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That time of year is nearing again. The argument arises once again as to whether Holocaust Memorial Day should be abolished to make way for a more inclusive Genocide Memorial Day. Supporting the argument that the current Holocaust Memorial Day is 'too Jewish', it appears the UK's sixth annual Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) is to be held a day early in order not to clash with the eve of the Jewish Sabbath.
The Muslim Council of Britain have called for the establishment of a Genocide Memorial Day, as Holocaust Memorial Day established in the UK by Tony Blair four years ago has been argued to be "offensive to Muslims" and "a grueling episode for Muslims in Britain". It is reported that Tony Blair was previously advised to replace it with a Genocide Day that would recognise a range of atrocities including the mass murder of Muslims in Palestine, Chechnya and Bosnia as well as members of other faiths. Such a proposal has been pursued by the Muslim Council of Britain since the current Memorial Day was established. The MCB has previously declined to attend Memorial Day celebrations based upon the understandable perspective that:
"Genocide is the most abhorrent and outrageous crime against humanity and we are not going to prevent it by selectively remembering only some of its victims."
The MCB has further stated:
"The memorial day would in our opinion be better served by also covering more recent and ongoing mass killings and human rights abuses in our world, and thus make the cry "Never Again" real for all people who suffer, even now. In the last decade we have seen genocide take place in both Rwanda (1 million killed in the space of a few weeks) and Chechnya (10% of its population has been killed since the Russians launched their first invasion in 1994) and Bosnia. We need to do more than just reflect on the past. We must be able to recognise when similar abuses occur in our own time...." "....To reflect a more tolerant and inclusive Britain, we believe that Holocaust Memorial Day ought to be renamed "Genocide Memorial Day" to make no distinction between genocides undertaken against people of other religions and ethnicity."
I have read previously that the argument to make the Day more inclusive has provoked a fierce backlash from the Jewish community. However, is it not reasonable to argue that it is an injustice in itself to ignore the fact that the Day, as it stands, sends out the wrong signal that the lives of one people are to be remembered more than others? One only has to read the "Holocaust Memorial Day" website to identify that there are valid grounds for arguing that the day is too exclusive, and too Jewish. Times Onlne has reported on the prevalent opinion that this is a grievance that extremists are able to exploit.
While I strongly condemn the holocaust, its commemoration should not 'eclipse' crimes against humanity committed in areas such as the occupied Palestinian territories, Bosnia, Chechnya and elsewhere. Furthermore, Jewish people were not the only victims of the Nazi genocide, as deaths included significant portions of Sinti and Roma populations of Europe, Poles, Russian POWs, ethnic Slavs, Homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses, the physically and mentally disabled, Communist, Socialists, Trade Unionists and political dissidents. Interestingly, in 2002, Peter Mandelson told a Pro-Israel rally in Trafalgar Square that Israel exists because of the holocaust. If this is the case, then why is there no gypsy or Jehovah's Witness state also? And since the holocaust was 'multi-faith', then why is Israel a Jewish state and not a 'multi-faith' state? Such a statement is also in total disregard of the massacres committed by Israel in Palestine, Lebanon, Hebron, Qana and elsewhere.
A more inclusive National Genocide Memorial Day, would be more encompassing of all holocausts, including the mass murder and slaughter of people in Bosnia, Palestine, Iraq, Chechnya, Rwanda, Darfur and other countries. Human Rights abuses cross many boundaries, and history evidences the mass murder and slaughter of people of Bosnia, Palestine, Iraq, Chechnya, Rwanda, Darfur and other countries, including during genocides of the expansion into Africa, Australasia and the Americas.
Up with Genocide Memorial Day!
This article is also posted at Opinionated Voice.
