Greater Manchester unites to honour Holocaust victims

LOCAL civic and community leaders across Greater Manchester have gathered to honour the victims of the Holocaust and conflict.

Monday (January 27) marks Holocaust Memorial Day – which is particularly significant this year.

That’s because it marks 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp complex, and the 30th anniversary of the genocide in Bosnia.

Last Wednesday (January 22) marked the seventh annual Greater Manchester Holocaust Memorial Day service – to remember the atrocities of the past and to continue to foster unity in communities across the 10 boroughs.

The theme for this year’s commemoration – which was attended by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham – is ‘For a Better Future’.

Speakers at the event included Lady Milena Grenfell Baines MBE and Marzia Babakarkhail.

Lady Milena was born in Czechoslovakia in 1929 and, when she was nine years old, she and her three-year-old sister Eva were rescued on the last ‘Kindertransport’ train, organised by Sir Nicholas Winton. Sir Nicholas helped 669 children to escape the Holocaust and find foster families in the UK. Both the girls were fostered by the Ratcliffe family in Ashton-under-Lyne.

Marzia, a former judge and women’s rights advocate from Afghanistan, shared her experiences of persecution by the Taliban and her journey to rebuild her life in Oldham after fleeing for her safety in 2008.

The service featured the lighting of candles of remembrance by representatives from various faith and community organisations across Greater Manchester. Participants included members of the Jewish Council and Greater Manchester’s Equality Panels.

“Today, we come together not only to remember the victims of the Holocaust and conflict but also to reaffirm our commitment to building a future free from hatred and prejudice,” said Mr Burnham.