Bulgarian civil society demonstrated that the Holocaust was not inevitable
12 March 2013 News
“The rescue of the Bulgarian Jews in 1943 was the work of the Bulgarian civil society, of its many and varied representatives. It was the result of individual actions and the decisions by each person to help people in need.” This was said by outgoing Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov at a ceremony held today at the Council of Ministers office to award certificates and badges of honour to mark the 70th anniversary of the rescue of the Bulgarian Jews. The awards were given to Bulgarian Jews for special merit and for raising awareness of the history of the rescue. “The Bulgarian people showed the common sense and consciousness of a strong civil society, as well as not giving in to the madness of Hitler,” Minister Mladenov emphasised in his speech at the ceremony. He appealed to the Holocaust survivors and their descendants to keep alive the memory of what happened during World War 2, to tell the story of the rescue of the Bulgarian Jews to avoid the impression that the Holocaust was inevitable.
In a speech on behalf of the Jews present, Harry Zesler, president of the Organization of Bulgarian immigrants in Israel, recalled how the Bulgarian people rose up to prevent the sending of Bulgarian Jews to concentration camps. “We gained the Bulgarians’ qualities - honesty, humility, diligence, tolerance and compassion. And these qualities have helped us build a modern Israel. At the same time, our country is and will be Bulgaria, which we love and will always help,” Zesler said in an emotional speech.
As a sign of appreciation, the group of more than 30 Bulgarian Jews handed Minister Mladenov, as a representative of the government, a plaque with the inscription: “With respect and deep gratitude to the Bulgarian people”.