of the outbreak of the uprising in the Treblinka extermination camp, it is necessary to recall the steadfast attitude of those who decided to actively oppose evil and fight for dignity and freedom,” wrote the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Piotr Gliński in a letter read by Dr Piotr Szpanowski, director of the Department of Cultural Heritage at the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
“How much courage and determination it took to oppose the armed Germans, being practically defenceless. How much desire for life and freedom was needed to decide on such a desperate step,” said Karol Polejowski, deputy president of the Institute of National Remembrance.
“We can and should view complex facts and questions regarding our past and our present as opportunities that in the end strengthen us as individuals, communities and nations. How to present the most accurate account possible of what transpired here? How to avoid blurring the Jewish centrality of Shoah remembrance? How to engage young people, regarding the legacy of Treblinka, the Shoah, and World War II without compromising accuracy and complexity? Only truthful answers will ensure that in another 80 years of remembrance of Treblinka, remembrance at Treblinka will endure and will continue to inspire and make us better human beings,” said Dani Dayan, director of the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem.
"It's hard to talk, but you have to talk. Treblinka was created by Nazi Germany as a kind of black hole. An extermination camp where all Jews were to die and be forgotten. But today we are standing here, remembering the Treblinka uprising, remembering the heroes who fought against absolute evil. They fought with their bare hands for freedom and life - said the Ambassador of the State of Israel Yacov Livne.
“It is not easy to speak here as a representative of Germany, and even today it’s hard to find the right words to describe the monstrous crime committed by our ancestors here in Poland. Today at the 80t anniversary of the uprising in the Treblinka extermination camp I bow my head in deep sorrow and humility for all the victims”, Minister Plenipotentiary at the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, Robert Rhode, began his speech.
“Among the thirty cultural institutions organized by the local government of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, this one is a special institution. It is the place of extermination of many Mazovians, inhabitants of this land, our brothers and sisters. If you look at the inscriptions on these stones, you will see that there is actually no town or city in Mazovia whose name is not shown here,” said the Marshal of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, Adam Struzik.
“This is, of course, an extraordinary place for Warsaw and the history of Warsaw. Over 300,000 Varsovians, residents of our city, ended their lives here. It is, in a sense, the Warsaw cemetery, the DNA of Warsaw. It should not be forgotten, but remember – it may not be enough. Let's remember, but also react, let's look around us with attention and mindfulness, so that the slogan «never again» will not remain just a slogan,” said Aldona Machnowska-Góra, Deputy Mayor of the Capital City of Warsaw.
“Today is Tu B’Av, the 15th of Av, one of the two most festive days of the Jewish calendar. Today, seven days after Tisha B’Av, we figuratively “get up” from ‘shiva’, as we focus on moving on and rebuilding, just as our courageous survivors taught us by example after the Holocaust. In fact, our Sages teach that before creating the world in which we live, G-d first created many other worlds and destroyed them all, which teaches that the proper response to destruction – even the destruction of an entire world – is to channel our energy and efforts into rebuilding anew,” said Rabbi Meyer May, the Executive Director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and Museums of Tolerance. The official part ended with an interreligious prayer in the intention of the victims.
“Every day, every day, the clatter of clogs, every day, on hard, hostile pavement. Marching in a row, the clatter of feet, a continuous march, our parade of dull legs. Our march is coming and our fate is cursed, the world of the living is alien to us, and the crematorium pyre is our end” – sang the Kameleon Choir of the District Mokotów directed by Katarzyna M. Boniecka. "Song of the Treblinka death camp" (Lid fun toyt-lager Treblinka) was probably written by the Austrian composer Konrad Mann, a former Treblinka prisoner. Dr Agnieszka Żółkiewska writes about the unusual, mysterious history of this song on our website.
At the end of the ceremony, a ceremonial laying of wreaths at the monument took place. Thank you for commemorating the victims of the Treblinka extermination camp together.