Sixty-third session * A/63/150 and Corr.1. Item 62 of the provisional agenda* Holocaust remembrance Programme of outreach on the “Holocaust and the United Nations” Report of the Secretary-General Summary The present report is submitted in accordance with General Assembly resolution 60/7 on Holocaust remembrance, in which the Assembly requested the Secretary-General to establish a programme of outreach on the subject of the “Holocaust and the United Nations” as well as measures to mobilize civil society for Holocaust remembrance and education, in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide. Since its establishment in January 2006, the outreach programme has developed an international network of civil society groups, collaborated with world-renowned institutions and garnered the support of experts in the field of Holocaust and genocide studies to develop a multifaceted programme that includes seminars for United Nations information officers, exhibitions on a variety of themes related to the Holocaust, discussion papers drafted by distinguished scholars, panel discussions, a film series, innovative online information products for educators, a permanent exhibition at United Nations Headquarters, and the annual observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. The outreach programme has worked closely with survivors to ensure that their stories are heard and heeded as a warning of the consequences of anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination. The Department of Public Information also continues to provide civil society with communications tools to combat Holocaust denial. I. Introduction 1. On 1 November 2005, the General Assembly adopted resolution 60/7 entitled “Holocaust remembrance”, and resolved that the United Nations would designate 27 January as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. The Assembly urged Member States to develop educational programmes that will inculcate future generations with the lessons of the Holocaust in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide, and in that context commended the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research. 2. In the same resolution, the General Assembly requested the Secretary-General to establish a programme of outreach on the subject of the “Holocaust and the United Nations” (“the programme”) as well as measures to mobilize civil society for Holocaust remembrance and education, in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide; to report to the General Assembly on the establishment of the programme within six months from the date of the adoption of the resolution; and to report thereafter on the implementation of the programme at its sixty-third session. 3. The present report to the General Assembly at its sixty-third session outlines the activities undertaken since June 2006, when the first report was issued (A/60/882). II. Goals of the outreach programme 4. The Department of Public Information continues to carry out the programme under the overall theme of “Remembrance and Beyond”. This theme serves to highlight the main two elements of the programme: remembering all the victims of the Holocaust and helping to prevent future acts of genocide. 5. As a counterpoint to Nazi ideology, which sought to strip victims of their humanness, remembrance focuses on the individual and works to give each person a face, a name and a story. Through the recollection of the journeys of those who perished and by sharing the experiences of the survivors at commemorative events, in exhibits and on web pages, the programme shows that the failure of mankind to prevent the Holocaust has direct relevance to the dangers of genocide that persist today. In sum, the Department serves as a channel of information for the benefit of Member States, who have been urged by the General Assembly to develop educational programmes that will inculcate future generations with the lessons of the Holocaust, and for civil society whose mobilization for Holocaust remembrance and education can help prevent future acts of genocide. III. The programme 6. The Department of Public Information has implemented a communications strategy with worldwide impact by developing an international network of civil society groups, collaborating with world-renowned institutions and garnering the support of experts in the field of Holocaust and genocide studies to create a multifaceted programme. 7. These partnerships have resulted in the increase of multiple redisseminators of the programme’s key messages: honour the memory of the victims; respect the dignity and worth of each individual; celebrate diversity; protect human rights; combat Holocaust denial; and learn from the circumstances that led to and perpetuated the Holocaust, which remain valuable lessons for the prevention of genocide. The Holocaust serves as a warning of the consequences of anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination today. 