It is the 63rd anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp from the Nazis. It was iconic for the mass-slaughter of 6 million Jews and others, not deemed fit for life by the deranged ideologies of Adolf Hitler and his henchmen. Auschwitz was preserved for posterity as it was in 1945, minus some furnaces and huts. I have never visited the site, and am most unlikely to.
Holocaust Memorial Day is not only to remember the victims of the atrocities of World War II, but also preceding and following genocides. Such as in the former Yugoslavia
like at Srebrenica, above, where 7,000 men and boys were led away under the eyes of UN forces. None of them returned alive.
Another event mentioned in news reports today was the 1994 massacre in Rwanda, East Africa, where rivalries between Hutu and Tutsi tribes left hundreds of thousands dead.
An internet search on any of these events makes for profoundly depressing reading. Apologists for and deniers of the Nazi atrocities can expect to be prosecuted. I have also found disturbing evidence of people seeking to justify the events in Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, trying to shift the blame onto the victims. Do not think that the end of armed hostilities in the former Yugoslav republics has ended the enmity between the different ethnic groups there. Watch Kosovo. Watch Bosnia.
No more genocides.
Don't hold your breath though.
It was quite a scary time when a civilized European country turned in on itself and committed ethnic cleansing. I would have expected the horrors of the holocaust to have been imprinted on the minds of all humanity. But no such thing. Not even then in Rwanda or more up to date in a reasonably civilized(we thought)Kenya where politics is helping these atrocities to rear their heads once more.
ReplyDeleteWhat is it that we don't learn from..what is so inherent deep down that humankind must rise up against each other in this way? I was ashamed when the United Nations had their hands tied behind their backs because of the rule book. What feeble excuses were given then in Yugoslavia for the world to stand by and watch these men being murdered en-masse or starved to death. How could civilisation allow that to happen again so soon after the holocaust? In Europe of all places! The United Nations was just a name then...just a name with no powers on our behalf.
I sometimes wonder about it now.
It should be a force of protectionto be proud of when we are called upon. Not one of uselessness and empty rhetoric.
Jeanie
unfortunately, we live in a flawed world, fortunately for those who believe, there is hope of something and someone better
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize there was a Holocaust Memorial Day; I'm glad there is for younger people and all people to remember something like this is perfectly capable of happening again (and happening again) and to try to remember and perhaps understand that no matter who we are or where we live, we are all the same; no one is better or worse than another
betty
TY for posting.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Sug
I enjoy historical places, so I would enjoy going to Auschwitz. To feel the memories there. To see it through my own eyes. I'd take my son.
ReplyDeletePam
I had no idea there was a Holocaust Memorial Day. It is so important to remember and honor those who suffered the atrocities -- no matter the country.
ReplyDeleteI was raised in a community with folks primarily of Jewish decent and there is a small Holocaust Museum there that is truly sobering. I've taken my own two girls there through the years.
I have always been interested in the history of the holocaust and have visited many sites as well as viewed quite a bit on the history channel. The horror should be remembered - one would think history would not continue to repeat itself.
ReplyDeleteLisa
Thankyou for reminding us of this ,it should never be forgotten ..love Jan xx
ReplyDeleteWe have some Bosnian friends who went through horrific times back then. All of them had family members murdered and all of them lost them homes.
ReplyDeleteLori