Commemoration of the victims of National Socialism
Mayor Barbara Ludwig calls on citizens to take part in the commemorative event on 27 January in the Park of the Victims of Fascism
To mark the nationwide day of remembrance for the victims of National Socialism, the City of Chemnitz is holding a commemorative event on Tuesday, 27 January at 10 am. Mayor Barbara Ludwig is calling on citizens of the city to take part in the commemorative event at the memorial in the Park of the Victims of Fascism.
The commemoration will begin with a wreath-laying ceremony at the memorial created by Hanns Diettrich (1905-1983) in the Park of the Victims of Fascism.
After the speech by the head of the city, pupils from the Georgius Agricola Grammar School will perform a programme of songs and recitations.
27 January 2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp by the Red Army. The victims of National Socialist tyranny have been commemorated in Chemnitz since 1945. The anniversary of the liberation of the extermination camp became a German day of remembrance for the victims of National Socialism in 1996 on the initiative of the then Federal President Roman Herzog. In 2005, the United Nations declared 27 January as International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Commemorative event at the Jewish Community Centre
The Jewish Community of Chemnitz, the German-Israeli Society Chemnitz and the Evangelical Forum have issued an invitation to a joint commemorative event on Tuesday, 27 January at 6 pm at the Jewish Community Centre Chemnitz, Stollberger Straße 28: "What happened in our neighbourhood? The Sachsenburg concentration camp (1933 to 1937) and other camps" is the topic of the lecture. The speaker is Enrico Hilbert, Chairman of the Chemnitz branch of the Association of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime - League of Anti-Fascists.
Petr Krupa, member of the Robert Schumann Philharmonic Orchestra, will perform on the viola.
Admission to the event is free.
The Evangelical Forum provides information on the topic of the lecture: The Sachsenburg concentration camp was established at the beginning of May 1933, making it one of the first concentration camps in Germany. From 1933 to 1937, around 2,000 opponents of the regime were imprisoned there. They had to carry out extremely hard labour, but it is not known how many of them died. At least eleven prisoners were murdered. From spring to summer 1933, there were also concentration camps in Annaberg, Augustusburg, Flöha, Hainichen, Leubsdorf and Oelsnitz/Erzgebirge. The majority of their prisoners were subsequently sent to Sachsenburg concentration camp.
Contact for enquiries: Evangelisches Forum, Theaterstraße 25, 09111 Chemnitz,
Call 0371/ 40056-12, e-mail: ev.forum(at)evlks.de