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 AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU STATE MUSEUM
INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARY CONFERENCE
“REMEMBRANCE – AWARENESS –
RESPONSIBILITY”
July,
2-4, Auschwitz, Poland
Tkuma Center (Dr.
Igor Shchupak, Tkuma Center director, Dr. Aharon
Weiss, Tkuma Center academic advisor) has taken part in the International Scholary Conference “Remembrance – Awareness –
Responsibility”, which has been held in Auschwitz-Birkenau State
Museum in Oświęcim on July 2-4th, 2007 and commemorated the 60th anniversary of the founding
one of the leading museum in the world.
 The
Conference has hosted over 170 participants from Poland, Germany, Denmark,
Israel, Lithuania, the Netherlands, the Slovak Republic, USA, the Check
Republic, Ukraine. The Conference has welcomed representatives of various
organizations and foundations. Among Conference participants there were Rabbi Andrew Baker, director
of International
Jewish Affairs, American Jewish Committee (USA), Avner Shalev,
chairmen of the Yad Vashem directorate (Israel), Sara Bloomfield, director
of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington (USA),
directors of various scientific and museum institutes of Europe, Ministers of
Polish Government. Tkuma was the only representative of Ukraine in the
Conference.
 The
following recognized scholars and public figures have given their speeches on
the plenary sessions: Prof. Elie Wiesel, laureate
of the Nobel Peace Prize (USA), Prof. Yehuda Bauer (Israel), Prof. Wladislaw Bartoszewski (Poland)
and others.
Many
significant reports have been presented at three Conference panels
“Remembrance”, “Awareness”, “Responsibility”. Keen interest has been paid to
the significant report of Tkuma partner Prof. Feliks Tych (Poland);
report by Dr. Aharon Weiss (Israel)
has been often quoted during further discussions. Tkuma Center director Dr.
Igor Shchupak (Ukraine)
has introduced report devoted to problems of Holocaust awareness in Ukraine and
comparative analysis of Holodomor and Holocaust.
In
the framework of the Conference Tkuma Center has presented its activity which produced a favourable impression on the participants.
Tkuma
Center activity stirred deep interest of Mr. Îlexandr F. Motsik,
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine in Poland, and Mr.
Mikolaj
Jarmoluk, First Secretary of
Embassy of Ukraine in Poland, who
specially arrived from Warsaw to meet Tkuma representatives. Ambassador
and First Secretary of Embassy of Ukraine greatly appreciated the work Tkuma carry
out in Ukraine to study Holocaust history and tolerance. They accentuated on the
significance of Tkuma international activity which promotes strengthening of
positive image of Ukraine as European democratic country. Embassy
representatives also emphasized that Tkuma participation and presentation in
such high level scholary forum is of great relevance. Diplomats expressed
willingness to support conducting by Tkuma scholary conferences, youth international
seminars (the nearest seminar is “The Ark –
2007” which is to be
conducted in the end of August – in the beginning of September, 2007).
 Tkuma
has reached the agreements with Robert Kuwalek,
director of the Museum and Memorial in Belzec (Poland),
about common conducting of Ukrainian-Polish-Jewish educational seminars.
The
Conference has been organized in high level which corresponds to the level of
presented in the Conference scientific institutes and non-government
organizations. The Conference had great scholary significance in developing scholary
contacts and determining perspective directions of scholary work, as well as
tremendous social importance.
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