MS, Cabinet Secretary for Social
Justice, Trefnydd and Chief Whip: Every year, on 27th January, we
mark Holocaust Memorial Day – a moment to reflect on the tragedy
of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides, to honour the strength
and resilience of survivors and their families, and to ensure we
do not repeat the horrors of the past.
We remember the six million Jewish people murdered in the
Holocaust, people murdered because they were gay, disabled, Roma
or Sinti, or trade unionists. We also remember the people of many
nationalities across Europe who were persecuted under Nazi
occupation. Holocaust Memorial Day is also about the
millions of people murdered in more recent genocides, including
in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur and suffered by the Yazidi
people.
Holocaust Memorial Day is an important reminder that genocide is
an extreme end point for behaviour and attitudes which start life
as hate and dehumanisation. If groups in our society are blamed,
treated as inferior, and then targeted, we will lay the
foundations for such atrocities. In the last year, we have seen
horrific attacks on our religious communities and vocal hate
towards those from ethnic minorities or born outside the
UK.
We continue to stand in solidarity with our Jewish and Muslim
communities in Wales and are working closely with Jewish
community representatives, the Community Security Trust (CST),
Muslim Council of Wales and other important stakeholders. The
Welsh Government funds the Wales Hate Support Centre, run by
Victim Support Cymru, to provide tailored and free support to any
victim of hate crime in Wales. Our Hate and Community Tensions
Board is the forum which brings together key partners alongside
the four police forces in Wales to help us ensure hate is given
the priority focus that it deserves.
This work is strengthened by our Community Cohesion Programme,
which brings partners together to promote understanding, reduce
tensions, and support cohesive and resilient communities across
Wales.
The Welsh Government has recently renewed funding for a dedicated
Holocaust Memorial Day Trust support worker for Wales for the
next three years, helping communities and organisations mark
Holocaust Memorial Day.
This year's theme, “Bridging Generations”, reminds us that
remembrance must connect the past with the future, like a bridge.
We must ensure that history's lessons remain alive and relevant.
Every generation shares the responsibility of keeping the door to
hatred and genocide firmly closed as a discarded relic of the
past. We must go on honouring the courage of survivors by
ensuring their witness testimonies inspire us to build
communities that stand against prejudice. As time passes, this
becomes more urgent so that we do not become complacent as a
society.
At 8:00pm we ask households across Wales to Light the Darkness —
from our capital's landmarks, including the Welsh Government
building, the Senedd, and Cardiff Castle, through our valleys
communities with buildings such as the General Office in Ebbw
Vale, and along the west coast to the Bandstand and Canolfan Alun
R Edwards in Aberystwyth, and council offices across North
Wales. Together, these lights will help us to create a symbolic
bridge connecting our communities to past we commemorate and a
promised future free from hatred.
We remain firmly committed to investing in initiatives to prevent
hate, challenge prejudice, and build a Wales where everyone feels
safe, valued, and respected. We encourage everyone in Wales to
listen to survivor testimonies, light a candle this evening, and
share messages of remembrance. Choose not to share messages
online which blame particular groups for society's challenges.
Remind each other what ‘Never Again' truly means and have a
conversation about this with someone from another generation.
Let us come together this Holocaust Memorial Day to ensure that
the darkness of the Holocaust and the lessons it holds for all of
us, are never forgotten.
