President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday, October 9, the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust, issued a message in which he says that terror hatred, violence, disinformation and hate speech are gaining momentum again and it is the responsibility of today’s generations to stop them.
„The remembrance of that dark period and of the terrible tragedies that hundreds of thousands of Romanian Jews went through, who experienced deportation, hunger, inhuman conditions in the camps, illness and cold, agonising sufferings is proof of owning the past and an exhortation not to forget history. At the same time, on this day, I want to reconfirm Romania’s commitment to democratic values and to the appreciation of human dignity. The memory of the victims, the stories of the survivors and their descendants help us learn about the consequences of anti-Semitism and hatred and to pass on the historical truth, together with the conviction that such atrocities must no longer be allowed and that there will always be people who refuse to make a pact with the evil and will fight with all their might so that life, dignity and integrity should prevail. Unfortunately, terror hatred, violence, disinformation and hate speech are gaining momentum again and it is the responsibility of today’s generations to stop them,” Iohannis said in his message delivered by state adviser Catalina Gale to an event organised at the Holocaust Memorial in Bucharest.
On the occasion of the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust, Iohannis said he is paying pious tribute to the memory of all the victims and voicing his compassion for the survivors and their relatives, honouring those who, risking their lives, saved them from death and helped the persecuted.
He emphasised that in the 20 years since the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust has been marked, Romania has acknowledged its responsibility during the Holocaust and has become an example of good practices in terms of promoting the memory of that terrible period.
„Romania has built a legislative framework that takes in the definition of anti-Semitism as proposed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, which prohibits fascist, racist and xenophobic organisations and symbols, and has also taken in national strategies for preventing and combating anti-Semitism, xenophobia, radicalisation and hate speech. Introduction of the subject History of the Jews. The Holocaust, as well as the creation of the National Museum of Jewish History and the Holocaust in Romania will contribute to learning the painful lesson of the past, so that we will always be vigilant so as not to allow evil to spread, as slippages of any kind, intolerance and discrimination will be condemned and penalised. Partnerships between civil society and central and local public administrations have an essential role in consolidating democracy and in recognising, at international level, Romania’s efforts to preserve the memory of the Holocaust and to make itself into a country anchored in the observance of fundamental rights and freedoms.”
Iohannis added that during his two terms of office he constantly supported the need to know the truth and promoted the memory of the victims of the Holocaust, as well as the importance of educating the young generations in the spirit of sound principles. He also stressed on every occasion that the process of becoming aware of the consequences of the past must have the necessary tools and be followed by preventive actions so that such atrocities never happen again.
AGERPRES
