Stenbock House — The Government calls on the Estonian people to commemorate the victims of crimes committed against humanity, tomorrow, on International Holocaust Memorial Day.
We will commemorate the Nazi victims on Holocaust Memorial Day. Our thoughts are with all of the people who suffered in one of the most horrible tragedies in history, and of whom many lost their lives.
The main objective of tomorrow’s memorial day is to acknowledge the horrors of the Holocaust. The Ministry of Education and Research calls on all Estonian schools to explain to their pupils the tragic events of the past century. Knowledge of the past teaches us understanding and helps prevent the crimes of the past century from ever occurring again.
During the Second World War, the Nazi regime systematically eliminated on the occupied Estonian territory both Estonian Jews and those that had been brought here from elsewhere. It is most regrettable that in cooperation with the occupation authorities, some Estonian citizens participated in such crimes committed against humanity. There is no justification for the participation of anyone in these shameful and morally condemnable acts. It is not important what motivated these people to act in this way. Even if they have not directly shed the blood of anyone, they are nevertheless morally responsible.
Holocaust Memorial Day was celebrated in Estonia for the first time on 27 January 2003. The date, 27 January, is the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
Government Communication Office
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Valitsuse kommunikatsioonibüroo briifinguruum
http://www.valitsus.ee/brf/
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