[ad_1]
Video statement at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial event.
© WHAT
At the invitation of Israel’s head of state, Reuven Rivlin, Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier will participate in a virtual commemoration event at the Israeli Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem on Monday.
The pogroms of November 82 years ago are commemorated. In a pre-recorded video message, Van der Bellen underscored Austria’s shared responsibility for the Shoah and the importance of memory.
Anti-Semitism did not start with National Socialism, it was already present in Austria before the Nazi ideology. The discrimination turned into degradation, disenfranchisement, and ultimately mass murder, the Shoah. The pogrom on the night of November 9, 1938, was the first cruel climax of escalating National Socialist violence against Jews, according to Van der Bellen. The racist violence of the Nazis had reached a new and terrible intensity and showed how much Austrian Jews were robbed of their fundamental rights and freedoms. “In Vienna alone, 42 synagogues were burned or destroyed. Thousands of shops and apartments were looted. More than 6,500 Austrian Jews were arrested, 4,000 of them were sent to the Dachau concentration camp.”
Austria shares responsibility
“We Austrians commemorate these crimes today with remorse and shame. We, who were born after the Shoah, confess: Austria shares responsibility for the Shoah. Many Austrians were among the perpetrators. Acknowledging our responsibility means, above all, that we take decisions and bravely oppose any form of racism, discrimination and anti-Semitism wherever we find it. ” The federal president emphasized that this was a matter of great importance to him. “It is our duty, our desire and our intention not only to protect Jewish communities, but also to ensure that Jewish life can flourish again, whether in Europe, in Israel or elsewhere.” Austria has a strong and living Jewish community, which is again an important part of life. “I sincerely hope that Austria will be a home, a place of peace and security, for them, today and forever.”
He was “particularly pleased” by the cooperation between Austria and Israel in many different areas of common interest, because, given history, this is not natural, the federal president said. By understanding and rediscovering each other, the two countries would also find new opportunities to work together. The “unwritten history” of Austria and Israel is just beginning.
Remember and never forget
In conclusion, the federal president underlined in Hebrew: “Niskor we lo nischkach leolam” – Remember and never forget.
Van der Bellen’s speech is reproduced in a pre-recorded video explanation in English. In addition, according to the presidency, there is a video message from the three presidents, in which they emphasize the common commemoration in Vienna, Berlin and Jerusalem and the commitment against racism, hatred and anti-Semitism.
The official Israeli commemoration event will take place at the Israeli President’s residence in Jerusalem in collaboration with Yad Vashem. Also speaking will be Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau and Avner Shalev, Chairman of the Yad Vashem leadership. A Holocaust survivor testifies. The commemoration will be broadcast live on Monday afternoon starting at 5:00 pm (local time / 4:00 pm CET) on the Israeli President’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages, as well as on the Facebook page of Yad Vashem.
Van der Bellen is currently in hospital treatment. The 76-year-old fell on Saturday at his second official residence in Mürzsteg in Styria and then went to the Vienna General Hospital for clarification. There a painful pelvic injury was diagnosed. No need for an operation, he told himself at the weekend. “For the rest, the federal president is in a good mood,” the presidential office said.
[ad_2]
