International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust; 30 Jan 2013 at British Council

29 Jan 2013                                    001/JAN/2013/MA           

                                            M E D I A      AD V I S O R Y

The United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) in collaboration with the Youth of United Nations Association (YUNA) cordially invites the media to the commemoration to mark the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, to be held at British Council, along Samora avenue and Ohio Street on Wednesday, 30 January, 2013, at 1000 am.

The theme for this year’s commemoration will be “Rescue during the Holocaust: the Courage to Care”. It aims to recognise individuals, some of whom were diplomats, who risked their lives to save Jews and other victims of Nazi persecution during the Second World War.

The programme of the day will include message from the UN Secretary - General, screening of the film directed by Emmy-award winning filmmaker Michael King entitled: “The Rescuers” and discussions on the film. The film uncovers the largely unknown stories of 13 heroic and courageous diplomats who saved thousands of Jews during the Second World War. The filmmaker follows a young survivor of the Rwanda genocide and Sir Martin Gilbert, renowned Holocaust historian, as they trace the steps of these rescuers in Europe.

The annual observance of  International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust  was established by General Assembly Resolution 60/7  in November 2005. The resolution declared that the United Nations would designate 27 January -- the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp -- as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, and urged Member States to develop educational programmes to instill the memory of the tragedy in future generations to prevent genocide from occurring again. It requested the United Nations Secretary-General to establish an outreach programme on the "Holocaust and the United Nations", as well as institute measures to mobilize civil society for Holocaust remembrance and education, in order to help prevent future acts of genocide.

EVENT:           INTERNATIONAL DAY OF COMMEMOARATION IN MEMORY OF THE       

                          VICTIMS OF THE HOLOCAUST 

                          

DATE:             30 JANUARY, 2013

TIME:              1000 AM

VENUE:          BRITISH COUNCIL, ALONG SAMORA AVENUE and OHIO STREET

Contact:

Usia Nkhoma Ledama

National Information Officer

Mobile: 0762 871830 / 0784 228539

Email: usia.nkhomna-ledama@unic.org