Arte e Cultura
Ukraine's President Zelensky unveils new Babyn Yar monument, marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day and start of 80th anniversary year
KYIV, Ukraine , Jan. 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky today unveiled a powerful new monument commemorating the Babyn Yar massacre. At the ceremony, marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the start of eightieth year commemorations of the massacre, messages of support and appreciation were broadcast from international leaders, including Israel's President Reuven Rivlin .
The monument, titled "A Glimpse into the Past" was commissioned by the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center (BYHMC) and created by prominent Ukrainian artist and architect Anna Kamyshan. It includes a tree with broken branches, as a metaphor for a life cut short. At both ends of the tree stands untreated stone boulders. Each one includes a viewfinder through which can be seen pictures taken by the German photographer and propagandist Johannes Hähle in the aftermath of the Babyn Yar massacre. The stone boulders stand at the exact spot where the original photographs were taken, pinpointed by researchers at BYHMC.
, who unveiled the new monument, said
At today's ceremony, messages were broadcast from a number of global dignitaries including , who thanked Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Natan Sharansky (Chair of the Supervisory Board at BYHMC) for their contribution towards commemorating the tragedy. He said
Additional messages were sent by , Chair of the Supervisory Board at BYHMC, , Executive Vice Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, , President of the American Jewish Congress and , Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the National Coalition Supporting Eurasian Jewry.
Today's ceremony was the first of a series of commemorative events to mark the eightieth year since the Babyn Yar massacre. 33,771 Jewish victims were shot at the Babyn Yar ravine by the Nazis during just two days, 29 and 30 September 1941 . Tens of thousands of Ukrainians, Roma , mentally ill and others were shot thereafter at Babyn Yar throughout the Nazi occupation of Kyiv .
It was also confirmed today that President Zelensky has approved the establishment of a committee to oversee the eightieth anniversary commemorations. The Prime Minister of
Ukraine , Denys Shmyhal and the Head of the Presidential Administration,
Andrii Yermak were appointed as co-chairmen of the committee, whose full title is the "Organizing Committee for the Holocaust Memorial to the Babyn Yar tragedy and strategic development of the historic Babyn Yar area in
Kyiv ". The committee of around 60 members so far, is comprised of academics, communal leaders and other dignitaries from
Ukraine and across the world.
At today's ceremony, commented
In a parallel development marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a European Parliament Working Group ("Babyn Yar – Memory for the Future") called for "our colleagues, members of the European Parliament and Members of National Parliaments to commemorate" the eightieth anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre during 2021. said,
The Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Centre is a non-governmental charity whose purpose is to preserve and cultivate the memory of the Holocaust and the Babyn Yar tragedy in Ukraine by turning the Babyn Yar area into a place of remembrance. The Foundation's mission is to worthily honour the memory of the victims of the tragedy and to contribute to the humanization of society through preserving and studying the history of the Holocaust. In September 2020 , Ukraine's government represented by the Minister of Culture Oleksandr Tkachenko , under the auspices of the President of Ukraine , Volodymyr Zelensky , signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation with BYHMC, represented by Supervisory Board member Ronald S. Lauder , to promote the construction of a fitting memorial to the Babyn Yar tragedy. A series of commemorations during 2021 will mark the eightieth anniversary of the Babyn Yar tragedy.
Video - https://youtu.be/Slknb6lpyrM
Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1427947/Andrii_Yermak_President_Volodymyr_Zelensky.jpg
Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1427950/A_Glimpse_into_the_Past_monument.jpg