Holocaust Memorial Day commemorated in Budapest centre

Budapest (MTI) – A commemoration was held in the Budapest Holocaust Memorial Centre on Wednesday to pay tribute to Hungarian Holocaust victims.

There have been a great number of disasters in the history of mankind which have claimed millions of lives. But man’s brutality during the Holocaust was beyond any measure experienced in any natural disaster or epidemic before, Defence Minister Istvan Simicskó said.

He said that Nazi leaders built an “empire of fear, a civilisation of death with a systematic, meticulous method,” but their elevation to power was helped by many people’s indifference, as well as neglect by western leaders, which he called “an enormous mistake”.

“Now, today, the European Union is committing a huge error when it is preparing to abandon Jewish-Christian values and its faith” Simicsko said, adding that “as history has demonstrated, the collapse of civilisations is usually brought about by radicals, fanatics and non-believers”.

Slomó Köves, the chief rabbi of the Unified Hungarian Jewish Congregation (EMIH), said that commemorations of the Holocaust had become part of “general routine” of mainstream society over the past 10-15 years.