2 days ago, Mr Juncker unveiled a 4.4-meter (14-feet) statue of Marx, donated by China, in the centre of Trier.
A German group representing victims of Communism has criticized the Marx anniversary celebrations.
Members of the US Congress and MEPs from formerly communist-ruled eastern Europe appealed for Mr Juncker to pull out of the commemoration in Trier, the town where Marx was born in 1818.
MEPs from Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party wrote to Mr Juncker in protest of the visit, saying: “Marxist ideology led to the death of tens of millions and ruined the lives of hundreds of millions. The celebration of its founder is a mockery of their memory.”
Delivering an impassioned defence of Karl Marx’s legacy, EU boss Jean-Claude Juncker argued the radical should not be judged for the Communist atrocities that took place in his name.
The President of the European Commission defied protests to deliver his speech at an event commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Communist Manifesto writer’s birth in Trier, west Germany.
Speaking at a church in the city, he said: “Karl Marx was a philosopher, who thought into the future, had creative aspirations, and today he stands for things which is he not responsible for, and which he didn’t cause, because many of the things he wrote down were redrafted into the opposite.
He added: “One has to understand Karl Marx from the context of his time and not have prejudices based on the review, these judgements shouldn’t exist.” ...
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