8. Core elements of the programme include seminars for United Nations information officers, exhibits on a variety of themes related to the Holocaust, discussion papers drafted by distinguished scholars, panel discussions, a film series, innovative online information products for educators, a permanent exhibition at United Nations Headquarters, and the annual observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. IV. Activities undertaken in the context of the programme A. Annual observance at United Nations Headquarters January 2007 “We must apply the lessons of the Holocaust to today’s world. And we must do our utmost so that all peoples must enjoy the protections and rights for which the United Nations stands.” (Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, 27 January 2007) 9. The United Nations in New York observed the second International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust with a ceremony on 29 January 2007 in the General Assembly Hall. The Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information introduced the programme, which began with a video message by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Statements were made by the President of the sixty-first session of the General Assembly, the Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, a student who had visited former concentration and death camps in Poland and a representative of the disabled community. The keynote address was given by Simone Veil, a Holocaust survivor, then President of the Fondation pour la mémoire de la Shoah. The observance focused on the importance of Holocaust education and the fight against discrimination, particularly in the light of the adoption by the General Assembly on 13 December 2006 of the landmark Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The ceremony concluded with a musical performance given by HaZamir: The International Jewish High School Chamber Choir, a project of the Zamir Choral Foundation. The event was webcast live and broadcast on United Nations Television. 10. That afternoon, the Department launched its commemorative DVD on the first Holocaust remembrance observance held at United Nations Headquarters in 2006. The film was screened at a panel discussion on the topic of Holocaust denial and human rights, organized by B’nai B’rith International. The Department also collaborated with the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation on the “Partners of Hope” concert at Carnegie Hall on 5 February 2007. This concert was held to recognize those who displayed great courage to save Jews from genocide during the Second World War. January 2008 “But it is not enough to remember, honour and grieve for the dead. ... We must foster in our children a sense of responsibility, so that they can build societies that protect and promote the rights of all citizens.” (Secretary-General Ban Kimoon, 27 January 2008) 11. The memorial ceremony and concert held in the United Nations General Assembly Hall on 28 January 2008 underscored the responsibility that a State has towards its populations and the democratic principles that help to preserve and protect human rights, in connection with the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information introduced the programme, which began with a video message by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The keynote address on the topic “Civic responsibility and the preservation of democratic values”, by United States of America Congressman Tom Lantos, was delivered by his daughter. Other speakers included the President of the sixty-second session of the General Assembly and the Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations. The ceremony also featured a concert with the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music Symphony Orchestra, Tel Aviv University, in cooperation with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by the world renowned maestro Zubin Mehta. 12. That afternoon, the Department participated in a panel discussion with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the importance of Holocaust education, which was organized by B’nai B’rith International. The film on the paper clips project undertaken by the students at Whitwell Middle School in Tennessee was screened. These students collected a paper clip for every victim of the Holocaust — 6 million for the Jews and 5 million in memory of the other minorities who were murdered. B. Holocaust remembrance around the world 13. The global network of United Nations information centres (UNICs), United Nations Information Service (UNIS) and United Nations Offices observed the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust in 2007 and 2008 in partnership with civil society groups and Government representatives. 2007 activities Memorial ceremonies 14. Solemn ceremonies were organized in Asmara (in cooperation with the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea), Asunción, Baku, Buenos Aires, Geneva, Lima, Moscow, Nairobi, Rio de Janeiro, Vienna, Washington, D.C. and Yerevan. One of the larger ceremonies was held at UNIS Geneva, which included statements by a Holocaust scholar, a survivor and two young volunteers from the International Youth Meeting Centre at Auschwitz. Educational activities 15. UNIC Moscow, in partnership with the Holocaust Educational Centre, hosted a group of high school educators and non-governmental organization activists at the UNIC library to brief them on the significance of Holocaust Remembrance Day. UNIC Prague, in cooperation with the Jewish Museum, organized seven workshops in which high school students interacted with Holocaust survivors. UNIC Warsaw, along with the Shalom Foundation and Teachers Education Centre, organized a poster competition for high school students. The United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe (UNRIC) Brussels and the Portuguese Youth Institute produced a Holocaust remembrance video that was shown on the Lisbon Portuguese Youth Institute in-house television network and was shared with other United Nations offices in Lusophone countries. Exhibitions 16. A week-long exhibition of 60 panels of photographs was mounted at UNIC Nairobi and two exhibitions, including on the theme “No Child’s Play”, from Yad Vashem, and paintings from the series “Art Against Oblivion” by a Holocaust survivor, were displayed at UNIS Vienna. Media outreach 17. The information centres translated the message of the Secretary-General into local languages, including Azeri, Danish, German, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish and Ukrainian. Media outreach by the field offices yielded articles and/or radio interviews in the local press in Argentina, Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Burundi, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Japan, Kenya, Paraguay, Portugal, the Russian Federation, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, the United States of America and Zimbabwe. In addition, many information centres created special features on their websites, including UNICs Buenos Aires and Prague, and UNRIC Brussels, as well as UNISs Geneva and Vienna, and the United Nations office in Ukraine. UNIS Bangkok provided the commemorative DVD of the programme to ASTV News1, which was broadcast during the month of February. 