The UN General Assembly designated January 27th as International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The 2015 ceremony will be one of the most significant as it is the 70th anniversary
of the liberation of the Nazi concentration and extermination camp at Auschwitz
and it will probably be the last anniversary to be commemorated at Auschwitz
in the presence of a large group of survivors.
Dr. Piotr M.A. Cywiński, the director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, is calling for
the commemoration of this day all over the world.
With the support of the United Nations University,
the Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Center is holding a symposium
to commemorate and to promote the universal lessons of the Holocaust.
As Dr. Cywiński says, “…the road to the most terrible tragedies is surprisingly simple.
All you need is social frustration, a bit of demagoguery, an imaginary enemy, a moment of madness...” It could happen anywhere.
Here in Japan, we also urgently need to teach our young generation
about the dangers of hatred, bigotry, intolerance, and prejudice.
We appreciate your kind understanding and support
for International Holocaust Remembrance Day 2015 in Tokyo
to call for participation of especially young university students.
*The event will be held in Japanese, but for the symposium
there will be a little assistance in English with powerpoint.
Program
9:30am Door opens
10:00am Screening of the film "SHOAH" by Claude Lanzmann(Part 1, 154min)
*Subtitles are in Japanese.
12:45pm Break
13:00pm Door opens for the afternoon session
13:30pm Symposium "Why and how we learn about the Holocaust in Japan"
15:20pm Closing remarks by Dr. David Malone, Rector, United Nations University
Panelists
Fumiko Ishioka, Director, Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Center
MA in Development Studies at Leeds University(UK). After working as a temporary staff at the UN Policy Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for 2 years, she started working as director of the Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Center in 1998. Protagonist of the award-winning children's book “Hana’s Suitcase” and the documentary film “Inside Hana's Suitcase”). She received an Honorary Ph.D in Education from York University in Canada in 2006. THERC’s outreach programs have visited more than 900 schools and reached out to 200,000 students. She also lectures at Kobe Gakuin University since 2008 and Aichi University of Education since 2010.
Exhibition
A few Holocaust items which have unique connection to Japan will be exhibited.
Venue
United Nations University, 12F meeting room
Address : Jingumae 5-53-70, Shibuya-ku,
Tokyo 150-8925
Access : 5-min walk from Omotesando station
(Exit B2) (Chiyoda, Ginza, & Hanzomon lines)
10-min walk from Shibuya station
Organizer
Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Center
Partner
Holocaust Education Center, Mermaid FIlms
Supporter
United Nations University
Embassy of Israel
British Embassy Tokyo
Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria
Embassy of France
Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany
Embassy of Hungary
Embassy of the Netherlands
Embassy of Republic of Poland
Embassy of Sweden
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Shinjuku-ku Board of Education
Rev. Makoto Otuska, Director, Holocaust Education Center, Hiroshima
In 1971, he met with Otto Frank, father of Anne Frank, in Israel, which led him to dedicate his life to teaching Japanese children about the Holocaust. He was appointed as the Director General when Japan’s first Holocaust Education Center was founded in 1995 in Fukuyama city, Hiroshima. He has traveled extensively in Europe, which includes visit to 40 Nazi concentration camp sites. 250 Holocaust artefacts have been donated to his Center mainly from the survivors. His Center has received more than 140,000 visitors since its opening.
Kenji Takahashi, Professor, Tottori University
M.ed. at Tsukuba University.
He has taught at Senior High School at Otsuka at the University of Tsukuba, in Tokyo, Meikei High School in Ibaraki, Sakato Senior High School at the University of Tsukuba, and Asahi University in Gifu. He specializes in social studies education and history education. He was appointed as associate professor at Tottori University in 2011.