Thousands of people participated today in the solemn ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the release of the Mauthausen concentration camp, an event held each year since 1946 on the initiative of survivors and their associations.
Mauthausen owned nearly 200,000 prisoners during the Second World War, half of which did not survive and should not be forgotten, as the event organizers insisted it.
“Nothing can be erased. Neither transport nor forced labor, imprisonment, barracks, illness, cold, lack of sleep, hunger, humiliation, degradation, blows, cries. Nothing can, nothing should be forgotten,” said Guy Dockendorf, president of the International Committee of Mauthausen.
Many high -ranking international guests were present at the ceremony, notably the King and the Queen of Spain. The Spaniards were one of the first large groups of prisoners.
Austrian President Alexander Van der Belen and several members of the Austrian government, including the Chancellor Storing, Vice-Chancellor Babler and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Meinl-Reisinger, also participated.
The event, organized by the Mauthausen Committee Austria, the successor of the Austrian Association of Mauthausen survivors, brought together international representatives to honor the memory of victims and renew the commitment to the values of freedom, human dignity and mutual respect.
The Mauthausen oath: a living heritage
The ceremony remembers that the history on May 16, 1945, when he was released from Soviet prisoners left camp in the ordered training for the house. At that time, the Mauthausen oath was proclaimed in 16 different languages, a solemn commitment born of the terrible experiences in concentration camps, calling for solidarity and unity for a better world.
This oath, eighty years later, remains the ideological backbone of these commemorations, reminding us of our collective responsibility to prevent such atrocities from happening.
The first meetings of survivors won a crucial cathartic function. For thousands of former prisoners who returned to Mauthausen each year, these gatherings represented an opportunity to deal with the trauma they had lived, to exchange experiences with his colleagues victims and to reaffirm their survival.
Over time, these commemorations have taken on a wider socio -political dimension, centered on slogans “We must never forget!” And “Never Again!”, Particularly targeting the young generation to transmit historical memory.
A tradition with deep roots
The first official celebration in Mauthausen took place in 1946, barely a year after the Liberation, with a gathering of more than 10,000 people at the foot of the “Todege” (death stairs) in the camp career. On this occasion, the national delegates signed an official document indicating that this commemoration would be held each year.
The presence of their majestation of the King and the Queen of Spain on the occasion of the 80th anniversary underlines the importance of keeping the historical memory and commitment to democratic values.
For decades, these ceremonies were mainly a question for survivors, now still an international character but with little impact on Austrian society. Over time, the organization has been taken over by the Austrian Committee of Mauthausen in cooperation with the International Committee of Mauthausen and the Austrian Association Sagermeinschaft, with public financial support and, to a greater extent, private donations.
Editor • Rory Elliott Armstrong
