The holocaust should teach the world to strive for peace

By Robert Anane, GNA    

Accra, Jan. 30, GNA - Mr. Ami Mehl, Ambassador of the State of Israel, says the world should learn from the Jewish holocaust of World War II, and strive for more peace and understanding.

“Let us do something to stop the hatred, deaths, and create wealth for our children and generations unborn,” he said.

The Israeli Ambassador was speaking at a ceremony at his residence in Accra, to mark the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Mr. Mehl said it was unfortunate that whilst the holocaust showcased a clear example of what could happen when hatred amongst people was encouraged for one reason or another, the world did not appear to have learnt much from that.

He said tragedies like what the genocide of Rwanda, and current situations such as the crisis in Syria, were clear examples of mankind’s failure to learn from past mistakes, such as the holocaust.

Mr. Mehl said it would do the world a lot more good if the massacre of over six million Jews several decades ago, was not only marked as a formality, but served as a lesson that would help prevent the re-occurrence of such an event, in any part of the world.

Mr. Christoph Retzlaff, Germany’s Ambassador to Ghana, said the holocaust was an assault on human dignity.

He said Germany had learnt its lessons from the unfortunate event, and had as a result resolved ever since, to be committed more than ever, towards ensuring the freedoms and rights of humans.

Mr. Retzlaff, however, noted that such values were fragile and could easily be violated.

“The holocaust confronts all of us. Racist ideology can never be justified. It is only when human dignity is respected and solidarity is upheld, that peace could be achieved in this world,” he said.

Madam Christine Evans-Clock, UN Resident Coordinator in Ghana, said the UN Secretary General, called on every one to confront the normalization of violence.

“We do need that reminder for the sake of our own lives, as well as others,” she said.

The “Holocaust” refers to the state-sponsored systematic murder of the Jewish population of Europe and North Africa during World War II, at the hands of the German Nazi government, led by Adolf Hitler.

About six million Jews were murdered by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945, alongside a myriad of other groups they considered undesirable, such as the mentally and physically handicapped, homosexuals, gypsies and political dissidents.

A UN General Assembly Resolution 60/7, on November 1, 2005, designated January 27 as an annual International Holocaust Remembrance Day, in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.

GNA

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