Dear Boaz

Dear Johan

Honored Mimi

Honorable representatives of the diplomatic corps,

Friends and colleagues,

Welcome to the Holocaust memorial ceremony, now part of the tradition of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.

The Holocaust was one of the darkest chapters in modern history. 73 years ago, at the end of World War II, the world experienced a macabre crime. 6 million Jews were exterminated in concentration camps during systematic and inhumane prosecutions.

The International Day for the Holocaust Remembrance is the day of the rise of the collective conscienceness on a crime that should have never happened in the heart of civilized Europe.

When we stop reflecting upon this human wickedness, we remember how everything started from speech. A false narrative was created about Jews. Speech stirred up fears that turned into hatred. Prejudices became stereotypes, and what could not have even been imagined turned into reality: blind hatred against Jews leading to their persecution.

At a time of social media platforms, “fake news”, narratives that distort the reality, words become ever more important.

The importance of the correct use of social platforms and the truthfulness of the news they publish, is not only an ethical issue, but the key to the creation of a collective narrative. Efforts by some of the major social media platforms today in the world like Facebook or Twitter to filter news just point to the beginning of a new battle where the enemy is not easily identifiable. This is a war without warfare and battlefields are no longer in geographic locations. Speech and cyber world are taking their place.

Ladies and gentleman,

Albania is part of the global developments and as an open and democratic society what we are aiming to build can not be perceived without the sacred freedom of expression. But together with the freedom of expression, there is also responsibility for what we say.

Therefore, I would like to emphasize that the Holocaust Remembrance Day is not just one more occasion to protect against anti-Semitism but a chance for a deep reflection to understand what hatred and a divisive policy may give rise  for someone identified as different or the other. Yesterday, they were Jews, today immigrants, or even Albanians who have been and in some cases are still part of stereotypes that show how lazy the modern man’s mind can be when it is modified through false narratives.

Unlike others, the Albanians were able to show the true human values of our people. Like in no other country in Europe, Albania became a safe shelter for Jews. But feeling proud for our predecessors is not enough. Their example, who succeeded in rescuing the Jews even though under the threat of death, should be exalted by continuing on our path of building a more tolerant and unified society.

And in this context, the education of the younger generations is of particular value,

We could not find a better topic than this to start a tradition of opening our institution for students and scholars, citizens and communities: the continuation of what we will call the “open days” of the Ministry for Europe and European Affairs.

Not by chance, this year’s motto to commemorate the Holocaust is ‘Beyond Duty’. Because lessons learned from the Holocaust go beyond the immediate task. They turn into cardinal lessons of history. It is not a coincidence that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted shortly after the Holocaust. It was the war cry of humanity not to forget what happened and not to allow it to happen again.

Last Saturday, together with the Israeli ambassador, we were in Shkodra to promote the book of one of the survivors of the Holocaust. Mrs. Ergas-Faraxhi, who wrote a memoir and showed how she escaped and how she was sheltered in Shkodra, by the Shurdha family. There she gave birth to a girl, named Drita (Light), who after 75 years met with Ahmet on Saturday, one of the Shurdha family members where she was sheltered when she was born. One cannot describe the emotions of that meeting, but what impressed us mostly are the best human values that, even in different periods of history, overcome wickedness, narrow mindedness and prejudices. Therefore, we must all be part of this mission, both inside and outside our offices, despite the positions we hold.

Thank you very much.