Shortly after his arrival to Slovakia, the Ambassador of the State of Israel to Slovakia Boaz Modai attended a series of memorial events dedicated to victims of the Holocaust.
At the beginning of his working week, on 9 September, the Ambassador of the State of Israel attended the ceremony on occasion of the Memorial Day for the victims of Holocaust and the victims of racial violence at the Rybné námestie organized by the Slovak National Museum - Museum of Jewish Culture.
Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini, who took the auspices over the event, honored us with his presence and several ministers and other members of the government participated as well. In his speech, Prime Minister Pellegrini drew attention to danger we face when allowing a horrible ideology promoting superiority of one race or ethnic group to seize power.
Ambassador Boaz Modai mentioned that extremist views have not remained in the past and are still being reminded in various forms. Therefore it is crucial to remember the tragedy of Holocaust and not allow it to repeat itself.
In the evening, Ambassador Boaz Modai participated in the Reading of the Names of the Victims of Holocaust at the Pavel Orságh Hviezdoslav Theater. It has been the 10th anniversary since we honore Holocaust victims by reading their names from the deportation lists. This year, the President of the Slovak Republic, Zuzana Caputova participated as well as other prominent guests such as Emilia Vasaryova, Dr.Hasto, Táňa Pauhofova, Viera Dubacova, Pavel Vilikovsky, Marek Majesky, Peter Bárdy, Peter Vačok, Ján Fakla and many others.
Nathan Steiner has accepted the invitation as well and presented his personal experience with the Holocaust. Nathan comes from a well-known Jewish family, that contributed to the cultural life of Bratislava mainly by running the secondhand Steiner bookshop.
On September 10, Ambassador Boaz Modai attended a memorial ceremony in Zvolen. The memorial and educational program took place at the Jewish cemetery, in Park of Honorable Souls and in the premises of the Technical University in Zvolen. After reading the names of deported Jewish residents from the town of Zvolen and its surroundings, the names of the rescuers of Jewish life in Slovakia engraved in the Wall of Honor in front of the Jewish cemetery were read. The Wall of Honor is a unique monument in Slovakia created based on example of Yad Vashem Memorial in Israel.
Series of short lectures presenting the topic of "Holocaust and Racial Laws in Slovakia" for the public and local secondary schools have contributed to the program of the ceremony. Prof. Nižňanský, PhDr. Mičev and Mgr. Locinkova held short lectures and Ambassador Boaz Modai also contributed with his speech.
In the afternoon, Ambassador Boaz Modai traveled to Trnava, where he attended the opening of Edita Ziss-Gorska's exhibition My Second Return. In her work Edita concentrates on everyday details, street and landscape photography. Her photographic language is lyric and human. Her pictures try to discover order and beauty in ordinary everyday situations. She has exhibited at several collective exhibitions and a solo exhibition in Tel Aviv (2018). This is her first exhibition outside Israel and will last until September 30th.
Photo: Oles Cheresko