'We’ll never forget': World leaders join as Auschwitz survivors mark 80th anniversary of liberation

Leaders from around the globe came together in Poland to honour the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz on Monday (Jan 27).

Survivors of the concentration camp were joined by notable figures, including Britain’s King Charles, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and other dignitaries.

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The event, held on the grounds of the former camp, focused on the voices of survivors rather than speeches from world leaders.

Marian Turski, member of the International Auschwitz Council and Auschwitz survivor, said, "One must not be afraid at all. We see in the contemporary world, today and now, a huge rise in antisemitism. That is precisely antisemitism that led to the Holocaust."

Focus on survivors and their message

“This year, we are focusing on the survivors and their message,” said Paweł Sawicki, spokesperson for the Auschwitz Museum ahead of the event.

He added that for future anniversaries, it may no longer be possible to gather a significant number of survivors. “There will not be any speeches by politicians,” Sawicki added.

The Auschwitz Memorial and Museum recognised the physical and emotional toll such an event can have on survivors. In a statement, they said, “We are fully aware of how physically demanding and emotionally taxing attending the commemoration event at the site of the former camp can be for them.”

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Ahead of the ceremony, survivors placed wreaths and lit candles in remembrance of those who perished. Poland’s President Andrzej Duda remarked, “We are at a special place on a special day,” according to a translation. He also reminded those present of the significance of the date, saying, “This is also a day which, 20 years ago, was declared by the United Nations as the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, because as we know very well, concentration camps… were built in order to implement the extermination of the Jewish nation.”

'We’ll never forget those murdered in Auschwitz': German Chancellor Olaf Scholz

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz posted on X, “Sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, friends, neighbours, grandparents: more than one million individuals with dreams and hopes were murdered in Auschwitz by Germans. We mourn their deaths. And express our deepest sympathy. We’ll never forget them. Not today, not tomorrow.”

How did Auschwitz become the site of the largestmass execution in human history?

Auschwitz, originally a Polish military barracks in southern Poland, was transformed into a prison for political detainees after Nazi Germany invaded and occupied the country in September 1939. Over the next four and a half years, the Nazis systematically murdered at least 1.1 million people across the 40 camps that comprised the Auschwitz complex.

The camp became central to the Nazi plan to annihilate Europe’s Jewish population. Of those who perished at Auschwitz, nearly one million were Jewish. However, the victims also included Poles, Roma, Soviet prisoners of war, and others. Auschwitz remains a symbol of the largest mass execution in human history.

(With inputs from agencies)