Auschwitz – 70 Years

(Author: Ann Harris, Vol. 70, No. 1, Pesach 2015)

On 27 January 2015, I had the responsibility and honour of representing the South African and African Jewish Congress Jewish communities at a ceremony at Auschwitz, Poland, commemorating the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the camp. This was a joint project of the Polish government, the Shoah Foundation and the World Jewish Congress (WJC). I was in the group of WJC community representatives from all over the world. Our representative should have been Mervyn Smith, who sadly passed away a few months earlier, and I found it difficult to take the place of such an outstanding leader of our community.

The delegates were centred in Krakow and the programme was spread over a period of 24 hours. There were three distinct groups of participants: International representatives, WJC delegates and most importantly, over 100 survivors and their escorts. One of the most exciting things was that the majority of the survivors were escorted by their grandchildren. The participation of so many young people added a very special dimension to the gathering. They were also augmented by a small detachment of members of the Israel Air Force.

On the evening before the commemoration itself, there was a large welcoming reception for the survivors and WJC representatives hosted by the University of Southern California Shoah Foundation Institute, at which WJC President Ronald Lauder and Dr Piotr Cywinski were the keynote speakers. The renowned Steven Spielberg, founding chairman of the Shoah Foundation, also spoke. His short address included an interesting idea that we should be looking for humanitarian ways to combat inhumanity. It struck me that the idea is a reality in South Africa.

The speeches were interspersed with evocative Shoah music played by a string quartet. It was the first taste of the theme of all the speeches: that no-one could have imagined the rise of antisemitism which the world is now witnessing. The worst part is that there does not seem to be a solution to the current problem.

On the morning of 27 January, fleets of buses arrived at various hotels to transport the invitees to Auschwitz-Birkenau. It is a drive of under an hour and there was an enormous police presence both escorting the buses and at every junction. Each bus load waited in its vehicle till called and then walked through the screening to which we are so accustomed. It was very difficult for the survivors, despite the kindness and courtesy of the officials, to be marshalled into queues, some to the right, some to the left, to be searched. There were many tears and the shouting of instructions was unnerving.

Then we walked through the snow and slush for about five minutes to the venue itself, where we were quickly shown to the blocks of seats reserved for us. I found it a little difficult to remember the sight of that infamous spot from my last visit because it was so full but as I sat and waited, the position of the railway track and the terrible Gate of Death with the illuminated watchtower above became clear to me.

When the dignitaries entered, they were not identified in any way, so it is not possible to say with certainty which heads of state attended. Certainly Francois Hollande, President of France was there but most major countries seemed to be represented by their Ambassadors.

The programme was about two hours long but was so gripping and varied that the time passed in a flash. The first speaker was the President of Poland who, in a quiet and measured tone, described how the Nazis had “turned his country into a graveyard”.

Then followed the three survivors chosen to speak, each of who was accompanied to the podium by a young escort and who spoke from a text. The first was a woman who had been 14 at the time of her internment. She described graphically the horrific physical conditions she had endured. I found her description of the mud and filth of the pathways so clear that I could hear her words as, later that night, I cleaned the same mud off my boots in my hotel room.

The second was a tall and striking Polish gentleman, arrested very early in the war as a political agitator. His words served to remind the audience of those detained who were not Jewish and he asked us to stand and observe a moment’s silence in memory of the dead.

The third survivor was a very elderly gentleman, small in stature but huge in personality and emotion, speaking in English with a heavy Polish accent. His theme was dealing with legacy, and many of his remarks were greeted with loud applause. He noted that those who speak about the Shoah today tend to ‘sanitize’ their remarks – victims were ‘lost’ or ‘perished’. That is not appropriate – they were actually murdered or slaughtered and we should say so.

We then saw Steven Spielberg’s short documentary on the liberation, Voices of Auschwitz, which was concise and eloquent and was extensively broadcast that evening on world television. This was followed by the last speaker, Ronald Lauder. He made a strong and vibrant plea to the representatives of the many countries assembled to do all in their power to publicise the rise of the neo – antisemitism and to develop strategies to combat it. Again, I felt a personal wave of helplessness in that there were no easy solutions. to a problem which is the same in essence worldwide but takes different forms in every country.

I would like to be able to tell you that the proceedings continued to a dignified end, but unfortunately, the final items were disappointing.

‘Prayers’ were announced. A small group of clergymen led by Chief Rabbi Lau together with two other Rabbanim, a Chazan, a Catholic Bishop and a Russian Orthodox priest walked to the stage. Sadly, Rabbi Lau did not speak; Tehilim were read by the three Rabbanim, the Shofar was blown, the Chazan intoned the K’el Male Rachamim and Kaddish was recited. The non-Jewish clergy each recited a memorial prayer. It in no way demonstrated to the non-Jewish and secular participants the agony of world Jewry nor how, for many, faith in the Almighty, who understands all, never wavered. Perhaps the programmers wanted to preserve the atmosphere of the 1940s, but I am sure world Jewry could have provided in the same ten minutes a more dignified and meaningful service.

Then groups of dignitaries, survivors and donors were asked to walk outside to the Birkenau Memorial to place memorial candles. The remaining 2000 members of the audience remained in their seats to watch this moving ceremony on the screen. It was now dark and snowing and progress was very slow. While they were returning to the tent, the audience began to move out to the buses and the departure became somewhat chaotic. It is a pity that an occasion of such enormity did not end with a declaration of faith and unity.

Ann Harris is a lawyer, human rights activist and Jewish communal leader. She is currently Acting President of the African Jewish Congress following the sad death of its President Mervyn Smith, A”H. This article is based on her report on her visit to Poland to attend the 70th anniversary commemorative ceremony on the liberation of Auschwitz.