AFTEr ThE hOLOCAuST · A. Initiatives in the areas of education, remembrance and research 1. In general Belgium.is.an.active.member.of.the.Task.Force. for.International.Cooperation.on

2012

AFTEr ThE hOLOCAuST

Recent Belgian initiativesEducation | Remembrance | Research

Material and moral reparations

2.....AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Introduction

CREDITS.|.This.booklet.is.being.published.at.the.initiative.of.the.FPS.Chancellery.of.the.Prime.Minister,.in.cooperation.with.the.FPS.for.Foreign.Affairs,.the.Institut.des.Vétérans.-.INIG,.the.Flemish.Community,.the.Wallonia-Brussels.Federation.and.the.German-speaking.Community.of.Belgium.

Editorial supervisor.|.Françoise.Audag-Dechamps,.acting.President.of.the.Management.Committee.Illustrations.|.Cover.and.pages.7-8-10-13-17-25-29.:.©.IV-INIG.-.Pages.18-20.:.©.GrenzGeschichteDG.an.der.AHSPages.24.:.©.Kazerne.Dossin.-.Pages.23-26-34-37.:.©.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium.–.Brussels.Graphic design.|.Kaat.Flamey,.KA.AD.-.Printing.|.LowyckLegal deposit.|.D/2012/9737/4

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTrOduCTION.................................................................................... 5

II. OvErvIEw OF ThE INITIATIvES.......................................................6

A. Initiatives in the areas of education, remembrance and research 6. . 1.. In.general. 6 2. Teaching, Remembrance education 10 i. In Flanders. 11 ii. The French Community. 14 iii. The German-speaking Community. 18. . 3.. Remembrance. 21. . 4.. Research. 26

B. Initiatives in the area of material reparations 28. . 1.. The.Study.Commission.into.the.fate.of.the.Belgian.Jewish... . . Community’s.assets.which.were.plundered.or.surrendered.or... . . abandoned.during.the.1940-1945.war. 28. . 2.. The.Indemnification.Commission.for.the.Belgian.Jewish... . . Community’s.assets.that.were.plundered,.surrendered.or... . . abandoned.during.the.1940-1945.war.. 30. . 3.. Cultural.goods,.works.of.art.and.judaica:.a.continuous.study. 31 i. Cultural goods and works of art in general. 31 ii. Judaica. 32. . 4.. The.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation. 34

C. Initiatives in the area of moral compensation – Welfare programmes 35. . 1.. Welfare.Programmes.-.Federal.Public.Service.Social.Security... . . Directorate-General.War.Victims. 35. . 2.. The.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation. 36

III. PrACTICAL INFOrmATION............................................................ 38

rECENT BELGIAN INITIATIvES:EduCATION | rEmEmBrANCErESEArCh | mATErIAL ANd mOrAL rEPArATIONS 1

2012

1.This.brochure.was.updated.to.December.2011.

AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Introduction.....5.

The.Holocaust.was.for.all.humankind,.and.for.Europe.in.particular,.an.extreme.historic.experience,.which.stretches.the.human.mind.to.the.limits.of.understanding.

Belgium.was.and.still.remains.deeply.mar-ked.by.the.Holocaust..Our.country.intends.to.keep.the.memory.of.that.painful.period.of.its.past.alive.and.assume.the.conse-quences.of.it..That.is.expressed.in.a.strong.commitment.by.all.the.public.authorities,.at.federal,.federated.and.local.level..Beyond.that.commitment,.the.issue.involved.is.for.Holocaust.remembrance.to.become.deeply.rooted.throughout.society,.through.educa-tion.in.particular.

This.brochure.therefore.aims.to.give.an.overview.of.the.most.important.actions.and.relevant.initiatives.undertaken.by.the.Belgian.authorities.and.institutions.con-cerning.the.Holocaust..These.initiatives.are.described.in.three.subdivisions,.namely.the.initiatives.concerning.education,.remem-brance.and.research,.initiatives.in.the.fi.eld.of.material.and.fi.nancial.compensation.and,.lastly,.those.in.the.area.of.moral.compen-sation.(social.welfare.programs)..

