Increasing the quality of life of Romanian citizens belonging to the Roma minority based on active citizenship, socio-economic inclusion and capitalising on the Roma cultural heritage is a priority with the Romanian government, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said in a message on August 2, National Remembrance Day of the Holocaust against the Roma - Samudaripen.
"Today, we honor the memory of all the victims of the Holocaust against the Roma, one of the darkest chapters in the history of humanity. 78 years ago, on August 2, 1944, in the gas chambers of Auschwitz, the Nazi regime barbarically attacked several thousand ethnic Roma and Sinti. At the same time, we remember, with deep respect and compassion, the drama of the 25,000 Roma of Romania, who, eight decades ago, by order of the Antonescu regime, began to be deported to Transnistria, with the cold, hunger and diseases being fatal to 11,000 of them. The memory of the victims must remain indelible from the collective memory, and the atrocities that happened during the Holocaust must never be forgotten," said Ciuca.
He added that taking on the traumatic lessons of history and condemning the guilty are part of the firm commitment to never allow such tragedies to happen again.
"The more we move away in time from the Holocaust, the greater the risk that silence and oblivion will settle over the suffering of the victims. That is precisely why it is essential that facts be researched and investigated, testimonies of the survivors disseminated, responsibilities assumed, so that the truth may be known by all," underscored the Prime Minister.
The prime minister also mentioned the progress made by Romania in researching the history of the Roma, saying that the genocide of the Roma is still a marginal topic in Holocaust research, and that favours the perpetuation of denialist theses.
"Such approaches must be strengthened through educational curricula, awareness campaigns, adequate documentation of facts. Currently, both in the national strategy for the prevention and combating of anti-Semitism, xenophobia, radicalisation and hate speech in 2021-2023, as well as in the strategy of the Romanian government for the inclusion of Romanian citizens belonging to the Roma minority in 2022-2027, there are concrete measures to encourage education and research into the Holocaust against Roma, the promotion of Romany cultural heritage and Roma cultural identity, the creation of places of memory, combatting negative discrimination as well as anti-Roma speech, attitudes and incidents. Also, the Romanian government created by law August 2 as National Remembrance Day of the Holocaust against the Roma - Samudaripen," added Ciuca.
He emphasised that the fight against anti-Semitism, extremism, xenophobia, racism and intolerance is a permanent responsibility and requires a continuous adaptation of the tools developed to counteract these wounds that threaten democratic values, Agerpres.
"Romania has the necessary resources and has demonstrated consistency in fulfilling this mission, which must be internalised by all involved and responsible actors - the legislation in the field must be properly applied, the history of the Holocaust must be known by students and young people, and the commemorative dimension must, in the future, be integrated with public actions. The difficult period we are going through, marked mainly by the illegitimate, unprovoked and unjustified invasion by the Russian Federation of Ukraine, brings back to attention the fact that democracy, peace and stability are values for which we must continuously fight, because the darkness of revisionism, extremism and hatred can always take over societies," he said.
Ciuca gave assurances that the government is fully committed to promoting the memory of the Holocaust, combating anti-Semitism, racism and xenophobia, supporting education and research about the Holocaust, respecting fundamental rights and freedoms, cultivating respect for human dignity.
"The history of the Roma has been marked by exclusion and negative discrimination, which has left deep traces, and our duty is to repair all these injustices and to campaign for a society of dialogue, inclusion and respect for European values and principles. Let us keep the memory of the victims alive!," Ciuca concluded.
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