Greece

Greece’s participation in IHRA highlights our determination to honour the martyrdom and sacrifice of thousands of Jewish Greeks in the Holocaust and is the springboard for a more thorough understanding of the past.

Joined the IHRA

2005

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

27 January

See a list of Greece's delegation members

Georgios Polydorakis (Expert Minister Counsellor, Service of Diplomatic and Historical Archives, Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs) – Head of Delegation

Vassiliki Keramida (Ministry of Education) – Deputy Head of Delegation, Education Working Group

Chrysostomos Savvatos (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens) – Education Working Group

Zanet Battinou (Director of the Jewish Museum of Greece) – Museums and Memorials Working Group

Paul Isaac Hagouel (University of California, Berkeley) – Academic Working Group

Leon Saltiel (Central Board of Jewish Communities) – Academic Working Group

Theodosios Kyriakidis (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) – Academic Working Group

Ioannis Mantzas (Pan-Hellenic Confederation of Greek Roma “Ellan Passe”) – Academic Working Group

Georgios-Ioannis Vilanakis (Pan-Hellenic Confederation of Greek Roma “Ellan Passe”) – Academic Working Group

Greece and Greek Israelites, in particular, were among the hardest hit by the Nazi onslaught in Europe during World War II. The Holocaust and the appalling loss of life and suffering it entailed still haunt the Greeks’ collective memory to this day; to remember what was done and so that it should never be repeated, Greece has instituted special scholastic programmes, to teach the Holocaust to the younger generations. These have proved among the most successful in Europe, so that Greece is now drawing on this experience to prepare for her own Presidency of the IHRA for 2021-2022. Greece sees the Holocaust experience under a dynamic angle, as a warning and a lesson for the present and the future. Thus, she considers education to be a primary weapon in the fight against Holocaust denial and distortion, and even, as a means of self-defence for Democracies, against any resurgence of forces and self- professed “ideologies” seeking to undermine and attack our common human and moral values and, eventually, our freedom.

Ambassador Chris J. Lazaris

Recent news

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10 Oct 2022 Time to read: 15 mins

International conference held on Fighting Antisemitism and Holocaust Distortion and Denial on the Digital Battlefield

The international conference “Fighting Antisemitism and Holocaust Distortion and Denial on the Digital Battlefield,” hosted by the Greek delegation to the IHRA served as a continuation of their Presidency’s focus on the fight against Holocaust denial and distortion online.

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01 Mar 2022 Time to read: 4 mins

Sweden takes over IHRA Presidency from Greece

Today, Sweden assumes the Presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) from Greece.

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10 Nov 2021 Time to read: 2 mins

The IHRA launches new resources and grows its membership at Thessaloniki Plenary

Held on the anniversary of the 1938 November Pogroms, the Thessaloniki meetings focused on countering Holocaust distortion, facilitating access to Holocaust collections, and growing the IHRA membership.

Resources in Greek

Working Definitions & Charters
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Διεθνής Χάρτα Μουσείων Μνήμης

Η ίδρυση των Μουσείων Μνήμης σκοπό έχει την προστασία της αξιοπρέπειας των θυμάτων από κάθε μορφής εκμετάλλευση και την ερμηνεία των πολιτικών γεγονότων του παρελθόντος που θα βοηθήσουν το κοινό να διαμορφώσει ανεξάρτητη και κριτική σκέψη απέναντι στα γεγονότα εκείνα.

Working Definitions & Charters
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Ορισμός Εργασίας του Αντιτσιγγανισμού / Διακρίσεων κατά των Ρομά

Αναγνωρίζοντας με ανησυχία – προβληματισμό ότι η παραμέληση [αγνόηση] της γενοκτονίας των Ρομά συνέβαλε στην προκατάληψη και τις διακρίσεις που βιώνουν, ακόμη και σήμερα, πολλές κοινότητες Ρομά **, και αποδεχόμενοι την ευθύνη μας να αντιμετωπίσουμε [και να αντιταχθούμε σε] τέτοιες μορφές ρατσισμού και διακρίσεων (Άρθρα 4 και 7 της Υπουργικής Διακήρυξης της IHRA το 2020, και το άρθρο 3 της Διακήρυξης της Στοκχόλμης), η IHRA υιοθετεί τον ακόλουθο ορισμό εργασίας για τον αντιτσιγγανισμό / τις διακρίσεις κατά των Ρομά: