German Ambassador Peter Zingraff participated on Thursday in the commemorative ceremony on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Borova massacre. Then, on July 6, 1943, German soldiers brutally killed 107 innocent people, many of them women and children, in retaliation for a partisan attack that had taken place just before.
"In this country, at this hour, I, as a German, feel great shame. But I represent a different Germany, today I am happy that Germans and Albanians remember this event, commemoration is necessary and the victims have the right to memory", said Zingraf.
According to him, it is right and necessary to commemorate such terrible events, because the victims have the right to be remembered.
"The memory of the National Socialist tyranny and the catastrophe it brought to the world and to Germany itself is an important reminder for us. Peace cannot be taken for granted, active efforts towards reconciliation and understanding are the basis for our peaceful and democratic future. Striving for reconciliation and overcoming supposed historical enmities are also very important here in the region, within the so-called Western Balkan countries, for a stable and peaceful regional future. Commemorating the terrible chapters of the past, as we are doing together today, and building forward-looking institutions go hand in hand," he said.