Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Permit me, before mentioning some of the specific data concerning the Holocaust in Slovakia, to express on behalf of the Slovak nation, our deep sorrow over the terrible suffering inflicted upon the innocent Jewish people through all the injustice and violence committed against them during the Second World War. Let us hope that never again will any nation, any race be exposed to such atrocities.

Before 1938, approximately 138 thousand Jewish citizens lived on the Slovak territory of the then Czechoslovakia. When Slovakia lost certain parts of its territory, after it became an independent state in 1939, only 89 thousand Jewish people remained there. Since the anti-Semitic programme very soon became an integral part of the official policy of the government at that time, the Jews were labeled as the arch-enemy of the Slovak state and Slovak nation. In 1941, the so-called Jewish Code was adopted. This piece of legislation was one of the cruelest anti-Semitic legal norms in Europe, comparable with the Nuremberg racial laws. 57 628 persons, that is, two thirds of the Slovak Jews, were forcefully deported from Slovakia to the occupied Poland in the period between 25 March and 20 October 1942.

When the killings of the deported Slovak Jews in German concentration camps were brought to light, the deportations stopped. Only about 600 to 800 people survived these deportation transports. Most of the deportees perished in the extermination camps of the Lublin district, and some of them in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. After suppressing the Slovak National Uprising, the German troops started their occupation of the Slovak state in the autumn of 1944. That period marked the beginning of the second stage of deportations from Slovakia. By the end of the war, thirteen thousand more Slovak Jews were deported and another thousand of them were executed by special police commandos in Slovakia.

Slovakia ranks as the first country among those whose citizens helped the Jewish people in those difficult times. The Slovak non-Jews saved no less than ten thousand Jewish lives during the Shoah, while putting their own lives at risk. More than three hundred of them have been the recipients of the Khasidey Umot Haolam award bestowed upon them, as a sign of recognition, by the State of Israel.

What are we doing today for the young generation so that it can learn the truth about the Holocaust, so that the young people really understand, so that they never allow those horrible things of the past to be ever repeated? In our country, pupils of primary and secondary schools become familiarised with the actual meaning of the notion of Holocaust within the framework of the national curriculum, namely, through subjects such as History, Social Studies, Literature and Geography.

The most systematic approach in teaching the primary school pupils about the Holocaust is provided in History classes. These cover the relevant themes such as The Second World War, The Jews in Slovakia, and The Solution to the Jewish Question. In addition to that, the secondary school students receive the respective information in the form of the following topics: The World War II and The Slovak State between 1939 and 1945. In order to further increase and refine the pupils´ knowledge in both age groups, visits are organised to the Museum of Jewish Culture in Bratislava and field trips to the former concentration camp in Auschwitz. Lectures – both for students at schools and for the public at large – are also offered by the Institute of Judaism, Comenius University, Bratislava Jointly with the Jewish Community in Slovakia, we have taken a number of good steps since 1989. Our positive and fruitful co-operation has been growing, particularly, thanks to the initiative on the part of the Jewish representatives.

In conclusion, may I assure you once again that Slovakia will never permit anything like the Holocaust to happen in the life of our nation and our state. Slovakia is taking all the necessary steps so that nationalism and racism – phenomena against which no state is completely immune – can never be rekindled in our country. It is both our duty and commitment to secure that future generations can only learn about the Holocaust from history, and never, never ever, through their own experience. Thank you for your attention.