73th Anniversary of Cracow Guetto’s liquidation.
Ania and myself, we participated to the march from the ghetto of Krakow to the place where about 9 000 Jews were leaded to work in a camp, about 3 km farther, waiting there for the transport to one of the extermination camps.
This march takes place every year around the 13th of March, date of the liquidation of the ghetto (Der judische Wohnbezirk in Krakau). This year it happened 73 years ago.
We gathered on a square where an artist disposed chairs in iron to remember the chairs left after the liquidation of the ghetto; the Jews couldn’t take them with them to go to the workcamp. We can see this square in the film ‘Shindler’s list’.
Before we begun to walk together (I think we must be like 500 people), the founder and director of the’ Jewish festival’, Janusz Makuch, did an introducing speech followed by some others. The Jewish community from Krakow and from abroad was there. An older man spoke; he was a little boy when the tragedy during the liquidation of the ghetto happened. He escaped from the camp, and with both parents they were hided in the woods. Now he is one of the last survivors.
There were delegations from the Polish President and from Cracow authority, also a delegation from Israel and a woman spoke us in polish (she was born in Krakow) and in hebrew. But the most ‘beautiful’ were the prayers sung by a Jewish man from England. Different psalms and the Qaddish… This was really moving. After we started the march, at some places, for example before a rest of the wall around the ghetto, we stopped for prayers and to lay down flower bouquets. We met many of people that know Sr. Ania .We greeted one of the bishops of Krakow, Mgr.Grzegorz Ryś. After about two hours we arrived at the memorial on a hill, surrounded by fields. After another psalm sung in Hebrew (with a strong Ashkenazi accent) ,recited by the responsible priest for Jewish- Christian dialogue fathe Łukasz Kamykowski, each of us could place a little stone on the memorial. The march was very peaceful and serene, surrounded by the police on the streets of fast traffic. For many it offered a good opportunity to meet again each other and to feel the friendship, the solidarity and partnership between the Jewish and Christian community. On both side many people suffered a lot during the 2nd World War… it is so good to remember together all who died in this tragedy and to go ahead and together through other difficult times with hope and faith… For me it was a unique experience and I’m grateful to Ania to have been there with her.
