Amid the continued unraveling of Israeli-Turkish relations, Turkey has boycotted the 7th International Conference on Holocaust and Remembrance, held earlier this month in Jerusalem.
Nearly two hundred decision makers from over fourty countries arrived in Israel for the conference held at Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust.
In addition to focusing on the issues facing Holocaust educators, the conference addressed the challenges of governments hostile to Israel linking Holocaust commemoration to criticisms of the Jewish State. This was especially evident given Turkey’s last minute decision to withdraw from the conference.
Turkey had originally approved their participation in the event, but “following the flotilla incident, they removed their participation,” Yakov Rozen, who coordinated the event, said. “Thankfully, the rest of the countries that were invited don't mix up day to day news with the Holocaust remembrance.”
Yad Vashem chairman Avner Shalev told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that he regretted Turkey’s decision to let a political issue affect an educational issue that is important to the world. It was a “very saddening” decision, he said.
“You can criticize or even [defy] Israeli policies, but dealing with Holocaust education is not an Israeli or even Jewish issue, rather one for the entire world and part of the European discourse that Turkey is trying to become part of,” Shalev said.
“The great state of Turkey will have to show its intent to continue its dialogue with the entire world, and not just Islam. I hope they will reconsider and come to realize that these are universal questions we are dealing with. Maybe we’ll still see Turkish educational groups.”