2008 activities Memorial ceremonies 18. Solemn ceremonies were held in Asmara, Asunción, Baku, Bogota, Bucharest, Geneva, Lima, Lusaka, Mexico City, Minsk, Panama City, Pretoria, Rio de Janeiro, Vienna, Washington, D.C. and Yaoundé. Many of these events were organized at the highest level of Government. For example, the National Congress of Paraguay, with support from UNIC Asunción and the Consulate General of Israel, hosted a commemorative event with Holocaust survivors and other dignitaries. UNIC Bucharest collaborated with the Ministry of Culture of Romania and the Elie Wiesel National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania to organize a ceremony and memorial concert at the Odeon Theatre. UNIS Geneva, in collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Israel, organized a ceremony at the Palais des Nations where Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message was screened. UNIC Rio de Janeiro, in partnership with the Israeli Federation of the State of Rio de Janeiro, organized an event that included the participation of the President and the First Lady of Brazil. UNIS Vienna marked the observance with Austrian officials, members of the diplomatic community, the Secretary-General of the Federal Association of the Jewish Religious Communities in Austria and the Chairman of the Ethnic Group Council for Roma at the Austrian Federal Chancellery. The United Nations Office in Belarus organized a ceremony that included the Deputy Commissioner on Religions and Minorities, the National Holocaust Foundation and the Union of Belarusian Jewish Associations and Communities. Educational activities 19. UNIC Antananarivo held a video conference at the United Nations House for students, teachers and lawyers with the Mémorial de la Shoah, in Paris. In addition, the information centre organized a book fair and a performance by the United Nations Club on women’s rights. UNIC Bujumbura and the high school students of École Indépendante of Bujumbura held an event that began with a briefing on the history of the Jews and the United Nations outreach programme. The session was concluded with the screening of the video Les Justes (the Righteous). UNIC Brazzaville organized an information session for high school history teachers on the history of the causes and consequences of genocide, and ways in which to fight racism, intolerance and exclusion. The video Les Justes was also screened. 20. UNIC Lima presented a lecture on the lessons of the Holocaust to young members of the Nikkei community in Peru and other countries, in the framework of the XI International Inter-Institutional Exchange. 21. UNIC Lomé organized a round-table discussion on the Holocaust with secondary school students, teachers, members of the UNESCO Club of the University of Lomé and journalists. The information centre also participated in a conference and exhibition at the University. In addition UNIC Lomé arranged the screening of eight films on the deportation and extermination of the Jewish people during the Holocaust. 22. UNIC Manila, in cooperation with the Israeli Consulate General and Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, organized an essay writing contest on the Holocaust that fostered an understanding of the importance of respecting human rights and celebrating diversity. The winners participated in the International Youth Congress held at Yad Vashem. The information centre also partnered with the UNICEF Volunteers Organization at the Lyceum of the Philippines to hold a forum on the theme “Lessons of the Holocaust” for faculty and students of international studies. The film One Survivor Remembers, which tells the story of Gerda Weissmann Klein’s six-year ordeal as a victim of Nazi cruelty, was also screened. 23. UNIC Prague and the Jewish Museum of Prague organized a series of eight workshops for high school students entitled “Remembering the Holocaust”. The programme included interactive games, discussions with Holocaust survivors and a film screening. In addition, the information centre opened an exhibition featuring posters from a campaign against racism, produced by the Museum. 24. UNIC Tokyo partnered with the Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Centre to organize a workshop for 60 teachers and students on the story of Anne Frank. UNIC Yaoundé invited 158 students for a discussion on the lessons to be learned from the Holocaust and the screening of excerpts from two films, One Survivor Remembers and Les Justes. 25. The United Nations office in Armenia made a presentation on the Holocaust and genocide to high school students and their teachers, which led to discussions on discrimination, Holocaust denial and terrorism in the world today. 