In.the.part.concerning.the.initiatives.under-taken.in.the.area.of.material.and.fi.nancial.compensation,.a.special.section.is.devoted.to.looted.cultural.goods.and.judaica.as.the.restitution.and.investigations.in.this.area.is.not.yet.fi.nished.

Lastly,.let.us.emphasise.that.many.Belgian.political.and.parliamentarian.leaders.sho-wed.interest.and.concern.for.the.subject..In.the.past,.public.apologies.were.made.on.various.occasions.on.behalf.of.the.Govern-ment,.Belgium.and.the.local.authorities.for.the.suffering.endured.by.the.Jewish.com-munity..Emphasis.was.placed.on.the.duty.of.the.Government.and.of.every.citizen.to.never.forget.the.tragic.events.of.the.Holo-caust.

For.further.information.and.as.a.guide.for.the.interested.and.concerned.reader,.at.the.end.of.this.brochure.an.overview.of.all.rele-vant.addresses.of.Belgian.administrations,.institutions.and.services.is.included..

I. INTrOduCTION

A. Initiatives in the areas of education, remembrance and research

1. In general

Belgium.is.an.active.member.of.the.Task.Force.for.International.Cooperation.on.Holocaust.Education,.Remembrance,.and.Research.2.This.network.represents.a.prime.international.platform.for.the.exchange.of.educational.projects,.experiences.and.material.on.the.Holocaust..Belgium’s.participation.is.based.on.a.joint.effort.between.the.Federal.government.and.the.Communities.that.together.decided.to.submit.this.country’s.candidacy.for.the.presidency.of.the.Task.Force..At.the.request.of.the.Belgian.authorities,.Belgium.will.hold.the.presidency.in.2012..The.presidency.(inter.alia).will.coincide.with.the.opening.of.the.new.Museum.in.Mechelen.(see.below)..That.presidency.will.make.it.possible.for.Belgium.to.share.the.Belgian.experience.in.the.areas.of.education,.remembrance.and.research,.but.also,.more.importantly,.to.emphasise.its.significance.for.the.future..A.deeply.rooted.commitment.to.the.duty.of.Holocaust.remembrance.will.be.further.enhanced.by.that.presidency.

Belgium.is.firmly.committed.to.the.principles.of.the.Stockholm.Declaration..At.the.federal.level,.two.main.government.bodies.are.working.in.cooperation.with.NGOs.on.projects.implemented.within.this.scope:.Let.us.firstly.mention.the.National.Institute.for.Invalids.of.War,.Veterans.and.Victims.of.

War.(IV-INIG)..IV-INIG.has.developed.activities.which.preserve.and.remember.the.Holocaust,.other.Nazi.crimes.and.acts.of.Resistance..For.example,.the.Institute.organised.a.meeting.with.2,000.young.people.and.Veterans.from.all.over.Europe.at.the.Buchenwald.Concentration.Camp.in.April.2008..450.participating.young.people.from.Belgium.went.to.this.meeting.by.a.special.train.travelling.from.Brussels.to.Weimar.

The.following.projects.are.further.worth.mentioning:

• Theexhibition”DeportationandGenocide,aEuropeanTragedy”

. Since.2010,.the.Institute.has.been.making.the.travelling.exhibition.“Deportation.and.Genocide,.a.European.Tragedy”.available.to.schools.free.of.charge..This.exhibition.presents.and.analyses.the.different.functions.assigned.to.the.concentration.system.in.the.Nazis’.ideological.project..The.exhibition.follows.that.system.chronologically.from.the.first.improvised.camps,.passing.through.the.rapid.establishment.of.the.Dachau.model.followed.by.an.internationalisation.of.the.system.and.its.spectacular.growth.after.the.outbreak.of.the.Second.World.War,.to.end.in.the.murderous.chaos.of.the.death.marches.

• MapofNaziConcentrationCampsandOtherDetentionCentres

. On.1.April.2011,.the.Institute.presented.the.second.edition.of.this.map.to.the.Humboldt.

