About 8 thousand participants, joined together in the 19th March of the Living, walked from the camp gate with a sign “Arbeit macht frei” in the former German camp Auschwitz I to the former place of extermination, Auschwitz II – Birkenau.
The marchers put black ribbons on the Israeli flags in order to show the solidarity with mourning Poles.
Just before the start of the march, the event coordinators informed that its participants pay homage to the tragically killed Presidential Couple, Lech and Maria Kaczyński, and all the other victims of the Smolensk disaster.
They emphasized that Mr President and the First Lady were great friends of Jewish nation and the State of Israel. In the gesture of solidarity, the flags carried at the head of the march, will be decorated with a black ribbon.
On the sound of Shofar
The sign to start the march was the sound of shofar, shepherd’ ram horn. The ancient Hebrews used it during the religious ceremonies. Together marched Jews from e.g. Israel, France, USA and Hungary.
Among the marchers was the Chief Rabbi of Israel, Meir Lau and the dissident from the Soviet era, Anatol Szczaranski (Natan Sharansky). The participants of the March of the Living will walk 3 km to the former Auschwitz II – Birkenau, where the ceremony will be held to pay honour to the victims of Shoah.
The March of the Living has been held in Auschwitz since 1988. They’re traditionally organized on the Day of Remembrance of the Shoah victims (Yom HaShoah). 1,5 thousand Jews took part in the first march. Since 1996 the marches are organized annually.
The Israeli Parliament, Knesset, established the Day of remembrance of Shoah on 12th of April 1951. It’s date is related to the outbreak of the Uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto. Originally the holiday was called Yom HaShoah U’Mered Hagetaot (The Day of Remembrance of Holocaust and the Ghetto Uprising). Later the day was called Yom Hashoah ve Hagevurah (The Day of Remembrance of Holocaust and Heroism). Today it’s simply the Day of Shoah.
There, they killed a million
The date of Day of remembrance is mobile, which relates to the Jewish calendar, which is a lunar calendar, and happens on the 27th day in the month of Nissan. The biggest March ever held took place in 2005 – on the 60th Anniversary of Liberating Auschwitz. About 20 thousand participants were present. It was lead by the Polish and Israeli Prime Minister – Marek Belka and Ariel Sharon. The ceremony was attended by the representatives of over 50 countries, like the PM of Hungary, Ferenc Gyurcsany and the Nobel Prize Winner, Elie Wiesel.
The German Auschwitz Camp was built in 1940. KL Auschwitz II – Birkenau – two years later it became the place of the mass murder of Jews, Auschwitz III is a system of sub-camps. Germans exterminated over 1,1 mln people, mainly Jews but also Poles, Roma, Soviet POWs and other nationals.
written by: jaś//kdj/k
For the original article, please click here.
Fully translated by the blog's author to the best of his ability.
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