Press release

Sir Eric Pickles marks Holocaust Memorial Day

Sir Eric Pickles, Special Envoy for Post-Holocaust issues, marks Holocaust Memorial Day 2016

• From: Foreign & Commonwealth Office
• Published: 27 January 2016

This was published under the 2015 to 2016 Cameron Conservative government

Sir Eric Pickles said:

I am pleased that Holocaust Memorial Day this year has the theme of ‘Don’t Stand By’.

It is a powerful reminder that the Holocaust was not a consequence simply of a few Nazi monsters, but of the silent acceptance of thousands of people across Europe who chose to look the other way while their neighbours, friends and colleagues vanished, often never to return.

As the Stockholm Declaration set out, ‘the selfless sacrifices of those who defied the Nazis, and sometimes gave their own lives to protect or rescue the Holocaust’s victims, must be inscribed in our hearts’.

While we honour those who stood up and made a difference during those dark days by sheltering and rescuing Jews, we also need to think today, in another era threatened by evil and intolerance around the world, how we can do our bit to stand up for our common values.

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Published 27 January 2016