The victims of the Holocaust were commemorated on Monday at a rally organized at the Monument to the Victims of Fascism in Chisinau. January 27 marks the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps and the end of the Holocaust, when millions of Jews were killed by the Nazi regime during World War II. The event involved representatives of the country's administration, ambassadors, leaders of the Jewish community and the Roma community, IPN reports.

President Maia Sandu is paying a visit to Poland, where more than 30 world leaders met to pay tribute to the victims of the Holocaust. The head of state urged to promote tolerance, respect and care for those around us.



The meeting in Chisinau was attended by Speaker of Parliament Igor Grosu. "These life stories must be told. We do not have the right to forget them as we have the responsibility to speak and do everything in our power to ensure that such tragedies never happen again," stated the official.

Grosu also said that all these people dreamed of a peaceful future, but were persecuted overnight and taken to camps or ghettos. “Today we stand with the Jewish community and the Roma community, for whom this day is of special importance," said Igor Grosu.



Minister of Culture Sergiu Prodan said that the Holocaust is one of the darkest periods of humanity. It is a day with deep meaning for those from the Republic of Moldova, who experienced the drama of totalitarian regimes.

"The culture of memory is that weapon that we can use to protect ourselves in the future from such events. Our territory was witness to boundless suffering, inhumanity and hatred. However, even in the darkest moments, hope survived," said Sergiu Prodan.

"As we commemorate the victims of the past, we express our hope for a better future.”



Israel’s’ Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova Joel Lion deplored these pages full of massacre in the history of mankind and noted how important it is to remember and commemorate them.

Alexandru Nisenboim, a member of the Board of the Jewish Community of Moldova, said that it is impossible to believe that these terrible events took place only 80 years ago. In his speech, he called for the introduction of the Holocaust as a separate subject in the school curriculum.



Marin Alla, executive director of the Voice of the Roma Coalition, stressed that it is a tragic and dark day in families that had parents, grandmothers and great-grandmothers killed by the fascist regime. He expressed his hope that on the territory of Moldova there will be at least one monument dedicated to the Roma who suffered as a result of those disastrous events.



The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova in 2016 adopted a Declaration on the acceptance of the Final Report of the International Commission on the Holocaust, and January 27 was designated as the National Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust.