Welsh Conservative Leader
AM this afternoon quizzed the First Minister over shocking
statistics showing that one in 20 people in the UK don’t believe
the Holocaust really happened.
The research from the Holocaust Memorial Trust coupled with
further statistics from the Anti-Semitism Policy Trust show that
Wales is falling behind when it comes to awareness of the
Holocaust, as well as tolerance of different races and religions.
Mr Davies asked First Minister how far the Government’s
new guidelines for schools will go to address the education of
young people on this vital topic. He asked: “Are you confident
that learning about the Holocaust and the consequences of
religious or ethnic genocide are given enough emphasis in Wales’
new curriculum?”
He went on to push for “appropriate” resources to be made
available for commemoration events, now and in the future.
The First Minister replied by thanking Mr Davies for raising the
subject in the wake of Holocaust Memorial Day last Sunday
(27th January).
Speaking outside the chamber, Mr Davies said:
“We have an opportunity with the new curriculum to stamp out
anti-Semitism in Wales.
“The recent survey by the Holocaust Memorial Trust is a real
eye-opener for the challenge that remains ahead of us, and the
results were nothing less than frightening.
“It’s time we educate our children on the importance and dangers
of religious and ethnic genocide so that they can learn from the
faults of our world history.
“The Welsh Government can lead on this. It’s our duty to learn
from mistakes of the past, and to ensure that they’re never
repeated.”
