site.btaUPDATED Sofia Marks 81st Anniversary of Rescue of Bulgarian Jews

On Sunday, Sofia held a ceremony and a Tolerance March to mark the 81st anniversary of the rescue of Bulgarian Jews and pay homage to the Jews killed in the Nazi death camps.

Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel said in an address read out to the public that the march has become an annual expression of the aspiration of the Bulgarian people for freedom, equality, humanity and harmonious coexistence, regardless of ethnicity and religion. The rescue of the Bulgarian Jews during the Second World War is a source of well-deserved pride for modern Bulgarians, Gabriel said.

"This chapter of Bulgarian history is an inspiration to fight manifestations of anti-Semitism, it sets an example of unity and empathy for Bulgarian society to follow. Today more than ever there is a need for an active civil society that knows and defends its rights, a society in which tolerance, equality and humanism are fundamental moral values," Gabriel said. "In October 2023, the Council of Ministers adopted a National Action Plan to Combat Anti-Semitism 2023-2027 as a response to the need to protect  society from rising anti-Semitism worldwide, and as an instrument to preserve our rich historical and cultural heritage and the memory of the Holocaust. With this Plan in place and a national coordinator of the fight against anti-Semitism appointed by the government, Bulgaria is among the leading EU Member States," Gabriel also said.

Sofia's Deputy Mayor Nikola Barbutov said the marking of the 81st anniversary of the rescue of the Bulgarian Jews is a day of respect for all Bulgarians who united and saved the lives of nearly 50,000 Jews. This is also a day of commemorating more than 11,000 Jews in the Bulgarian-administered territories of Northern Greece and Vardar Macedonia, who lost their lives in the death camps. Eighty-one years ago, Bulgarian intellectuals and priests won a victory of human kindness, showing that history can be changed, he said.

Israel's Ambassador Yosef Levi Sfari thanked Bulgaria for rescuing its Jews, saying the act of salvation is very important because it was at that time in history, under those specific circumstances, that people raised their voice to prevent the deportation of the Bulgarian Jews. The Ambassador said it is easy to express support in good times, but it is difficult to give support in hard times.

Prof Alexander Oscar, Chairman of the Shalom Organization of the Jews in Bulgaria, said people should remember history, learn from its mistakes, and take responsibility for the world today. The history of Europe, of Bulgaria, of Israel is constantly explained to young people so that they can grow up as worthy Bulgarian citizens. They find it incomprehensible that during the Second World War people killed other people, "we need to know history and learn from it, because we see that the world we live in is becoming an increasingly unsafe place". Oscar said there is rising nationalism and calls for war in different parts of the world. "Young people also see the reality in Israel today and we all empathize with the tragedy in Israel, as well as with what is happening in Ukraine, and we sincerely believe that the forces of good will prevail," he said.

On October 7, 2023, over 1,300 Israeli citizens were killed and hundreds were taken hostage, Prof Oscar said. For five months now, more than 130 hostages, most of them women, have been somewhere in the Gaza tunnels. The Bulgarian institutions expressed their support for Israel from Day One and condemned this barbaric crime - a position which remains unchanged, he said, adding: "We greatly appreciate Bulgaria's support for the people of Israel."

The ceremony was attended by representatives of institutions, outgoing Justice Minister Atanas Slavov and ambassadors, among others. Floral tributes were paid at the Salvation Monument on behalf of outgoing Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov, Deputy Prime Minister Mariya Gabriel, National Assembly Chairman Rosen Zhelyazkov, the parliamentary groups of GERB-UDF and Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria, Movement for Rights and Freedoms Floor Leader Delyan Peevski, Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev, the embassies of Israel, Austria, Germany and Poland, among others.

The anniversary was also marked in Plovdiv, Ruse and other Bulgarian cities.

The Day of Rescue of Bulgarian Jews and of Remembrance of the Victims of the Holocaust and of the Crimes against Humanity has been marked on March 10 by a government decision of February 13, 2003. 

On March 17, 1943, the Deputy Chairman of the 25th National Assembly Dimitar Peshev wrote a letter of protest to Prime Minister Bogdan Filov against the deportation of the Bulgarian Jews. The letter was signed by 43 lawmakers. With the actions of Metropolitan Cyril of Plovdiv and Exarch Stefan of Sofia and the intervention of the public, nearly 50,000 Bulgarian Jews were saved from deportation.