Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) is commemorated internationally on 27 January each year. This date was chosen as it is the anniversary of the day in 1945 on which the Soviet Army liberated the largest Nazi concentration camp – Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Each year the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust urges all of us in the UK to pause and reflect on what can heppen when racism, prejudice and exclusionary behaviour are left unchecked. On HMD we should take the time to see how the lessons of the past can play a part in our communities today.
HMD provides a time for us to:
- Remember the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, Nazi persecution and those affected by subsequent genocides in Rwanda, Cambodia, Bosnia and during the ongoing atrocities in Darfur.
- Ensure that the historical events associated with the Holocaust continue to be regarded as being of fundamental importance.
- Raise awareness and understanding of the events of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides as a continuing issue for all humanity, based on a recognition that it could happen again anywhere and at any time, unless we ensure that our society opposes discrimination, persecution and racism.
- Highlight the values of a society which respects and celebrates the differences between individuals and communities, based upon the notion of universal dignity and responsibilities for all citizens.
HMD is a day for everyone. It’s an opportunity for all the diverse strands of our communities to come together. It’s also an opportunity for groups or organisations to remember the past and commit to creating a better future.
Holocaust survivors have played an immense role in bring our attention to the lessons of the Holocaust. Many have used their experiences in numerous ways to influence our lives and actions today. The number of survivors who have built their lives, communities and families in the UK are inevitably diminishing, and, as the preservation of their memory.
Hope Survivors Foundation (HSF) offers Rwandan survivors speakers who can share their testimonies about their experiences of facing hatred, discrimination and persecution. They speak of pain and loss, of strength and survival, of despair and their wish of a Legacy of Hope.
A number of Rwandan survivors will be speaking at satellite events around the country. On HMD 2010, we all have an opportunity to become of their Legacy of Hope.
To mark the 15th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda students at Hampton School would like to ask you ‘Why should we remember?’ the terrible events in Rwanda in 1994 that claimed the lives of more than 1 million Tutsis in 100 days of killing.
The students aim to collect as many responses as possible and will pass each one onto survivors of the genocide to prove that they are not forgotten. Our aim is to collect 10,000 answers … one for every hundred men, women and children who were murdered in 1994.
The project will result in a sequel to the short book published by the students in 2008 which included interviews with genocide survivors and reflections from over fifty personalities from across the UK.
The students are appealing for the personal responses of people across the World, which can be submitted through http://www.whyshouldweremember.org. Copies of the book, and further resources on the project, are also available on the website. Sales of the book will be used towards victims of the Rwandan genocide.
We should remember so that we do not repeat. We know humankind has the capacity to do great good and also great evil. When we forget the evil, we run the risk of learning the lesson again. And we should remember also to honour the victims.
Each was a person. Each life was sacred; each a human tragedy and each had a family, loved ones and friends. “Each victim represents opportunities missed and talents wasted. Each one matters and since lives were taken just because each was Tutsi it is right to make their collective loss also a matter of remembrance,” Tony Blair responded.
The students have received responses from the UK, France, Norway, the USA, Spain, Australia, South Africa and Rwanda.
The Director of the Hope Survivors Foundation (HSF) is invited to the conference organised by Hampton school to speak to students about his personal experiences during the genocide.
Bring a little smile to a face!
Hope Survivors Foundation is planning Flip Flop Shoebox Appeal this year to send Christmas packages to Rwanda. It is a fun way to help very poor children to experience a little joy in their lives.
Rwanda, a small country in central Africa is a developing nation. Many citizens live below the poverty line.
Around 360,000 people predominantly women and children, survived the genocide in Rwanda. The majority of these widows and orphans now live in desperate poverty and lack of proper shelter, education and the means to earn money to buy basic necessities such as medicine and food. Thousands of women and girls raped and infected with HIV in a deliberate campaign of the genocide. Many are dying because of lack of medication, general poverty, trauma and isolation. Many are running out of time, dying and leaving children orphaned for the second time.
Of all survivors, the neediest are children. Many are orphans who have been left with not adult figure to love or guide them. Children and orphans are left to fend themselves. They are forced to quit school, join the workforce, and care for younger brothers and sisters. Often they are caregivers, sometimes to more than ten siblings. Often they are involved in unskilled labour, which is underpaid and has no security or prospect for the future. Young girls in child headed households often drop out of school for domestic work. 260,000 children have been orphaned in Rwanda through HIV/AIDS.
In this regard, whatever outside help they could muster will be readily accepted. Anticipating your generous efforts this winter an orphan says, “Thanks in advance for this humanitarian gesture which will, no doubt, have far reaching impact on the well-being of the recipients.”
Shoeboxes can be filled with toys such as play dough, story books, shoes, clothes, school supplies etc. and should be nicely wrapped and clearly labelled with the appropriate age and sex. Please make sure ALL items are NEW! Please attach £2.00
Please do NOT include breakable items, food or sweets, toys that need batteries, medicines, or war-related items.
All boxes need to be received by Monday, 17 November. Boxes can be delivered to during business hours (Monday to Friday 9-5).
Please help to bring a little happiness in the lives of orphans/poor children of the Rwandan genocide! For more information, call our office on +44(0)7947951114. Even the smallest gift at the orphanage will be talked about for months, even remembered for years to come. What will YOU give?
Hope Survivors Foundation marked the 14th anniversary of the end of the Rwandan genocide on 19th July. The programme was launched with a special evening with Ben Rurabana and his group from France, a mark of solidarity for survivors to remember the loves ones lost, a place of reflection and learning for the wider UK community.
The event celebrated the diversity of our community through music, drama, presentations and testimonies.
This served as a launch pad for further events through the course of the year including a residential weekend seminar to explore the needs/support required by survivors, a visiting tour to the Holocaust centre, producing a CD of testimonies, putting in place collective social structures which offer group therapy.
Survivors were keen to mark the 14th anniversary of the end of the genocide, and to tell their stories in the hope that their individual plight is recorded and understood and to ensure that genocide is not repeated in any other country.
Having lost entire families in the genocide, survivors were keen to encourage initiatives which bring people together in a show of solidarity and empathy as this builds self esteem, helps to nurture new trust in the world, and leads to greater understanding between cultures.
Survivors are witnesses in the world to crimes against humanity. They have requested that HSF gives them the platform to make their voices heard.
HSF would like to convey our sincere appreciation and gratitude to everyone for taking time out of their busy schedule to attend our events.
We would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and extent our deep thanks to the National Lottery and Amba Forwarding Company to have sponsored and made the events such a success.
Hope Survivors Fund is pleased to be welcomed as a member of the Fundraising Standards Board self-regulation scheme. HSF is proud of our commitment to excellence and best practice as an charitable organisation.
As a member of the FRSB, we are licensed to use the scheme logo which is a demonstration of our commitment to best practice and accountability in fundraising. In late 2006, research carried out by YouGov plc and Which?, showed six in ten consumers said that they would be more likely to donate to a charity if they knew it was a member of the Fundraising Standards Board. So we can be assured that our organisation will benefit from public’s growing confidence in the scheme’s tick logo.
As part of our membership we will be able to access the member’s area of the website which includes downloadable versions of the scheme logo along with all the relevant member resources.
Hope Survivors Foundation, previously called IBUKA (UK), is pleased to announce the launch of its new website. The new website with an updated look from our old website gives greater focus to our work and our mission. Moreover, the new website has been built in such a way that we can update the website ourselves, allowing us to be more efficient in the administration of our website.
We would like to thank Liam Dempsey of lbdesign for donating his services to the design and production of this website.
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Eleanor Roosevelt