The Principality of Monaco takes part in the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust

Journée mémoire Holocauste 1 © UNESCO - Fabrice Gentile

The Permanent Delegation of the Principality of Monaco to UNESCO, represented by Mrs Sèverine Dusaintpere, Deputy Permanent Delegate and Mrs Agatha Korczak, First Secretary, participated in the events organised as part of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, on 24 and 25 January 2024, at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Each year on 27 January, victims of the Holocaust are commemorated as UNESCO reaffirms its unwavering commitment to combating anti-Semitism, racism and other forms of intolerance that can lead to violence against any group. The date marks the anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration and extermination camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau by Soviet troops on 27 January 1945.

The Principality of Monaco has been funding the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust for several years, as well as the Holocaust Remembrance Fund, which is specifically dedicated to teaching the history of this genocide, an essential means of ensuring respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and the values of tolerance and mutual respect 

This year, the Permanent Delegations of Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Monaco to UNESCO supported the commemorations through several events:

-          A signing ceremony for a historic agreement between six states: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia. This agreement aims to create a new permanent exhibition on the Holocaust in block 17 of the former Yugoslav Pavilion of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Museum; the 'Former Yugoslav Pavilion', which was closed in 2009, will now play a key role in the essential memorial campaign.

-          An official ceremony and world premiere of a special concert featuring music composed in concentration camps and ghettos. These compositions were recovered by the Italian composer and conductor Francesco Lotoro and the 'Istituto di Letteratura Musicale Concentrazionaria' Foundation.

-          A multimedia exhibition entitled 'Blue Skies' by Belgian artist Anton Kusters. This impressive collection of 1,078 images, taken over six years of empty blue skies above sites of Nazi persecution across Europe is a poignant reflection on collective trauma and the duty to remember, almost 80 years after the end of the Second World War.

Ms Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, stressed that these events are "not only about the past, but also about the present and the future". Her speech highlighted UNESCO's work, specifically in the fight against hate speech through education and alongside teachers, as part of the International Programme on Holocaust and Genocide Education.

Journée mémoire Holocauste 2 © UNESCO - Fabrice Gentile

https://www.unesco.org/fr/articles/journee-internationale-dediee-la-memoire-des-victimes-de-lholocauste