2Website: www.holocausttaskforce.org

6.....AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Overview.of.the.initiatives

II. OvErvIEw OF ThE INITIATIvES

AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Overview.of.the.initiatives......7.

University.of.Berlin..This.historical.map.of.Germany.and.Central.Europe.is.the.most.comprehensive.ever.produced.up.to.now.on.this.subject..It.mentions.over.2,200.places.spreading.from.northern.France.to.Ukraine..Those.places.include.21.concentration.camps,.6.extermination.camps,.838.Kommandos,.509.prisons,.498.camps.(non.KZ),.95.stalags,.46.ofl.ags,.103.work/re-education.camps.and.70.transit.or.labour.camps.for.racial.deportation,.6.euthanasia.centres.and.24.camps.for.Gypsies..All.the.places.have.been.meticulously.listed,.categorised.and.indexed..This.project.is.the.outcome.of.two.years’.research.and.the.result.of.fruitful.cooperation.between.the.Belgian.National.Institute.for.Veterans.–INIG.and.the.National.Geographical.Institute3...

• Trainof1000

. From.5.to.10.May.2012,.the.Institute,.the.Auschwitz.Foundation.and.the.International.Federation.of.Resistance.Fighters.will.organise.the.gathering.and.the.journey.of.1,000.young.people.from.Brussels.to.Auschwitz,.in.a.train.specially.chartered.for.the.occasion:.the.Train.of.1,000.

. Leaving.from.Brussels,.this.train.will.also.take.a.number.of.young.people.on.board.in.the.different.stations.where.it.will.stop..It.will.therefore.carry.about.a.thousand.young.Belgians.and.other.Europeans.who,.in.the.presence.of.the.Camps’.last.survivors,.will.commemorate.the.victory.of.democratic.forces.over.Nazi.Germany.

3Website: www.ign.be

AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Overview.of.the.initiatives.....9.

. In.addition.to.the.commemoration,.the.journey.has.several.objectives:

>.Educational:.to.make.it.possible.for.those.1,000.young.people.to.visit.the.Auschwitz.Museum.and.the.Birkenau.extermination.camp.and.to.have.firsthand.awareness.of.the.Nazi.concentration.camp.and.genocide.system,.

>.Memory:.to.visit.the.camp.in.the.company.of.survivors.and.witnesses,

>.Social.awareness:.to.raise.self-awareness.about.the.subject.of.concentration.camps.and.consequently.of.the.absolute.negation.of.Human.Rights..

The.meeting.also.wishes.to.receive.media.coverage.as.much.as.possible.so.as.to.highlight.that.massive.and.symbolic.mobilisation.of.European.youth.gathering.together.for.Democracy.and.against.political.extremism.

The.second.Federal.institution.is.the.Centre.for.Equal.Opportunities.and.Opposition.to.Racism.(hereafter.referred.to.as.the.Centre)..The.Centre.therefore.plays.a.role.in.the.fight.against.Holocaust.denial.and,.more.precisely,.within.the.framework.of.the.Act.of.23.March.1995..Since.1995,.Belgium.has.enacted.a.law.aimed.at.repressing.Holocaust.negationism.(Act.of.23.March.1995.tending.to.repress.the.denying,.minimalising,.justifying.or.approving.of.the.genocide.committed.by.the.German.National.Socialist.regime.during.the.Second.World.War)..It.punishes.negationist.statements.

in.a.broad.series.of.situations:.expression.in.public.places.or.in.places.open.to.the.public,.or.in.written.documents,.whether.printed.or.not,.distributed.on.a.large.scale.or.merely.addressed.to.several.persons.or.exposed.to.the.public.eye..The.penalty.is.severe.but.proportionate:.a.prison.sentence.of.8.days.to.one.year,.a.fine.of.26.to.5,000.euro4,.but.also,.and.it.is.a.particularity.of.the.Act,.it.may.be.ordered.that.the.full.judgement.or.an.extract.of.it.be.inserted.in.one.or.more.newspapers.and.be.displayed,.at.the.convicted.person’s.costs..Lastly,.so.as.to.ensure.maximum.effectiveness.in.the.protection.of.the.dignity.and.the.remembrance.of.all.Holocaust.victims,.the.Centre,.together.with.any.association.having.legal.personality.for.at.least.five.years.on.the.date.of.the.events,.and.which.proposes,.through.its.statutes,.to.defend.the.moral.interests.and.the.honour.of.the.Resistance.or.of.deportees,.are.expressly.permitted.to.appear.in.court.in.all.litigation.proceedings.to.which.the.application.of.the.abovementioned.Act.of.23.March.1995.could.give.rise.

