“Never forget and learn the lesson of peace,” was the message of the Holocaust memorial ceremony held on March 29 in Hanoi, co-organized by the Vietnam Peace Committee, the United Nations in Vietnam, the Embassy of Israel in Vietnam and the Embassy of Germany in Vietnam.
The highlight of the memorial service was a talk between a large Vietnamese audience and Ms. Betty Eppel, a Jewish survivor of the Holocaust.
Mrs. Betty Eppel.
Insider story
Betty Eppel was born on April 19, 1935 in France. Her family lived in a small village in the north of France called Valenciennes until September 1942.
Then, her mother - Mrs. Perla and her 2-year-old brother named Michel were arrested by the French police and the German secret police, taken to the Auschwitz concentration camp and murdered. All this happened when Mrs. Betty Appel was only 7 years old.
Betty, her father, Shmuel, and her five-year-old brother Jacques secretly crossed the border to the south of France. Betty and her brother were then sheltered and raised by a Christian family in the village of Dullin until the end of the war.
Betty came to Israel alone in 1964 and stayed in Jerusalem. There, she married and had two children.
During a meeting with the Vietnamese public, Ms. Betty shared: “ Today, I believe it is very important to talk about what happened to us, because we are the last witnesses. After we leave this world, who will be able to tell us about what we have experienced?”
Betty said that for a long time she was unable to fully tell the story because of the grief. But when there was little evidence and witnesses left after the tragedy, she felt the need to speak up and convey her story to future generations. It is a message so that history does not repeat itself.
History lesson
Speaking at the event, Israeli Ambassador to Vietnam Yaron Mayer said that everyone's active participation in this important event is part of a global commitment so that humanity never forgets and can learn from this terrible chapter in history. At the same time, it also reminds future generations of the dangers of hatred and prejudice. "It is our commitment to building a world of brotherhood and peace," said the Israeli Ambassador.
According to German Ambassador to Vietnam Guido Hildner, the Holocaust is not only an important part of Jewish history but also of Germany – a violation of human rights as well as brutal destruction, an undeniable black mark in history...
“We cannot let the Holocaust happen again in the future. To do that, we must always be vigilant and never forget the lessons of the Holocaust. We must pray, cherish and never forget,” Ambassador Guido Hildner shared.
Candlelight vigil and musical performance in memory of Holocaust victims.
Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Peace Committee Tran Dac Loi said: “As one of the nations that has suffered many losses during the war, the Vietnamese people understand, share and deeply sympathize with the pain that the Jewish victims have gone through, and at the same time highly value the value of peace and friendship between nations. To close the painful pages, we need to build a peaceful, humane and tolerant society, in which all people, ethnicities, religions and nations are equal and respected, and all disputes and conflicts are resolved by peaceful means.”
The Holocaust is the term used to describe the genocide of Jews and other minorities carried out by Nazi Germany in Europe during World War II. More than 6 million Jews died in this tragedy.
The United Nations has designated January 27 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
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