26. The United Nations office in Georgia, in cooperation with Andrea Benashvili Public School, organized a programme using the educational kit on teaching about the Holocaust, provided by the Gerda and Kurt Klein Foundation. The United Nations office in Ukraine, in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education and Science and the Centre for Holocaust Studies, organized a public discussion entitled “Memory of the Holocaust and Ukrainian society: educational perspective”. The United Nations office in Uzbekistan organized a school essay competition in which students were asked to reflect upon the tragedy of the Holocaust and share their views on ways to prevent genocide today. Exhibitions 27. Exhibitions were mounted in Antananarivo, Asmara, Baku, Brazzaville, Buenos Aires, Bujumbura, Cape Town, Dakar, Geneva, Johannesburg, Ouagadougou, Prague, Tbilisi, Vienna, Warsaw and Yerevan. UNIC Dakar mounted a photo exhibition on its premises, which was visited by more than 300 students and teachers of secondary school over a two-week period. UNIS Geneva, with the support of the International Auschwitz Committee, mounted the exhibition entitled “Open Eyes”, which displays photographs of Auschwitz and texts written by young people from Poland and Germany. UNIC Warsaw and the Shalom Foundation organized an exhibition that featured the best posters from their 2007 poster competition, “Holocaust: Forever in our Memory”. The posters were displayed at the Jewish Theatre in Warsaw. 28. Several exhibitions formed a central part of the ceremony at UNIS Vienna. A reproduction of the postcard series by Holocaust victim Karl Schafranek was made available for the first time. The drawings were created at a labour camp in Eisenerz, Styria, Austria, in 1940 and were later smuggled out of the camp. An exhibit featuring the paintings of a survivor from Auschwitz-Birkenau, among others, was also mounted. 29. UNIC Buenos Aires lent its support to the exhibit on the theme “Righteous among the Nations”, opened by the delegation of Argentinean Israeli Associations. The exhibition highlighted the brave efforts of non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jewish people during the Holocaust. 30. UNIC Pretoria and the Cape Town Holocaust Centre mounted the exhibition “Lessons from Rwanda”. The exhibition was produced by Aegis Trust, a nongovernmental organization that works to prevent genocide, in cooperation with the Department of Public Information. The information centre also partnered with the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, South Africa, to display the exhibition, where survivors from the Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide presented personal testimonies. The film A Good Man in Hell was also screened. 31. The United Nations offices in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia mounted the exhibit “To Bear Witness”, a collection of 20 black and white posters of photographs from the Yad Vashem archives. These posters illustrate the history of the Holocaust through a series of events, figures, places and concepts, including the rise of Nazism, the formation of the ghetto, deportation, the camps, the Warsaw Ghetto revolt and liberation of the camps. Media outreach 32. Outreach to media organizations by the global network of United Nations information centres led to articles in the local press, radio and television in many countries, including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Burundi, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Kenya, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, the United States of America and Zimbabwe. Also, many information centres included special features on their websites, such as UNIS Geneva, UNRIC Brussels, UNICs Bogota, Buenos Aires, Bucharest, Lima, Lusaka, Mexico City and Warsaw and the United Nations office in Armenia. In addition, UNIC Mexico City provided information and audio feeds from Holocaust survivors living in Mexico and human rights experts for the production of a radio feature on Holocaust remembrance. 33. UNIC Antananarivo organized a briefing for journalists on the Holocaust, during which the National Information Officer shared her experience at the training seminar she participated in at Le Mémorial de la Shoah in Paris. The journalists received information materials and the programme’s commemorative video entitled Remembrance and Beyond. UNIC Dakar held a similar briefing with the participation of the Ambassador of Israel to Senegal. 34. During the reporting period, the field offices distributed relevant information materials, posters, videos and press releases, including the message of the Secretary-General to Government officials, non-governmental organizations, civil society and the media, as well as to United Nations peace missions. The message of the Secretary-General was translated into the six official languages of the United Nations, as well as many local languages, including Armenian, Azeri, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Georgian, German, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian. C. Holocaust and genocide prevention seminars 35. The Department initiated creative partnerships with renowned Holocaust institutions and raised the funds to organize four week-long regional seminars. These training programmes were designed to enhance the knowledge of local level staff at the United Nations information centres worldwide on the history of the Holocaust, human rights and the prevention of genocide. Experts presented an overview of the evolution of anti-Semitism and other forms of intolerance, and illustrated the powerful role media and propaganda played in spreading hatred. The participants had the opportunity to interact with and learn from Holocaust survivors and to visit Holocaust memorials and sites, including the former concentration and death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. They also examined the Holocaust, the Second World War and the founding of the United Nations, and studied the international legal norms designed to prevent and punish crimes against humanity and genocide. In addition, they learned how the breakdown of democratic principles could lead to human rights abuses, and in the extreme case, genocide. 