Marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day January 27
First Ever International Youth Congress on the Holocaust
Over 60 Countries Represented at three day event at Yad Vashem

(January 24, 2008 - Jerusalem) Young people from 62 countries and five continents will gather at Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies, for a three-day Youth Congress, beginning on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, 2008. Ranging in age from 17 to 19, and including among them Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddhists, and speaking some 30 different languages, participants will make the voice of the future heard on shaping Holocaust remembrance and its importance to coming generations. The Congress will be held in English.

Countries as varied as Senegal, Morocco, Australia, Thailand, Nepal, China, The Gambia, Canada, Russia, Poland, France, Great Britain, Guatemala, Turkey, Israel and the United States will be represented. The Congress, under the patronage of UNESCO, will be devoted to the study of the Holocaust and discussions of its universal significance. Participants will study various Holocaust-related topics, tour Yad Vashem and Jerusalem, participate in workshops, and meet with Holocaust survivors. Special sessions will be held with the participation of President Shimon Peres, Minister of Education Prof. Yuli Tamir, Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni and the diplomatic corps. During the Congress, participants will formulate an international youth declaration and present it to Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev, and Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council Joseph (Tommy) Lapid.

Following are parts of the program that are open to the press. Media who wish to cover any part of the Congress are requested to coordinate with the Media Relations Department at 02 644 3410/1/2.

Sunday, January 27, 2008

• 8:30-10:00 “Paths of Remembrance” - Tour of the Valley of Communities

• 10:30-13:00 Tour of the Holocaust History Museum

• 13:00-13:15 Memorial Ceremony in the “Hall of Remembrance”

• 14:00-14:45 “Challenges of Commemorating the Holocaust in the 21st Century”: Avner Shalev, Chairman of Yad Vashem

• 14:45-15:30 “The Holocaust as a Human Chronicle” Shulamit Imber, Pedagogical Director, International School for Holocaust Studies

• 16:00-17:15 Opening Session in the Presence of Israeli Minister of Education Yuli Tamir; Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev; Director of The International School for Holocaust Studies, Dorit Novak

• 17:30-18:30 “Humane and Inhumane Behavior during the Holocaust” Dr. David Silberklang, Editor-in-Chief, Yad Vashem Publications

• 18:30-19:00 “Being Young during the Holocaust” Dorit Novak, Director of the International School for Holocaust Studies

Monday, January 28, 2008

• 13:15-14:15 “The Holocaust and Other Genocides” Prof. Yehuda Bauer, Academic Advisor, Yad Vashem

• 14:15-14:45 “The Holocaust as a Paradigm” Shulamit Imber, Pedagogical Director, International School for Holocaust Studies

• 14:45-15:45 Tour of the Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations

• 16:00-16:40 “Ambassadors: The Power of Youth Around the World” Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni, in the presence of Diplomatic Corps in Israel

• 17:15-18:30 Meetings with Holocaust Survivors

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

• 8:30-10:00 Tour of the Yad Vashem Campus - Museum of Holocaust Art, Synagogue and Learning Center

• 11:00-12:00 Meeting with the President of the State of Israel, Shimon Peres

• 13:00-14:00 “Our Commandment to Remember” Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Rabbi Israel Meir Lau

• 18:00 Concluding Session - Presentation of International Youth Declaration, Remarks by Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council Joseph (Tommy) Lapid, and presentation of declaration by Delegates to Lapid and Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev