On Thursday, 27 September a holocaust exhibition entitled Persecution-Rescuing-Resumption was opened at the Hungarian Embassy in Berlin. The objects and documents displayed are from the Hungarian Holocaust Memorial Centre’s collection.

German Christian Democrat Party (CDU) MP Siegmund Kauder recalled the incident when a rabbi was attacked on the streets of Berlin not so long ago and no one stopped to help him. He emphasised that the holocaust cannot be forgotten and action has to be taken against today’s forms of anti-Semitism because hatred also endangers democracy. Hungary’s Ambassador to Germany József Czukor underlined that this exhibition contributes to continuing the debate in a "calmer" manner. Talking about the content of the exhibition, Director of the Hungarian Holocaust Centre Szabolcs Szita said that there were exceptions during Hungary’s turbulent times, people who rushed to aid the persecuted, something well indicated by the 791 Hungarians honoured by the Righteous among Nations title. The exhibition in Berlin is the Holocaust Memorial Centre’s first appearance in Germany. The periodic exhibition features contemporaneous objects, documents, and pictures which guide the spectator through the history of the Hungarian Holocaust.

Following the opening ceremony, a roundtable discussion took place at which Mr. Szita stressed, Hungarian-Jewish coexistence has a 1100-year history and was very "fruitful" for Hungarians. Jews played an especially important role in Hungary’s urbanisation and the forming of its middle class. Chief Rabbi of the United Hungarian Jewish Community of Faith (EMIH) Slomó Köves highlighted that Hungary is the only country in continental Europe in which a significant Jewish community was left following the Holocaust. There was a great change during the two decades after the transition, he said, underlining that Jews are striving to create a "positive Jewish identity" and are not restricted to just the remembrance of the Holocaust and the fight against anti-Semitism. Leader of the Jewish community in Szeged András Lednitzky stated that the current government is the first to openly admit that the state "committed an error during the Holocaust, when it failed to stand up for its citizens". Former Personal Representative of the OSCE on Combating Anti-Semitism Gert Weisskirchen said that the community of the EU has to uniformly step up against hatred of Jews as well as against its newest forms, such as anti-Zionism, as these also endanger democracy.

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs)