In 2005, the UN General Assembly designated 27 January, the anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1945, International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In Slovenia, we remember the exceptionally high number of civilian casualties, including the forcibly transported population of the then occupied Slovenia to various concentration and extermination camps. International Holocaust Remembrance Day is also an important occasion on which to remember the righteous among the nations and others who helped save lives during this tragic time in history. 

This year, Slovenia is hosting physical and virtual events as part of the now traditional “Shoah – Let Us Remember, 2022” programme coordinated by the Maribor Synagogue. It is highly commendable that the programme involves many primary and secondary schools, including numerous partners all over the country. Several Yad Vashem exhibitions will be staged, including the central exhibition “Shoah – How was it Humanly Possible?” in Ljubljana, which will later be presented at other locations around Slovenia. Several commemorative events, exhibition openings, book presentations and discussions, lectures, virtual interviews with survivors, projects, theatre performances and school radio broadcasts, and other activities of education, awareness, and remembrance will take place. Through awareness-raising and education, with most of the events in Slovenia aimed at the young generation, we would like to contribute to the pledge of “never again” globally.

This year’s “Shoah – Let Us Remember, 2022” programme comprises more than 150 activities, including films and other contributions on Radio-Television Slovenia. This year’s events can be found at Sinagoga Maribor – Shoah – Let Us Remember 2022.

On this important day of remembrance and awareness-raising, the head of the Slovenian delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), Dr Marko Rakovec, reminds us of our joint responsibility to resist all attempts to deny or distort the horrors of the Holocaust, one of the most tragic chapters in human history. The processes leading up to such tragedies must be prevented. It is essential that these tragic events serve as a reminder, ensuring that such horror will never be repeated. I would therefore like to express my profound gratitude to all those who are committed to raising awareness among the population, especially the young generations, for efforts aimed at creating a tolerant society based on respect for human rights. I would encourage them to continue their important contribution to Slovenian society.”