Permanent Holocaust exhibit should inspire UN in its work – Migiro

Unveiling the first permanent exhibition on the Holocaust at the United Nations, Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro today voiced the hope that the display will guide and inspire the world body in its mission to prevent a recurrence of the horrors of the Second World War.

“Every time we view these images and see the faces of the victims, we remember every man, woman and child slaughtered by the Nazis and stand in solidarity with their families and with survivors around the world,” Ms. Migiro said yesterday as the exhibit opened at UN Headquarters in New York.

“Those faces are a direct response to the Holocaust deniers. And they are a direct reminder of the untold contributions of those who perished – contributions of which posterity was deprived.”

Calling the Holocaust “a horrific failure for our common humanity,” Ms. Migiro said the UN is a natural home to such a permanent exhibition, not only because the Organization was founded to prevent similar atrocities in the future, but also because of its “continuing duty to act on its lessons.”

She said she hoped the exhibit, which presents an overview of the tragedy in the context of World War II and the founding of the Organization, will guide and inspire the UN in its mission.

Other events held at the UN this week to mark the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust included a concert featuring the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Zubin Mehta, the issuance of a special stamp by the UN Postal Administration, and a joint exhibition entitled “The Holocaust: Stories of Rescue.”

In 2005, the General Assembly designated 27 January, the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp, as an annual International Day of Commemoration to honour the victims of the Holocaust, and urged Member States to develop educational programmes to instil the memory of the tragedy in future generations.