DPI NGO
By Vanessa Muro, Peace Action
Although the Holocaust was one of the most tragic persecutions in history, this event has also a light side that needs to be remembered which is the contribution of Turkey in saving many Jewish lives. On Monday January 31st, the DPI NGO held a briefing, which put together a panel of experts who focused on the role that Turkey played in saving lives during the Holocaust.
Ambassador Ertuğrul Apakan opened the discussion by stressing the contribution of Turkish diplomats in saving Jews’ lives by providing them with passports in countries such as France.
In this briefing we had one young speaker, Arielle Evans, who participated on the program ‘Kivunim New Directions’ based in Jerusalem. She expressed how the program helped her understand the relationship between the Turkish and Jewish. In her words ‘Jewish are not classified differently from the Muslims in Turkey but they are treated as equals.
The briefing also counted on the contribution from Ms. Claire Boren, clinical social worker and artist born in Poland. All her family was killed as a result of the persecution of Jews in Poland. She spent more than a year hiding in forests and she stated that she had to forget her past in order to overcome traumas.
In conclusion, Turkey has a tradition of always welcoming the Jewish community with open arms and the role of these diplomats must always be remembered. These heroic acts must be counted. It shows that no matter what our differences are, we all are human beings and we need from each other to overcome difficult times.
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