazis in the UK only yesterday.
“As we hear prominent voices in major political parties seeking to abolish our fundamental human rights, and tear up that astonishing endowment the post war generation left us.
“As we see the UK Govt celebrating VE Day on the same day as they announce an agreement with a US president whose ideology is indistinguishable from fascism
“We need to remember that appeasement never works.”
“I want to finish with the words of Ken Turner, 98, in a video posted on social media yesterday, as he sat in a Sherman tank. Mr Turner served in WW2, as did the tank.
“I’m old enough to have seen fascism the first time round, and now it’s coming back,” he said.
“And driving the tank over a Tesla, crushing it, he gave this message to Elon Musk: "We've crushed fascism before and we'll crush it again”
“Presiding Officer, Ken gets it. Ken knows what had to be done. Ken knows the cost of what had to be done.
“But Ken also knows why it had to be done. And he knows that it must still be done. Let’s never forget what Ken has reminded us of.”