36. Participants in the training seminar in Berlin included: UNIC Accra, UNIC Canberra, UNIC Colombo, UNIC Dar es Salaam, UNIC Dhaka, UNIC Harare, UNIC Islamabad, UNIC Jakarta, UNIC Kathmandu, the United Nations office in Kazakhstan, UNIC Khartoum, UNIC Lagos, UNIC Lusaka, UNIC Maseru, UNIC Nairobi, UNIC New Delhi, UNIC Prague, UNIC Sana’a, UNIC Tehran, the United Nations office in Uzbekistan, UNIS Vienna, UNIC Windhoek, UNIC Warsaw and UNIC Yangon. 37. Participants in the training seminar in Paris included: UNIC Antananarivo, UNIC Beirut, UNIC Brazzaville, UNRIC Brussels, UNIC Bujumbura, UNIC Cairo, UNIC Dakar, UNIS Geneva, UNIC Lomé, UNIC Ouagadougou and UNIC Yaoundé. 38. Participants in the training seminar in Jerusalem included: UNIC Ankara, the United Nations office in Azerbaijan, UNIS Bangkok, UNIC Bucharest, the United Nations office in Ukraine, UNIC Manila, the United Nations office in Belarus, UNIC Moscow, UNIC Pretoria, the United Nations office in Georgia, UNIC Tokyo and the United Nations office in Armenia. 39. Participants in the training seminar in Washington, D.C., included: UNIC Asunción, UNIC Bogota, UNIC Buenos Aires, UNIC La Paz, UNIC Lima, UNIC Mexico City, UNIC Panama City, UNIC Port of Spain, UNIC Rio de Janeiro and UNIC Washington, D.C. 40. The purpose of these seminars was to better equip the information officers in the field to raise public awareness about the relevance of the Holocaust today, and apply the principles they learn to outreach activities to combat Holocaust denial and promote respect for diversity and human rights. Seminars were held in May 2007 at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington, D.C., in October 2007 at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, in November 2007, at Le Mémorial de la Shoah in Paris and in April 2008 at the House of the Wannsee Conference Memorial and Educational Site in Berlin. Outcome 41. Nearly all United Nations information centres (57 out of 63) were able to participate in the training seminars. As a result of this and the ongoing guidance provided by the programme, the number of field offices organizing Holocaust Remembrance Day observances more than doubled from 2007 to 2008, and the number of activities increased threefold. In addition, the training institutions will continue to provide expertise, support and educational materials for the information centres’ outreach activities and libraries. 42. Several joint ventures and projects have already been initiated between the field offices and the training institutions. Among them were a presentation on genocide, created by UNIC Lima with USHMM materials that the programme translated into United Nations official languages and shared with all information centres. Several of the information centres nominated students who took part in the International Youth Congress organized by Yad Vashem in Jerusalem in observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust in January 2008. Le Mémorial de la Shoah linked with UNIC Antananarivo via videoconference to give students and educators the opportunity to interact with a Holocaust survivor in Paris and to pose questions to the Director of Education of Le Mémorial. Plans are under way to make this an annual event with more francophone information centres. In addition, UNRIC Brussels is providing support for a two-day seminar to be held by Le Mémorial and the Free University of Brussels in connection with the sixtieth anniversary this year of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. D. Panel discussions 43. During the reporting period, the Department of Public Information organized a series of interactive panel discussions designed to promote awareness of the lessons of the Holocaust and their implications for preventing genocide today. By examining best practices to fight hatred, racism and Holocaust denial, the discussions aimed to mobilize civil society and the international community to help prevent mass violence. All of these events were held at United Nations Headquarters in New York, and the webcasts are available on the programme website (www.un.org/holocaustremembrance). 44. On 14 September 2006, the Department held a round-table discussion on the theme, “The United Nations and the response to genocide”. The event featured the Chair of the Secretary-General’s Advisory Committee on Genocide Prevention and focused on the historical response of the international community to acts of genocide, and the necessary steps to be taken to prevent such tragedies in the future. Other participants included the President of LBL Foundation for Children; the Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Sierra Leone to the United Nations; the Executive Director of the Institute for the Study of Genocide; and the Deputy Director of the New York office of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The film Genocide: The Horror Continues, produced by Baseline Studio Systems and All Media Guide, was screened. 