|
On 4 July, Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins will take part in the annual remembrance ceremony dedicated to the victims of genocide against the Jewish nation. On this date, Latvia commemorates the beginning of the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Latvia during the World War II.
In 2000, during the Stockholm International Forum on the Holocaust, high representatives of governments from many countries of the world, including Latvia's then President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, signed a declaration in which it was stated that the tragedy of the Holocaust had fundamentally challenged the foundations of civilization. Therefore, with humanity still scarred by genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism, anti-semitism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance, the international community shares a responsibility to fight those evils.
By taking part in the 4 July commemoration ceremony of the Jewish people, Foreign Minister Riekstins reaffirms Latvia's commitment to put into action the principle expressed in the Stockholm Declaration that "we must strengthen the moral commitment of our peoples, and the political commitment of our governments, to ensure that future generations can understand the causes of the Holocaust and reflect upon its consequences."
(end of text)
|
