An event took place on Thursday at the Jewish Museum of Cyprus in Larnaka on the occasion of the Holocaust Remembrance Day. Ambassadors who spoke at the event stressed in their addresses that we must not allow for another Holocaust to happen, during which 6 million Jews were killed, including 1.5 million children.
US Ambassador to Cyprus Julie Fisher said that the Holocaust stands as one of the most horrific atrocities in world history and brutal testament to the consequences of hatred, intolerance and indifference.
Nazis, she added, murdered 6 million Jews, including one and a half million children, and millions of other people motivated by a twisted ideology and ethnic hatred centered around antisemitism.
Each survivors’ narrative, she continued, is a living testament to the triumph of the human spirit against unimaginable adversity.
It is our responsibility and our duty, and our privilege as the generations who knew the survivors to be the custodians of their narratives, to honour their memory, to pass
on their stories of resilience and courage, the US Ambassador said.
“Home to the second largest population of Holocaust survivors in the world and to many descendants of holocaust victims, the United States remains committed to pursuing a measure of justice for Holocaust survivors and their descendants,” she concluded.
UK High Commissioner to Cyprus Ifran Siddiq said that for all of us, the horrors of the Holocaust are ones that we have to really commit to remembering, never forgetting, and working to ensure that are never repeated.
“My government, like many others, is actually committed to ensure that we work together with tolerance, understanding and mutual respect to ensure that all people regardless of their faith or belonging feel quality, peace and freedom,” he noted.
Rotem Segev, Deputy Ambassador of Israel to Cyprus said that on this International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember and honor the victims of the horrific genocide that took place during World War II.
“We come together not only t
o remember the unimaginable atrocities of the past, but also to honor the resilience of the human spirit and reaffirm our commitment to ensuring such horrors are never repeated,” she added.
She also said that as we reflect upon the darkest chapter in human history, and pray for the victims, we must retell the painful reality of the Holocaust, as “six million innocent lives were lost, entire families were torn apart, communities were decimated. The magnitude of suffering and the sheer cruelty that unfolded during those years, demand our unwavering attention and remembrance”.
Rotem Segev said that the tragedy of the Jewish people, that only recently reached the same population size it had before the Holocaust, is fundamental in understanding Israeli people today. “The horrific events of the Holocaust are engraved in our collective mind. It is part of our personal and national identity. It marks our perspectives and values,” she pointed out.
In remembering the Holocaust, we must also acknowledge the heroes, w
ho risked their lives to resist the forces of hatred and tyranny, their stories serve as beacons of hope, reminding us that even in the face of unspeakable evil, kindness and bravery exists, she concluded.
The event was also attended by Democratic Party (DIKO) President Nicolas Papadopoulos who said that all of us have a duty today, as always to reiterate that such scenes, such acts cannot be part of the human civilization, cannot be part of human history any longer.
Recent events, he added, show that “unfortunately antisemitism is alive and therefore it is our duty to speak out, to note that no matter what policies are promoted and what political disagreements there are, these racist and these unfortunate policies that have to do with antisemitism can never be part of the political discourse, can never be accepted, can never be excused”.
Deputy Mayor of Larnaka, Iasonas Iasonides noted that as we remember the Holocaust, we are confronted with the imperative to educate future generations about the horrors
of genocide, the importance of tolerance and the need to stand against discrimination in all its forms. “The responsibility to prevent such atrocities from happening again, lies with each and every one of us” he said.
In our community, he added, we must strive to build society that values diversity embraces inclusivity, and rejects the seeds of hatred. “It is our duty to ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are not lost to history, but instead serve as a beacon, guiding us toward a world, that values, human dignity, justice, and compassion”.
“We would like to express our gratitude to the survivors, who, against all odds rebuilt their lives, and became beacons of resilience. Their stories are a testament to the strength of the human spirit, and their experiences must continue to inspire us to create a world free from hatred and intolerance” the Deputy Mayor concluded.
After the speeches, two Holocaust survivors, Rivka and Michael Kahana, who came from Israel, told their story.
Rivka was born in 1943 in
Amsterdam and when she was six weeks old, her parents gave her to a Dutch woman to save her life, who then gave her back to her parents, who managed to hide and escape the Holocaust. Michael was born in 1938 in Chernovitz, then Romania, and at the age of 3 he was deported with his parents. When the war ended Michael, then eight years old, began his journey to Israel. However, he said that when British soldiers arrived in the country they were exiled to Cyprus, where Michael stayed for about six months before being allowed to go to Israel.
The event was attended among others by Ambassadors of Switzerland, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine and the Netherlands.
Source: Cyprus News Agency