45. On 8 November 2007, the Department organized a panel discussion on the theme “From Kristallnacht to today: how do we combat hatred?” The seminar was opened by the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information and featured speakers from civil society who shared best practices to overcome hatred, prejudice and intolerance, including on the Internet. The Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide delivered the keynote address. The Director-General of Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Argentina; an instructor from Sweden’s Living History Forum; the Director of the Task Force Against Hate, of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in New York; the Director of the Centre for Social Development in Cambodia; and a Professor from Ghana currently teaching at the University of South Florida also participated. Among other themes addressed were the responsibility of Governments in protecting the rights of their citizens, the role of regional and local actors in preventing and resolving conflict, and the contribution non-governmental organizations have to make towards conflict prevention and reconciliation at the regional and grass-roots levels. A historical overview of the Kristallnacht pogrom of November 1938 was presented in the film World War II, Into the Storm, produced by ABC News. 46. On 12 and 26 June 2008, the Department collaborated with the United Nations University to sponsor a two-part series of interactive briefings on genocide prevention. The first briefing was organized by the United Nations University and featured David Hamburg, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Genocide Prevention, who presented his book, entitled Preventing Genocide: Practical Steps toward Early Detection and Effective Action. Other speakers included the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Planning and the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide. 47. The second briefing, held on 26 June 2008, the sixty-third anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, was organized by the programme on the theme “Saving succeeding generations”. This well-known phrase from the Charter of the United Nations emphasized the linkage between the founding principles of the Organization and its activities in the areas of Holocaust remembrance and genocide prevention. Following the opening remarks by the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, in which he underscored the individual and collective responsibility to protect vulnerable groups, the Head of the United Nations University office in New York shared the outcome of the first briefing in the series. The keynote address was delivered by the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General, whose area of expertise includes the responsibility to protect. The Director of Libraries at Yad Vashem presented cases of rescue during the Holocaust, emphasizing the moral responsibility each person has towards others. A recent student graduate shared the personal experience of his family during the genocide in Rwanda. A Principal Legal Officer in the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat explained the role of international courts in preventing and punishing genocide and other crimes against humanity. In addition, representatives of USHMM demonstrated the Google Earth satellite imagery and discussed the techniques used in their campaign against mass violence. The panellists also examined effective communication tools and practices that civil society groups could use to garner support for genocide prevention efforts. E. Exhibitions 48. The Department of Public Information mounted two exhibitions in the United Nations Visitors’ Lobby in observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust in January 2007. The first exhibition depicted the genocide against the Sinti and Roma during the Second World War and the racism that this group still experiences today. The exhibition was held in partnership with the Documentation and Cultural Centre of German Roma and Sinti and the Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations. The second exhibition featured artwork created by Holocaust survivors. 49. The exhibition, entitled “Memorial Drawings: Remembering the Holocaust Victims and Their Liberators” featuring artist Gennady Dobrov, opened at United Nations Headquarters on 17 January 2008. The Department co-sponsored the exhibition, which was organized by the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations in cooperation with the United Nations information centre in Moscow. 50. The Department inaugurated two exhibitions under the theme of rescue and responsibility in the Visitors’ Lobby on 29 January 2008. The first, entitled “BESA: A Code of Honor, Muslim Albanians who Rescued Jews during the Holocaust”, by photographer Norman Gershman, was authored and curated by Yad Vashem and sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Albania to the United Nations. A second exhibition, “Carl Lutz and the Legendary Glass House in Budapest”, was cosponsored by the Carl Lutz Foundation and the Permanent Missions of Hungary and Switzerland to the United Nations. 51. On 30 January 2008, the Department unveiled a permanent exhibition on the Holocaust at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The exhibition, developed by the programme, presents an overview of the tragedy in the context of the Second World War and the founding of the United Nations. Holocaust scholars from the House of the Wannsee Conference Memorial and Educational Site, USHMM and Yad Vashem served as honorary consultants on the project. F. Film series 52. On 19 July 2006, the Department of Public Information and the New York Tolerance Center jointly screened the Academy Award-winning film The Pianist. The Universal Studios movie, directed by Roman Polanski, is based on the autobiography of Wladyslav Szpilman. He was a Polish Jew and a celebrated pianist and composer, who, during the Nazi occupation, evaded deportation and hid in the ruins of Warsaw. 53. On 16 April 2007, the Department and the Anne Frank Center USA held the premier of the film Steal a Pencil for Me, presented by Red Envelope Entertainment. Directed by Academy Award nominee Michèle Ohayon, the documentary tells the story of love and hope between two survivors of the Holocaust, despite the hardship they endured in the camps. 