Cardinal Duka to attend commemoration of Romani victims of Nazism in Lety by Písek

The Committee for the Redress of the Roma Holocaust in the Czech Republic
(Výbor pro odškodnění romského holocaustu v ČR – VPORH v ČR) will hold its
traditional Commemoration Ceremony for the Romani victims of Nazism on Monday 13
May 2013 at 12:00 PM at the site of the burial ground of the victims of the
former concentration camp for Romani people at Lety by Písek. Cardinal Dominik
Duka will participate this year.

"I think it is really necessary to realize the value of such human sacrifice
and to demonstrate in such a case that human dignity belongs to every person
irrespective of their nationality, their political affiliation, or their
religion. At a time when we can see that the question of human dignity is often
disputed and even insulted, this event is an important one,” Cardinal Duka told
news server Romea.cz.

Cardinal Duka believes removing the pig farm which is adjacent to and even
partially overlaps with the site of the former concentration camp for Romani
people is a “technical” question. "This will be my first visit to the site at
Lety by Písek, and I think that is a rather technical question which I am not
able to answer competently,” he said when asked by news server Romea.cz whether
the pig farm should be removed.

"The commemorative ceremony is a significant event for the community of
indigenous Bohemian Romani and Sinti people. It is an opportunity for us to show
respect for our ancestors who fell victim to Nazism and to remind the citizens
that we belong to the history of the Czech nation because of our 600 years of
history in the Czech lands. The commemorative ceremony has its tradition and its
place on the calendars of ambassadors to the Czech Republic, eminent cultural
and political figures, the survivors, church representatives, Jewish
organization representatives, civic association representatives, the media, and
others. It is a place where Romani people express their aspirations and their
hopes,” said Čeněk Růžička, chair of VPROH.

In addition to Cardinal Duka, participation in this year’s commemorative
ceremony has been confirmed by US Ambassador to the Czech Republic Norman L.
Eisen and by representatives of the embassies of Bulgaria, Denmark, France,
Hungary, Latvia and the United Kingdom. "For the time being I have also received
confirmation that representatives of the Czech Culture Ministry and the Czech
Education Ministry will be attending,” Růžička told Romea.cz.

Program

• 12:00 Czech national anthem, anthem of Romani concentration camp
  prisoners
• 12:15 Laying of wreaths at the monument
• 13:00 Holy Word and prayer celebrated by His Eminence Dominik Duka O.P.,
  Cardinal-Archbishop of Prague
• 13:20 Speeches
• 14:00 Closing of the official part of the commemoration, meeting with
  His Eminence, tour of the commemorative alterations at Lety, travel to the
  parish cemetery in Mirovice (3 km away), laying of wreaths at the graves of
  the child victims interred there.

Organizational instructions

• For those who are interested, VPORH is organizing a bus from Prague to Lety
  and back. The bus will depart Prague at 10 AM. As usual it will be parked in
  front of the main gate of the Florenc bus station (beneath the highway overpass
  at the stop for municipal bus no. 133) and will be marked with a sign reading
  “Lety”. To reserve a seat, send an e-mail to
  ruzicka.vporh@seznam.cz.
• A hiking trail featuring signs with information about what took place at the
  camp has been built from the village of Lety to the burial ground (the trail is
  1.5 km long and is the same route the prisoners took to reach the concentration
  camp).
• Buses and personal vehicles can be parked directly on the campus of the Lety
  Monument. There are restrooms at the memorial site.
• The commemorative ceremony is organized by the Committee for the Redress of the
  Roma Holocaust in the Czech Republic (Výbor pro odškodnění romského holocaustu v
  ČR – VPORH v ČR), which brings together former Romani prisoners of Nazi
  concentration camps and the survivors of those who perished.

VIDEO