29 January 2025
(PHOTO: Romana Schwartzman/Der Tagesspiegel)
Today, on January 29, 2025, the Bundestag hosted a historic speech by Roman Schwartzman from Odesa on the Holocaust and the war in Ukraine.
A video of the prominent Odessan's address was published by the German publication Der Tagesspiegel.
At that time, Hitler wanted to kill me because I was a Jew. Now Putin is trying to kill me because I am a Ukrainian," said Roman Shvartsman, a Holocaust survivor, in a memorable speech.
He connects yesterday with today, speaking in detail about the topic that is currently of concern to him.
According to Roman Shvartsman, he has already managed to escape death once. Now he is old and has to live again with the fear that his children and grandchildren will become victims of a war of destruction.
Schwartzman directly addresses the assembled German politicians.
"Anyone who believes that Putin will be satisfied with Ukraine is wrong. We need your support to free the people in the occupied territories," Schwartzman emphasized.
Roman Shvartsman was born on November 7, 1936 in Bershad. He is the chairman of the Odesa Regional Association of Jews - former prisoners of the ghetto and Nazi concentration camps.
He is also the vice president of the All-Ukrainian Association of Jews - Former Prisoners of the Ghetto and Nazi Concentration Camps. Roman Shvartsman is also the Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Odesa Society of Jewish Culture and the head of the community and cultural center. He is also an honored machine builder of Ukraine.
Back in 2015 ,Roman Shvartsman emphasized that he had survived the ghetto during the occupation. He then called for those who tried to start a war to be punished.
Recently, on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a solemn wreath-laying ceremony was held in Prokhorivskyi Park in Odesa.
Every year on January 27, Holocaust Remembrance Day is celebrated, established by the UN General Assembly as a recognition of the genocide of the Jewish people during World War II. Ukraine joined this commemoration at the state level in 2012.
On the eve of the memorial date, residents of the city, representatives of the authorities and public organizations gathered at the monument to the victims of the Holocaust and ghetto prisoners. During the ceremony, they laid flowers at the memorial sign. This event is a symbol of remembrance and recognition of the tragic events of the past, as well as a manifestation of solidarity with those who suffered from genocide.
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Анна Бальчінос