54. On 31 January 2007, the Department, in collaboration with USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, screened the film Volevo solo Vivere (I Only Wanted to Live), directed by Mimmo Calopresti. The film tells the moving story of nine Italian survivors of the former concentration camp in Auschwitz. The following day, the film Nazvy svoie im’ia (Spell Your Name), directed by Serhiy Bukovsky, was shown. The film recalls the brutal massacre of Jews at Babi Yar, Ukraine. Representatives of the Permanent Missions of Italy and Ukraine made introductory remarks. 55. On 31 January 2008, the Department was joined by the Deputy Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the United Nations for the screening of Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport, the Academy Award-winning documentary movie released by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film tells the story of 10,000 Jewish and other children who were rescued by the British and placed into foster homes and hostels just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, many of whom never saw their families again. A discussion followed with Deborah Oppenheimer, the film’s producer, and David Marwell, Director of the Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. G. Multimedia outreach 56. The programme created a gateway website on Holocaust remembrance that provides users with comprehensive information on the work and activities of the programme. The website (www.un.org/holocaustremembrance) is user-friendly, accessible and contains a wealth of educational resources on the subject matter. The programme has also increased its outreach, particularly to youth, by creating a presence on the websites of YouTube and Wikipedia. 57. The Department also developed with extrabudgetary resources an online pedagogical tool and resource called “Electronic Notes for Speakers”. The Notes contain survivor testimony, lesson plans and basic facts to equip speakers with the necessary resources to conduct briefings on the Holocaust and its lessons. The project, which resulted from partnerships with Yad Vashem and USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, provides concise, detailed information on the history and human experience of the Holocaust. The French and Spanish versions were created by Le Mémorial de la Shoah and USHMM, respectively. 58. The Department produced a commemorative film, with the support of the United Nations Foundation. This DVD highlights the historic first observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, which was held at United Nations Headquarters on 26 January 2006. 59. The Department also produced a video for the permanent exhibition on the Holocaust at United Nations Headquarters. This two-minute film shows footage of events foreshadowing the Holocaust and includes scenes from the liberation of the camps in 1945 (see also www.youtube.com/holocaustremembrance). 60. United Nations Radio broadcast a programme on Holocaust remembrance under its “Perspective” series. The programme profiles the survivors and their children, who travelled to New York to participate in the memorial ceremony in January. Many of the musicians in the orchestra that performed were children of Holocaust survivors. All the family members interviewed shared moving stories of death, illness and loss, intertwined with tales of hope, courage and enduring faith. H. Print materials 61. The Department of Public Information also designed an award-winning poster that has been reproduced in English, French, Russian and Spanish. The programme’s information card outlining its mandate and core elements has been created in English, French and Spanish. Both products have been distributed around the world. 62. The programme publishes a series of discussion papers that are written by leading scholars in the field of Holocaust and genocide studies. The papers are edited by the programme, which also prepares questions that accompany each paper to stimulate discussion among students. To date the series includes papers from seven authors from Australia, China, France, Ghana, Israel, the Sudan and the United States of America, and is published in English and French. 63. The Department regularly sends educational resources donated by its partners to the global network of United Nations information centres. Materials have included: • The Holocaust: frequently asked questions: provided by Yad Vashem, Le Mémorial de la Shoah and the Holocaust Museum Houston, in English, French and Spanish, respectively. • La Shoah, la Mémoire Nécessaire: provided by the Fondation pour la Mémoire de la Shoah, contains a chronology and overview of Holocaust events in French. • Preparing for Holocaust Memorial Days, Suggestions for Educators: guidelines on useful ideas for planning annual observances, provided by Yad Vashem and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in English, French, German, Russian and Spanish. • One Survivor Remembers: educational kit designed for teens on the life and experiences of Gerda Weissman Klein during the Holocaust. The kit contains her Academy Award-winning documentary film, a copy of her biography All But My Life, a teachers’ guide and lesson plans for youth aged 13 to 18 years; it is designed to help students understand the modern-day dangers of hatred; it was provided by Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, in partnership with the Gerda and Kurt Klein Foundation and the HBO television network. • In Time: Stand Up, Speak Out, Lend a Hand: a student magazine and teacher’s guide on the importance of respect for diversity, moral values and civic responsibility, provided by TIME Classroom. • Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport: DVD, book and study guide of the film, provided by Warner Bros. Pictures in English and French. • Education of Roma Children project: fact sheets on the experience of the Roma, who were also targeted for extermination by the Nazis, provided by the Council of Europe. I. Other activities 64. Each October the Department of Public Information co-sponsors with the Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust a concert during the Daniel Pearl World Music Days celebration, in honour of the slain journalist. The music days unite thousands of musicians over 60 countries to help spread a message of respect for diversity and solidarity. 