Negationism punished

A.recent.example.concerns.a.French.negationist.who.was.living.in.Belgium.at.the.time.of.the.acts...He.had.in.particular.sent.brochures.developing.the.thesis.that.the.gas.chambers.had.never.existed.to.several.secondary.schools.of.the.French.Community..After.the.Centre’s.institution.of.civil.action,.that.person.was.sentenced.on.19.June.2008.by.the.Brussels.Magistrate’s.Court,.

4SeeArticle2oftheActof26June2000relatingtotheintroductionoftheeurointolegislationconcerningthe subjects referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.


on.the.basis.of.the.Act.of.23.March.1995,.to.one.year’s.imprisonment.and.to.the.payment.of.the.sum.of.1,500.euros,.for.reparation.of.the.moral.damage.suffered,.to.the.Centre..That.decision.was.subsequently.upheld.on.21.September.2011.by.the.Brussels.Appeal.Court.5

Lastly,.let.us.add.that.the.Centre.launched.a.pilot.project.aiming.at.mapping,.developing.and.consolidating.actions.in.the.educational.field.of.democracy.through.the.study.of.the.historical.reality.of.the.Second.World.War.in.Belgium.(with.an.emphasis.on.Holocaust.and.Resistance).6

2. Teaching – Remembrance education

Considerable.progress.has.been.made.in.recent.years.in.the.area.of.Holocaust.education.in.school.curricula..All.three.autonomous.Communities.(which.are.competent.for.education.policy).promote.the.teaching.of.the.history.of.the.Holocaust.in.schools,.in.classes.such.as.history,.literature,.ethics.or.religious.instruction.

Generally.speaking,.it.is.worth.mentioning.the.following.projects:In.2005-2006,.on.the.occasion.of.the.60th.anniversary.of.the.liberation.of.the.Nazi.concentration.camps,.the.“Schools.for.Democracy”.pilot.project.was.implemented..This.project.was.coordinated.by.the.Centre.for.Equal.Opportunities.and.Opposition.to.Racism..This.initiative.put.together.three.groups.of.200.

schoolchildren.in.the.6th.year.of.primary.school.and.three.groups.of.170.students.in.the.final.year.of.high.school,.to.make.them.familiar.with.notions.such.as.identity,.respect,.participation.and.openness.to.the.world,.culminating.in.two.main.visits:.the.Nazi.camps.of.Breendonk.and.Auschwitz..The.educational.aim.was.to.invite.students.to.make.a.link.between.history.and.the.moral.choices.they.might.have.to.make.in.their.personal.lives..

5ThisdecreeandanyotherrelevantcaselawareavailableonthewebsiteoftheCentreforEqualOpportunitiesandOppositiontoRacism-www.diversite.be-Resources – Legislation & Case law. 6Seeinfra2.Teaching–Remembranceeducation–“SchoolsforDemocracy”.


Another.project.was.the.international.“A.Classroom.of.Difference”.program,.aimed.at.helping.teachers.overcome.the.difficulties.of.teaching.Holocaust.history.at.school..The.initial.program.was.developed.by.the.A.WORLD.OF.DIFFERENCE.Institute..As.far.as.Europe.is.concerned,.this.program.was.developed.farther.by.the.Bernheim.and.Evens.Foundations.and.the.“European.Jewish.Information.Centre”..They.are.the.local.expression.of.a.Comenius.program.developed.for.three.years.in.Italy,.the.Netherlands,.France.and.Belgium..This.project.concluded.with.a.final.seminar.for.teachers.from.the.three.Belgian.Communities.at.Yad.Vashem.in.March.2008..

