The children, sick and old people had no chance to survive: On the night of 2 August 1944, these last 4,300 Sinti and Roma in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp were forced into the gas chambers and murdered by the SS, despite their fierce resistance. On the 79th anniversary of the dissolution of camp section B II e, the Central Council and the Documentation and Cultural Centre of German Sinti and Roma, together with the Association of Roma in Poland and in cooperation with the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, invite to the central international commemoration event at the site of the crime against humanity on 2 August 2023. It was only in 2015 that this day was recognised by the European Parliament as the European Holocaust Memorial Day for Sinti and Roma.
This year’s high-ranking guest is Nicola Beer, Vice-President of the European Parliament, who will give a speech on the occasion of the commemoration. Gerda Pohl from Germany will speak on behalf of the Holocaust survivors of the Sinti and Roma.
The official memorial service in memory of the 500,000 murdered Sinti and Roma in Nazi-occupied Europe will begin on Wednesday, 2 August 2023, at 11.50 a.m. in Section B II e of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and will end at 1.30 p.m. after the laying of wreaths at the Memorial to Sinti and Roma.
In addition to members of the Sinti and Roma minority from many countries, representatives of the Polish state, of international institutions and organisations, the ambassadors of various countries and other diplomatic representatives will also be present. Together with the International Roma Youth Network TERNYPE, the Documentation and Cultural Centre of German Sinti and Roma is once again organising an educational event in Krakow under the title “Dikh He Na Bister” (“Look and don’t forget”) lasting several days with over 150 young Sinti and Roma and non-members of the minority from all over Europe, who will also take part in the commemoration ceremony.
The commemoration ceremony will be streamed live on the website https://www.roma-sinti-holocaust-memorial-day.eu/. The video will then be permanently available there with a wide range of information (DE/EN/PL/Romanes) on the Holocaust against the minority.
Procedure:
11.15 a.m. Joint walk to the memorial of the Sinti and Roma in section B II e of the Auschwitz-Birkenau memorial site
11.50 a.m. Commemoration ceremony
Speeches:
- Welcome
- Romani Rose, Chairman of the Central Council of German Sinti and Roma
- Roman Kwiatkowski, President of the Roma Association in Poland
- Gerda Pohl, Holocaust survivor
- Nicola Beer, Vice-President of the European Parliament
- Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland (requested)
- Georgina Laboda, a representative of the international youth commemoration initiative “Dikh He Na Bister”
- Piotr Cywiński, Director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
1 pm Wreath-laying ceremony
For accreditation and further enquiries about the wreath-laying ceremony, the persons listed below are available as press contacts. Accreditation from the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum is required for filming outside the memorial ceremony. We will be happy to send you the document on request.
Please send interview requests to presse@sintiundroma.de until 31 July.
Press contact:
| Central Council of German Sinti and Roma
On Site Heidrun Helwig |
Association of Roma in Poland
|
| Heidelberg:
Johannes Kaiser |