PM remembers Holocaust Memorial Day
27 January 2008
Gordon Brown has delivered a personal message to mark Holocaust Memorial Day in the UK, stating that the "unimaginable suffering" of the Holocaust must never be forgotten.
In a recorded message for the national commemoration ceremony of Holocaust Memorial Day in Liverpool, the Prime Minister expressed his hope that acts of remembrance would inspire people to build a stronger and more tolerant society. Events such as HMD were an important way of combatting the "politics of hate", he said.
The PM said:
"Holocaust Memorial Day communicates our conviction that the politics of hate will not triumph, and it symbolises our resolve to safeguard the future by understanding the past.
"I hope that one of our reactions will be to build strong and caring communities that reject hatred, and enable individuals from every background and creed to realise their full potential."
Mr Brown explained the importance placed on education about the Holocaust by the Government, citing a £1.5 million funding programme for the Holocaust Educational Trust's "Lesson's from Auschwitz" programme and the now compulsory teaching of the Holocaust to all 11-14 year olds in British secondary schools.
Today's ceremony in Liverpool is one of a series of events being held around the country before and after the official commemoration day. January 27th signifies the day on which the Aushwitz-Birkenau concentration camp was liberated in 1945.
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