You.will.find.hereafter.an.overview,.by.Community,.of.remembrance.education.initiatives.

i. In Flanders

Subjects.such.as.tolerance,.Human.Rights,.etc..are.dealt.with.in.teaching.through.the.final.educational.attainment.goals...Those.are.the.objectives.which.are.compulsory.for.each.school.and.which.the.Flemish.Parliament.lays.down.by.decree..The.concrete.implementation.of.the.final.educational.attainment.goals.comes.within.the.schools’.autonomy.and.educational.freedom..Remembrance.education.is.adapted.more.particularly.according.to.the.pupils’.age.Among.the.teaching.objectives.of.primary.education,.there.are.mainly.three.disciplines.

connected.with.remembrance.education..The.first.is.world.orientation.which.reserves.attention.to.socioeconomic,.socio-cultural,.political.and.judicial.phenomena..The.second.discipline.concerns.social.skills.and.the.third,.languages.and,.more.particularly,.the.functioning.of.cultures..Within.the.scope.of.these.educational.attainment.goals,.children.in.primary.education.are.taught.about.the.Holocaust,.with.teaching.adapted.according.to.their.age.and.their.living.environment.In.secondary.education,.remembrance.education.and.related.subjects.such.as.tolerance.and.Human.Rights.are.dealt.with,.above.all,.within.the.scope.of.the.“history”.attainment.goals.and.interdisciplinary.attainment.goals..History.classes.obviously.deal.with.the.Second.World.War.and.the.Holocaust...It.does.not,.however,.only.involve.gathering.together.knowledge.about.the.past.but.also.becoming.aware.of.the.influence.of.the.past.on.current.society..In.the.context.of.interdisciplinary.attainment.goals,.the.intention.is.to.make.pupils.understand.existing.participation.procedures,.basic.freedoms.and.rights.and.the.functioning.of.a.democracy,.but.also.to.show.them.how.to.live.together.in.a.multicultural.and.democratic.society..In.this.respect,.the.tragedy.of.the.Holocaust.represents.one.of.the.most.sombre.pages.of.the.history.of.humankind.

In.practice,.the.very.diverse.and.elaborate.range.of.remembrance.education.support.tools.gives.schools.the.opportunity.to.select.the.media.

most.appropriate.to.their.concrete.context.and.which.best.meets.their.needs..It.allows.teachers.to.introduce.their.students.to.a.variety.of.opinions.and.principles..And.it.offers.schools.the.possibility.of.working.on.remembrance.education.in.their.own.city.or.region,.starting.from.the.immediate.living.and.experiential.environment.of.the.students.

The.extensive.field.of.support.in.peace.education.and.remembrance.education.therefore.clearly.offers.practical.and.didactic.advantages..But.it.also.introduces.problems.such.as.finding.something.suitable.for.young.children..Consultation.with.several.experts.in.addition.to.information.on.the.relevant.needs.in.the.field.of.education.has.made.it.clear.that.there.is.an.urgent.need.for.making.the.Belgian.field.of.remembrance.education.more.transparent.for.Flemish.schools.

Remembrance education and the Kazerne Dossin (Barracks)

The.Flemish.government.therefore.decided.to.attribute.a.central.role.to.the.vzw.Kazerne.Dossin.(Barracks).to.ensure.the.coordination.of.remembrance.education.in.the.Flemish.teaching.system..The.role.assigned.to.the.Kazerne.Dossin.fits.within.the.framework.of.the.expansion.of.the.current.Jewish.Museum.for.Deportation.and.Resistance.and.its.conversion.into.a.new.museum.complex.vzw.Kazerne.Dossin..Memorial,.Museum.and.Documentation.Centre.on.Holocaust.and.Human.Rights..The.

new.Kazerne.Dossin.non-profit.association.takes.on.this.task.in.cooperation.with.other.actors.working.in.the.field.of.remembrance.education.like,.for.example,.the.Fort.van.Breendonk7,.the.Auschwitz.Foundation.and.“In.Flanders.Fields”.Museum8,.and.with.the.educational.guidance.departments.from.the.various.educational.networks.and.the.Education.and.Training.Department..Together.they.form.the.Special.Committee.for.Remembrance.Education.or.BCH.(Bijzonder.Comité.voor.Herinneringseducatie).

