Date of the liberation of Auschwitz 'is day to remember Holocaust'

JANUARY 27 -- the date of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp in 1945 -- should be an annual remembrance day for Holocaust victims, the Government said yesterday.

Such an event would help to ensure that "the terrible impact of the Holocaust around the world can neither be forgotten nor repeated", said a Home Office consultation document. Although ministers are inviting ideas for the most fitting form of commemoration, the Government favours a Holocaust Remembrance Day to begin on Jan 27, 2001. The date is also to be recognised in Europe.

Jack Straw, Home Secretary, said: "We must never forget the victims of the atrocious acts of genocide that have occurred this century. Millions have perished and millions more have been affected because of extreme nationalism. As we enter the next Millennium, it is fitting that we should allocate a day in our national calendar to reflect upon these tragedies in world history."

Mr Straw said a remembrance day would be a national mark of respect for all victims of Nazi persecution and provide a focus for educating future generations about the tragedy of the Holocaust and its implications. He also linked it to a multi-culturalist agenda and the need for a "tolerant and anti-racist society".

However, the Government's announcement prompted several questions last night, including why the Holocaust should be singled out among other 20th century atrocities, why there was pressure now for a special commemoration, more than 50 years later and what form the remembrance would take?

The Holocaust Educational Trust said the Holocaust stood out as a "uniquely important tragedy" even in a century littered with genocides and massacres. The trust said: "The Holocaust was the defining episode of the 20th century, a crisis for European civilisation and a universal catastrophe for humanity. It is unparalleled as a genocide in the way its vast scale was perpetrated by harnessing the processes of a modern industrialised country."

Although the background to the Holocaust is taught as [Website note: a compulsory] part of the school history curriculum, campaigners said that generations aged over 25 had mostly been taught nothing about it. Many remain ignorant of its horrors -- especially in Britain.

The reason for marking the date now reflects an "end of century" interest in both world wars that has grown since the 50th anniversary of VE Day in 1995.

A spokesman for the Holocaust Educational Trust said: "Each day, the direct link with the Holocaust, through survivors, is weakened as they pass away and their memories fade. It is vital to ensure the remembrance of the Holocaust, as a uniquely important tragedy, is perpetuated."

The Home Office paper, issued by its Race Equality Unit, says: "Memory becomes history and as personal links to the period becomes ever more faint, it is essential that as a country we ensure that the horrendous crimes, racism and victimisation committed during the Holocaust are neither forgotten nor repeated, whether in Europe or elsewhere in the world."

The paper supports Jan 27 as Holocaust Remembrance Day on three grounds:

• Auschwitz is a "powerful and universal image" of the Holocaust.
• It is the most suitable date for schools and other academic institutions since it would not be close to any other holidays or exams.
• It would harmonise Britain's commemorations with Germany, Sweden and other European countries. Alternative dates have been suggested: June 12, Anne Frank Day in Holland; April 15, the date of the liberation of Belsen; and Nov 9, the date of Kristallnacht in 1938 when thousands of Jewish properties across Germany were burned.

Eldred Tabachnik, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: "This will be a day when all of us, learning from the barbarities inflicted on so many millions of people, can renew our commitment to a free and open society in which all citizens of Britain can live together."

Janice Lopatkin, of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said: "A Holocaust Remembrance Day provides a national focus for promoting a democratic tolerant society." Andrew Dismore, Labour MP for Hendon, who has campaigned for a memorial day, said: "It is right that our busy way of life should be punctuated by a day each year so that learning and remembrance can continue."

Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, the son of a Holocaust survivor, hoped "the day will include commemoration of all who have suffered from dictatorship or discrimination". Rabbi Tony Bayfield, chief executive of the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain -- representing 42,000 Jews -- said a remembrance day would be "a timely move that would both reflect one of the great tragedies of the 20th century and acknowledge the multi-religious character of Britain today".