Statement

2020

IHRA Chair Statement on Holocaust remembrance during pandemic

IHRA Chair Ambassador Michaela Küchler stresses on the importance of protecting Holocaust survivors who may find themselves particularly vulnerable to the serious health complications of COVID-19.

IHRA Chair Ambassador Michaela Küchler says, “We know that the current COVID- 19 situation is posing a great challenge for people and institutions across the globe, including museums, educational institutions and civil society organizations focusing on the topic of the Holocaust. It is difficult to keep the focus on the importance of remembrance, education and research about the Holocaust at a time when so many fear for their health and financial existence. The IHRA community, too, is still adjusting to this new reality.

In these difficult times, we are deeply grateful to all those organizations caring for and taking steps to protect survivors of the Holocaust. As with all elderly people around the world, it is important that we do everything within our means to protect Holocaust survivors who may find themselves particularly vulnerable to the serious health complications of COVID-19.

The IHRA calls on communities around the world to follow government advice to slow the spread of COVID-19 and we stand in solidarity with those institutions working to educate young people, protect survivors and keep the memory of the Holocaust alive against the backdrop of this global pandemic.”