The.coordination.task.of.the.BCH.further.involves.implementing.structural.consultation.between.the.various.providers.of.remembrance.education.material..A.significant.concrete.result.of.this.consultation.is.the.website.www.herinneringseducatie.be,.a.user-friendly.overview.of.all.study.days,.workshops,.activities,.teaching.packages.and.initiatives.dealing.with.remembrance.education..Teachers.can.find.a.great.deal.of.inspiration.on.this.site.but.can.also.offer.colleagues.their.own.initiatives.and.suggestions..The.website.and.other.initiatives.of.the.Special.Committee.(BCH).clearly.offer.a.valuable.contribution.to.increasing.the.quality.of.the.support.that.is.offered.in.remembrance.education:.support.that.meets.the.diverse.needs.and.requirements.of.schools.and.helps.schools.to.work.with.remembrance.education.in.a.qualitative.manner.

The.BCH.was.also.entrusted.with.the.task.of.promoting.the.quality.of.remembrance.education..In.this.respect,.it.decided.not.to.

7Website : www.breendonk.be8Website : www.inflandersfields.be



impose.standard.“quality.criteria”,.but.rather.to.develop.a.“toetssteen”.(touchstone),.an.instrument.making.it.possible.for.anyone.who.is.active.in.the.field.of.remembrance.education.(school.teams,.individual.teachers,.teacher.trainers,.educational.coaches.or.staff.within.organisations).to.assess.their.own.projects..That.instrument.was.developed.within.the.BCH,.through.the.contribution.by.various.outside.persons..Teacher.trainers.and.grassroots.teachers.together.with.academics.and.researchers.were.associated.with.its.development..

The.“toetssteen”.is.structured.around.three.major.objectives:.(1).knowledge.and.understanding;.(2).empathy.and.involvement.(3).reflection.and.action..This.triptych.was.borrowed.from.literature.and.practice..The.three.key.objectives.need.to.be.spread.out.to.a.certain.extent..In.actual.fact,.knowledge.and.understanding.form.a.foundation.in.order.to.be.able.to.provide.a.first-rate.job.during.the.following.two.phases..Without.knowledge.and.understanding,.empathy.and.involvement.together.with.reflection.and.action.remain.an.empty.shell..If.knowledge.and.empathy.are.unable.to.be.applied.in.the.context.of.reflection.and.action,.they.remain.superficial.and.moralising..A.set.of.reflection.questions.were.drafted.for.each.of.the.three.objectives..These.are.orientation.questions.from.which.to.draw.inspiration.and.which.highlight.less.pertinent.factors..The.ultimate.aim.is.for.the.

9Forfurtherdetails:www.herinneringseducatie.be/ADVISEERT/Toetssteen.

“toetssteen”.to.be.accessed.online.as.a.practical.and.multilayer.questionnaire.offering.a.basis.for.self-reflection.or.teamwork.assessment.9.

ii The French Community

The.Government.of.the.French.Community.is.working.on.intensifying.citizenship.education.in.school.so.as.to.raise.pupils’.awareness.of.the.issues.of.active.citizenship.for.a.better.understanding.of.society.and.increased.involvement..

A.mechanism.was.developed.(by.Decree.dated.12.January.2007)10.which.is.structured.around.three.complementary.subject.areas:

-.the.creation.and.the.dissemination.of.an.abstract.entitled.“Contributions.to.future.citizenship.development”;

-.the.implementation.of.cycles.or.levels.of.interdisciplinary.activities.concerning.citizenship;

-.the.generalisation.and.the.recognition.of.participatory.structures.for.pupils.within.the.5th.and.6th.years.of.primary.education.and.pupils.attending.standard.and.specialised.secondary.education.(class.representatives.and.pupils’.councils)..

