The United Nations and three embassies working in Nepal expressed their commitments to stand up for human rights and to never again allow anyone to become the victim of genocide anywhere in the world.
The commitments were made by the Resident Coordinator a.i. of the United Nations Nepal Ms Wenny Kusuma, Ambassador of Federal Republic of Germany H.E. Roland Schäfer, Head of Delegation of the European Union to Nepal H.E Veronica Cody and Ambassador of Israel H.E. Benny Omer at the UN International Day of Commemoration in memory of the Victims of the Holocaust. The event was held to pay tribute to the liberators of concentration camps and to honor the memory of the eleven million victims of the Holocaust.
The theme for 2019’s observance is “Holocaust Remembrance: Demand and Defend your Human Rights”. The theme emphasizes the universal dimension of the Holocaust and the significance of human rights in current times where rising fear and hatred, xenophobic trends translating into anti-Semitism, homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia and other discriminatory behaviors are jeopardizing global peace.
Speaking at the ceremony, Ms Wenny Kusuma, Resident Coordinator a.i. of the United Nations Nepal, said, “we cannot forget the past. Our commemoration of this day is a reminder of the horrors that can emerge from discrimination and intolerance. Remembering the atrocities of the Holocaust, the UN would like to take a stand to protect the rights of all citizens, regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender expression and/or gender identity to continue to lead hand in hand.”
H.E. Mr. Benny Omer, Ambassador of Israel to Nepal, recited the special Jewish prayer Yizkor and highly praised the extraordinary courage of the diplomats who risked their own lives to save thousands of Jewish people during World War II. He further wished that such heinous crime would never repeat in the history of mankind and for that educating the future generation about the Holocaust is a must.
Also honored at the ceremony were Chiune Sugihara, Japanese Consul in Lithuania, Captain Francis Foley, UK Consul in Germany and George Ferdinand Duckwitz, German Maritime Attache in Denmark, awarded with the Righteous Among the Nations award for risking their lives during the Holocaust to save Jewish people from extermination by the Nazis.
H. E. Mr Roland Schäfer, reading out the life story of George Ferdinand Duckwitz, shared these thoughts: Our past defines our present life and our future. Whether the past imprisons incoming generation or liberates them, that depends on how we deal with it. Telling the truth, prosecuting crimes, compensating victims and preventing that those crimes ever happens again, that is the path towards freedom.
The memorial ceremony activities included a musical performance by Audeamus Music Foundation who played excerpts from “Schindler's List”, a movie depicting an Austrian businessman who saved many Jewish people from being killed by the Nazis during World War II. Likewise, a replica of Jerusalem’s Western Wall of Peace was set up at the venue for participants to post their prayers and messages. The ceremony also hosted a photo exhibition titled “Beyond the Duty” dedicated to the diplomats recognized as Righteous Among the Nations for their unwavering deeds to save lives of the Jewish people.
"Preserving and transmitting the memory is a duty towards those who lost their lives, and towards our children. Memories have to shape our present and our future. The European Union continues to stand against hate speeches and anti-Semitic activities thereby advocating for peace, mutual co-existence and progress all over the world," said Ms. Zane Petre, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Nepal.
Holocaust Remembrance Day was established by the General Assembly of the United Nations with resolution 60/7 in 2005. It is a multifaceted annual program observed globally on 27 January in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. In Nepal, the day was observed jointly by the United Nations Nepal, the Embassy of Federal Republic of Germany, the Delegation of the European Union to Nepal and the Embassy of Israel on 24 January 2019.