Holocaust Victims are Remembered at the Office of the Ombudsman in Panama

In observance of the International Day in Commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust, the event began with a moment of silence, in accordance with United Nations Resolution 60/7 which urges State Members to implement programs to remember the lessons that this stage in history left for humanity.

Holocaust survivors Dr. Jaime Segal and Simon Burstein; Ombudswoman, Dr. Lilia Herrera Mow; Ambassador of Germany to Panama, Hermann Sausen; Consul of Spain to Panama, Antonio Garcia Roger; Political Affairs Officer of the U.S. Embassy in Panama, Harry Smith; Economic Affairs Officer of the U.S. Embassy in Panama, Cedar C. Balazs; Fr. Remigio Santana, Chancellor of the Curia, on behalf of the Archbishop of Panama, Archbishop Jose Domingo Ulloa; the President of Yad Vashem Panama, Ms. Dalia Gateno; Rabbi Pinjhas Cohen; representatives of the Panama City Council; university students, members of the Panamanian Jewish community and Ombudsman officials were present to remember the victims of the Holocaust and pay tribute to the survivors.

The event reached its climax with the lighting of candles in memory of the 6 million Jews that perished at the hands of the Nazi regime 69 years ago.

After which Holcaust survior Jaime Segal thanked the worthy people who saved his life and that of his family; and urged people to choose their leaders wisely.

Ombudswoman Dr. Lilia Herrera Mow also stressed the importance of remembering this event. “We need to reeducate humanity, because everything around us today is violence. Therefore, the institution could not ignore this date. Remembering, not forgetting, this Project promoted by the Global Embassy of Activists for Peace, seeks to keep alive the testimony of the survivors, which we support, aiming to prevent violence from continuing to take over the world. We are here on a mission: to respect human rights.”

The highlight of the event was the unveiling of the commemorative Traces to Remember plaque of Jaime Segal and his family, as an initiative of Dr. William Soto, Ambassador of the Global Embassy of Activists for Peace, which seeks to keep alive the testimony of Holocaust survivors and prevent the reoccurrence of the events that took place in Nazi Germany.

The event also featured a photographic exhibition titled Educating to Remember, during which a second plaque of the survivor Simon Burstein and his family was also unveiled. The plaques are currently being exhibited in the lobby of the Ombudswoman’s Office.

These commemorative events are being accompanied by the University Forums “Educating to Remember - The Holocaust: Paradigm of Genocide”, to be held on Wednesday, January 29 at 3:30 p.m. in the same location, with the closing events on Thursday, January 30 and Friday January 31 at 6:00 pm. featuring the screening of the films The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and The Pianist.