OSCE Mission supports Moldovan delegation in their participation in International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s plenary meeting in Italy
The OSCE Mission to Moldova accompanied and supported a Moldovan delegation to the plenary meeting of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) held under the Alliance’s Italian Chairmanship in Ferrara, Italy, from 27 to 29 November 2018. The event brought together more than 200 experts and governmental representatives from around the world to discuss ways to promote Holocaust education, remembrance and research.
The Moldovan delegation included a representative from the Jewish Community of Moldova and state officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research, as well as the Agency for Inter-ethnic Relations.
During the plenary, the Moldovan delegation updated participants on the progress in implementing the 2017-2019 Action Plan on Holocaust Remembrance and Education, which seeks to increase awareness and understanding of the Holocaust in the local context. The delegation, among other things, also attended IHRA Working group meetings on Memorials and museums, Education, as well as the Committee on Anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.
“Participation in the IHRA plenary meetings allowed our delegation to learn first-hand about other countries' experiences and good practices in combating anti-Semitism and fostering Holocaust remembrance and education, which we will use when advancing our national action plan,” the head of the Moldovan delegation to IHRA, Ambassador–at-Large Larisa Miculet, said.
Moldova joined the IHRA as an observer country in 2014. Three years later the Moldovan Government adopted an Action Plan the field of Holocaust education and remembrance to support an open discussion about painful periods of the country’s history and to promote a culture of tolerance.
The Government has been co-operating with the OSCE Mission to implement some aspects of the Action Plan, in particular reviewing the school curricula and textbooks to accurately reflect the Holocaust in a local context, building the capacity of history teachers and opening a Museum of Jewish History in Chisinau.