Rt. Hon. Sir Alan Beith MP

Alan Beith MP marks Holocaust Memorial Day

Alan Beith MP signing the Book of Commitment at the Houses of Parliament.

Berwick MP Alan Beith showed his commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day by signing a Book of Commitment to honour those killed in the Holocaust and individuals that risked their lives to help those being persecuted.

The Book has been placed in the House of Commons for Members of Parliament nationwide to sign and pledge their support for the annual day of remembrance on Sunday 27th January.

On and around Holocaust Memorial Day, schools, local communities and faith groups from across the UK will join together to mark Holocaust Memorial Day. Thousands of events are being held across the country to commemorate all those who suffered at the hands of the Nazis during the Holocaust and in more recent genocides. Ultimately the aim of the day is to motivate people - individually and collectively, to ensure that the horrendous crimes, racism and victimization committed during the Holocaust and subsequent genocides are neither forgotten nor repeated again.

January 27th marks the anniversary of the liberation in 1945 of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the infamous concentration and extermination camp. It is the eighth year that the anniversary has been officially commemorated in the UK. In 2005, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the day passing the Holocaust Memorial Day resolution.

Alan Beith MP said:

"Holocaust Memorial Day provides a focus for each of us to learn from the lessons of the Holocaust. We must not only reflect on the horrors of the Holocaust and remember all the victims killed and persecuted by the Nazis but also to challenge all types of prejudice and discrimination which continue in our society today."

Karen Pollock, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust said:

"We are delighted that MP Alan Beith is supporting Holocaust Memorial Day. At a time when antisemitism, Holocaust denial, racism, prejudice and sadly even genocide still continue to pollute our world today, Holocaust Memorial Day and Holocaust education is more important than ever. It is through the participation and support of schools, local groups and elected members that give this day the impact it has around the country and we applaud their commitment to ensuring the lessons of the past learnt, acted upon and disseminated."

The theme for UK Holocaust Memorial Day 2008 is "Imagine… Remember, Reflect, React." This challenges us all to imagine the unimaginable. It asks us to focus on the lives and experience of victims and survivors of the Holocaust; of Nazi persecution and of other genocides. It invites us to find new and creative ways to express this experience through art and media. It marvels at the resilience of enterprise, culture and of life itself in the face of destruction.

The Holocaust Educational Trust was established in 1988. Their aim is to educate young people from every ethnic background about the Holocaust and the important lessons to be learned for today. HET works in schools, universities and in the community to raise awareness and understanding of the Holocaust, providing teacher training, an outreach programme for schools, teaching aids and resource material. HET regard one of their earliest achievements as ensuring the Holocaust formed part of the National Curriculum for History. HET continues to play a leading role in training teachers on how best to teach the Holocaust.

In November 2005, the Government announced funding of £1.5 million for HET to support its Lessons from Auschwitz Project for teachers and sixth form students. The funding has enabled HET to take the Project nationwide and facilitate visits to Auschwitz for two sixth form students from every school and college in the UK.

The Holocaust Educational Trust has produced a BAFTA award-winning DVD-ROM Recollections: Eyewitnesses Remember the Holocaust, in conjunction with the USC Shoah Foundation Institute. The groundbreaking interactive resource integrates testimony from 18 eyewitnesses of the Holocaust, including Jewish survivors, Roma and Sinti survivors, Jehovah's Witness survivors and political prisoners as well as testimony from survivors of the eugenics programme.

The purpose of Holocaust Memorial Day is to remember the horrors of the Holocaust and those who perished. The day aims to ensure that the horrendous crimes against humanity committed during the Holocaust are never forgotten, and its relevance for each new generation is understood.

Details of the national event in Liverpool on the 27th January and associated events across the rest of the UK are available on the Holocaust Memorial Day website at www.hmd.org.uk

The Holocaust Educational Trust has been closely involved in the establishment and development of Holocaust Memorial Day since its inception in 2000. They are represented on all working groups dealing with education, local activities, the main event and at a strategic level.

Holocaust Memorial Day came about following an MP's visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau with the Holocaust Educational Trust. Moved by his visit, Andrew Dismore MP proposed a bill, "to introduce a day to learn and remember the Holocaust" June 30 1999.