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10,000 People to Take Part in Commemorations of the 60th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz
Some 10,000 people, including 2,000 former prisoners, will attend the January observances of the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. An Educational Forum devoted to Teaching the Holocaust will accompany the official ceremonies, said Andrzej Przewoźnik, secretary of the Council for the Protection of the Remembrance of Combat and Martyrdom, said in Cracow on Tuesday.
Six presidents, from Israel, Russia, France, Germany, Slovenia, and Poland, will take part in the main observances at Birkenau on January 27. High-ranking delegations are also expected from the USA and the UK, with the latter probably including Prince Edward.
“We want this ceremony to be not only for officials and the media, but above all for former prisoners who want to pay tribute to those who shared their misery,” Przewoźnik told the press conference.
He acknowledged that, because of their age and health, this will be the last occasion for many of the former prisoners to join in such major ceremonies. The schedule of the state ceremonies is now known. They will begin at 2:30 PM. Earlier that same day, ceremonies organized by the Oświęcim municipal authorities will be held.
The sound of a train pulling into the unloading platform, or ramp, will signal the start of the ceremonies at the International Monument to the Victims of the Camp at Birkenau. Three representatives of the former prisoners will then speak. Following them, the presidents of Poland, Israel, and Russia will deliver remarks.
The schedule also calls for ecumenical prayers and the lighting of candles at the monument in tribute to the victims. Former prisoners will light their candles first, followed by the presidents and heads of government in attendance. The ceremony will conclude with a special musical piece composed by Krzysztof Knittel, with the performers including cantor Joseph Malovany.
In view of the winter conditions and the harsh temperatures and wind that usually prevail at the site, the ceremony is planned to last 90 minutes. As they leave, each of those in attendance will have a chance to light a candle at the monument. Jerzy Kalina is responsible for the artistic aspects, with working groups from Warsaw and Cracow under his supervision. TV outlets from many countries will transmit the observances.
Przewożnik noted that a range of other events will accompany the main ceremonies. Prayers in churches and synagogues are planned for the evening of January 26. The charter of the International Center for Teaching about Auschwitz and the Holocaust, prepared by the International Auschwitz Council and the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, will also be signed.
An educational forum on teaching the Holocaust, organized by the Polish ministry of culture and the European Congress of Jews, will be held at the Słowacki Theater in Cracow on January 27. Educational material and publications about the ceremonies and the former concentration camp will be prepared.
“It would not be good to concentrate on the ceremonies themselves,” said Przewoźnik. “It is of overriding importance to honor the victims of the camp and pay tribute to the liberators, but the most important thing is a certain kind of message to the world, to future generations, about what places of this kind are and what they should be in the future.”
“This is an enormous educational challenge not only for Poland, but for the whole world, to prevent things like what happened in Auschwitz from ever recurring. This is a task for the politicians, but also for the former prisoners who attend the ceremony, because many of them treat this as a testament to future generations and want this place to be protected, respected, and of service to education,” he went on.
Former prisoners and youth groups from the whole world, including Israel, the USA, Germany, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Italy, and Belgium will attend. Plans are now underway for access to Oświęcim and a system of passes and sectors. A detailed program will be ready before Christmas.
