HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL DAY 2023 - INTERVIEW WITH LEON SALTIEL IN APE: "The renaming of a central street of Thessaloniki to Avenue of Jewish Martyrs is a due honor" - Central Jewish Council of Greece, coordinating body of the Jewish Communities of Greece

The renaming of a main street of Thessaloniki to Avenue of Jewish Martyrs and the closing of a wound that has been bleeding for years, with the transformation of Eleftheria Square from a parking lot to a memorial park, is proposed as a due honor to the memory of the Jews of Thessaloniki who lost their lives them in a brutal way in the camps-hells of the Third Reich, o representative of the World Jewish Congress at the United Nations in Geneva, historical researcher Leon Saltiel.

As a resident of Thessaloniki, but also as a persistent researcher of the darkest pages of the city's history, Leon Saltiel, in an interview with the Athens/Macedonian News Agency, on the occasion of today's International Holocaust Remembrance Day and Remembrance Day of the Greek Jewish Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust, underlines the importance of preserving memory as well as education as an antidote to the phenomena of racism and anti-Semitism that still exist even though almost eight decades have passed since the Holocaust.

Asked to comment on the recent desecration of the monument at AUTH for the old Jewish cemetery as well as the mural dedicated to the Jews who were displaced from the city and lost their lives in the Holocaust, Mr. Saltiel attributes these acts of anti-Semitism in Thessaloniki to a minority, considering, however, that the majority of citizens who are not possessed by such racist feelings should condemn such actions "so that the few are really cornered".

"Unfortunately, these phenomena exist and we must fight them, however I believe that they do not characterize the great majority of the Greek people, who should condemn these acts of vandalism", he says characteristically, underlining that for him, the issue of memory is greater from these vandalisms.

In this context, he gives the example of Eleftheria Square, where, as he emphasizes, a situation continues, which is not appropriate for this place, with its great historical memory and charge (s.s. in July 1942, by order of the Nazi forces, all male Jews, aged 18-45, were gathered in the square and, after suffering indescribable tortures, were led to forced labour). "Despite the promises of the Municipality, Eleftherias Square remains a car station and this has nothing to do with the actions of extreme anti-Semitic groups, but with the policies of democratically elected administrations," Mr. Saltiel emphasizes.

Going one step further, he proposes the renaming of a main street of the city to Avenue of Jewish Martyrs. "I think it's time to do something like this, because a city can't want to show that it's open and moving towards the future, without laying the foundations based on its past. The Jews were - and remain - an integral part of Thessaloniki, with a huge contribution for centuries to its form and character, its economic prosperity and its reputation. So, I would like there to be a main street dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust", he says characteristically.

The study of the Holocaust remains relevant

On this day, January 27, 1945, Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest concentration and extermination camp set up by the Nazi death machine. Years ago, it was the General Assembly of the United Nations that established January 27 as the Day of Remembrance for the victims of the Holocaust, while in 2004, the Greek Parliament unanimously declared the same date as the "Day of Remembrance of Greek Jewish Martyrs and Heroes" of the Holocaust".

However, is the study of the Holocaust still relevant today or have the sources been exhausted? "Someone had said to me: whatever we have to say about the Holocaust, we have said it. It has traveled its historical path, research has been done, it's time to move on to new issues. Being a historical scholar of the Holocaust, I want to point out that apart from the great tragedy of this historical event as it spread throughout the European continent, the continuation of its study is a matter of research, new findings and new research interests. Although the survivors are slowly leaving us, we are still finding new aspects of the Holocaust that have not been clarified and I believe that the whole effort will continue for many decades to come", emphasizes the Thessaloniki-based historical researcher, representative of the World Jewish Congress at the United Nations.

"The Holocaust," he adds, "besides the Jews targeted by Nazism, has many universal and universal characteristics. It is about how you treat your fellow citizen, about diversity, about political extremism, about freedom and democracy, the rule of law and education, hate speech and respect for human rights... It covers so many parameters of our everyday life, which for me never loses its specificity and its relation to today's reality".

In fact, Mr. Saltiel invites us to reflect on how the international system and international conventions - international law in general - were based on the experience of the Second World War, so that they function preventively and that humanity "never again" experiences such tragedies events such as the Holocaust.

Anti-Semitism is on the rise around the world

Unfortunately, however, as Mr. Saltiel notes, there are still today not only Holocaust deniers but also genocidals. "Anti-Semitism, racism, intolerance are on the rise. Humanity unfortunately does not learn or does not want to learn from the mistakes of the past", he estimates, speaking of "a very large rise in Holocaust denial and anti-Semitism and intolerance around the world".

"It's not just a thing that we see in one particular region, but we see it in Western democracies, in Eastern Europe, in the Arab world and elsewhere. For me, this is very tragic and I am very worried about the future", notes Mr. Saltiel, underlining the need to put these issues first priority, "because whenever we see deniers of the democratic regime, such as those who for example were elected in Greece and they had entered the Parliament a few years ago, when we see attacks against people with diversity, all this reminds us of that dark period. That is why as a state, as citizens, we must redouble our efforts to deal with such phenomena."

Education is the antidote - The role of the Holocaust Museum is crucial

Mr. Saltiel characterizes education as "an antidote to all the evils of society and of course also to those that come from extremism, fanaticism and intolerance", stressing, however, that properly adapted textbooks as well as proper training of teachers are required.

"All this requires effort and the results are visible over time. Already, we see in Greece, male and female students who have dealt with the Holocaust some years ago, continue to be interested in this issue. We also see how the acquired knowledge affects their behavior and consciousness in their later actions", Mr. Saltiel points out and adds: "For me, education is something very important, it is central. The Ministry of Education, which is already doing a lot, must strengthen efforts in this direction even more since, as I have already mentioned, this is a battle for democracy and human rights."

The Holocaust Museum in Thessaloniki is expected to play a key role in education - and indeed with an international scope - for the construction of which it seems that the road has now been opened. "It will not only be a museum, but a research center and a place that I hope will be visited by all the schools of the city and the region, as well as foreign researchers, tourists, the citizens of Thessaloniki and other Greek visitors", emphasizes the Thessaloniki historical researcher .

"It takes time for society to become aware, to educate, to learn. This is one part of that compass and the implementation timeline should start to come into play,” concludes Mr Saltiel.

SOURCE: ATHENS - MACEDONIAN NEWS AGENCY, 27.1.2023

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