65. Two authors discussed and signed copies of their books in the United Nations bookshop: Daniel Mendelsohn, The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million, which chronicles the author’s worldwide travels in search of details about the lives and fate of the members of his family during the Second World War, many of whom perished during the Holocaust; and Robert Satloff, Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust’s Long Reach into Arab Lands, which unveils stories of Arabs that rescued or assisted Jews in North Africa during the Second World War Nazi occupation. V. Evaluation 66. Feedback received from participants in the programme activities has been consistently positive. Survivors, family members and non-governmental organizations have found the programme events and information materials meaningful and helpful in raising awareness of the relevance of the Holocaust today. Educators and United Nations information centres that have accessed the online pedagogical tools have affirmed that the content is both informative and useful. An evaluation of the training seminars for United Nations information officers indicated that the seminars had increased their knowledge of the subject area and would assist them greatly in incorporating the issue into activities to promote human rights and genocide prevention. In addition, interest in the programme has grown, as evidenced by an increase of 46.5 per cent in the number of monthly visits to the programme website between January 2007 and January 2008. “We have seen that anti-Semitism still exists today, in writing and in sentiment, and we need to address this. We must get to the root of it by including children and their parents in outreach programmes to get to the bottom of discrimination”. “Now I have a new challenge and work to do, because no one can remain indifferent to this subject or to General Assembly resolution 60/7 after this training”. (UNIC seminar participants) VI. Future activities 67. Memory serves as a channel through which the victims of the Holocaust can be honoured and as a vehicle for educating future generations on the importance of protecting the dignity and worth of each individual, regardless of race or religious belief. In developing a meaningful programme of outreach, the Department of Public Information will continue to consult broadly with Holocaust and genocide experts around the world. Through its many presentations to civil society groups and institutions, the programme will continue to forge partnerships that help to increase its outreach potential. 68. The programme will also continue to provide educational materials on combating anti-Semitism to the global network of United Nations information centres. Developed by its partners Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights/OSCE and the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, a three-module set of guidelines for educators will help youth better understand the life and experience of the Jewish people, how the Holocaust came about and the ongoing threat of hatred today. Module 1 is on the history of anti-Semitism and the Holocaust; module 2 covers contemporary forms of anti-Semitism; and module 3 looks at anti-Semitism as one of many forms of discrimination. The materials also deal with the workings of prejudice in general, showing students the impact that bias can have both on individuals and on whole societies. 69. The Department will also partner with the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and Museum to provide age-appropriate educational materials on the Holocaust for primary schoolchildren to the United Nations information centres in English and French. 70. The Department plans to observe the seventieth anniversary of the Kristallnacht Pogrom with its annual seminar in November 2008, focusing on the actions that led to the violence against and imprisonment of Jews throughout the Third Reich. The programme will also publish a consolidated journal of its discussion paper series in English and French. 71. Many United Nations information centres have expressed interest in mounting a Holocaust exhibition at their premises in 2009. To facilitate this, the programme provided those offices with photographs and the text of its exhibition in Arabic, English, French, Russian and Spanish. 72. The Department will partner with USHMM to mount its exhibition, entitled “Deadly Medicine”, at New York Headquarters in 2009. The exhibition depicts how Nazi Germany carried out a campaign to “cleanse” German society of Jews and other individuals viewed as racially or biologically inferior.   sss1 \* MERGEFORMAT A/63/316 sss1 \* MERGEFORMAT A/63/316 FooterJN \* MERGEFORMAT 08-46833 \* MERGEFORMAT 6 \* MERGEFORMAT 7 FooterJN \* MERGEFORMAT 08-46833 United Nations A/63/316 General Assembly Distr.: General 20 August 2008 Original: English jobn \* MERGEFORMAT 08-46833 (E) 150908 Barcode \* MERGEFORMAT *0846833* The Department of Public Information launched the Holocaust commemorative stamp issued by the United Nations Postal Administration in English, French and German at New York Headquarters and at United Nations Offices at Geneva and Vienna. Israel launched a national stamp in Hebrew with a similar design based on the award-winning Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme logo. Holocaust Remembrance website statistics Word.Document.8 \s