This.mechanism.additionally.strengthens.the.practices.already.developed.within.schools.with.the.direct.support.of.the.French.Community.or.through.partner.associations.

“Democracy or Barbarity”

One.of.the.specific.tasks.of.the.“Democracy.or.barbarity”.educational.coordination.unit,.founded.in.1994.and.currently.attached.to.the.General.Secretariat.of.the.French.Community,.is.to.coordinate.citizenship.and.human.rights.education.matters.together.with.issues.related.to.work.in.the.area.of.history.and.remembrance..It.is.aimed.at.all.the.networks.and.systems.of.education,.primarily.at.secondary.level..In.2008,.it.published.the.Citizenship.memento.in.the.French.Community.(Mémento.de.la.citoyenneté.en.Communauté.française),.which.provides.an.inventory.of.more.than.200.institutions.and.associations.proposing.information,.resources.and.activities.to.teachers.

In.addition.to.these.structural.measures,.the.French.Community.supports.the.initiatives.by.school.partner.associations.and.develops.with.them.projects.in.step.with.young.people.and.topical.issues,.whether.they.concern.the.defence.of.Human.Rights.and.democratic.values,.the.combat.against.racism,.work.in.the.area.of.remembrance.and.equal.opportunities,.awareness.of.cultural.diversity.or.even.active.involvement.in.local.democracy.

The.French.Community.strengthened.and.structured.its.action.in.the.area.of.genocide.remembrance.and.education,.including.Holocaust.remembrance,.with.the.Decree.of.13.March.2009.concerning.the.passing.on.of.

10Decreeof12January2007relatingtothestrengtheningofeducationinresponsibleandactivecitizenshipwithininstitutionsorganisedorsubsidisedbytheFrenchCommunity,M.B.20March2007.



remembrance.of.crimes.of.genocide,.crimes.against.humanity.and.war.crimes.and.acts.of.resistance.or.movements.that.resisted.the.regimes.that.perpetrated.such.crimes11..The.purpose.of.the.Decree.mainly.aims.at.the.passing.on.of.knowledge.of.some.tragic.political.and.social.events.of.history,.primarily.among.the.young.generations,.with.a.view.to.the.development.of.responsible.citizenship.and.the.promotion.of.democratic.values..The.Decree.emphasises.the.educational.dimension.of.the.activities.organised.by.the.approved.centres.and.within.the.framework.of.the.selected.projects..

Since.2008,.the.French.Community.has.been.sending.out.a.circular.inviting.institutions.from.all.levels.to.organise.activities.within.the.framework.of.the.International.Remembrance.Day.on.27.January.in.memory.of.Holocaust.victims..Publications.that.can.be.used.in.this.context.are.made.available.to.teachers..For.instance,.in.2009,.on.the.occasion.of.the.International.Remembrance.Day,.all.the.schools.in.the.French.Community.received.tools.intended.for.their.pupils.to.encourage.reflection.on.the.matter..The.CRECCIDE.(Regional.and.Community.Crossroads.for.Citizenship.and.Democracy)12.has.developed.an.awareness-raising.tool.dedicated.specifically.to.the.Holocaust.entitled.“For.an.educational.approach.to.the.Holocaust.for.10.to.14.year.olds”...A.part.of.that.tool.analyses.the.work.“Lieneke’s.notebooks”.by.Jacob.Van.der.Hoeden..It.is.composed.of.9.notebooks,.which.can.be.a.focus.

of.classroom.reflection.in.small.groups..The.educational.development.proposed.concerns.pupils.from.5th.and.6th.years.of.primary.school..For.pupils.in.the.first.years.of.secondary.education,.the.schools.received.the.work.“I.was.a.child.in.the.Warsaw.ghetto”.by.Larissa.Cain.

On.the.initiative.of.the.educational.coordination.unit,.“Democracy.or.barbarity”,.schools.received.the.DVD.“Modus.Operandi”,.intended.for.pupils.in.the.upper.forms.of.secondary.school,.accompanied.by.an.educational.booklet.containing.the.entire.content.of.the.film.in.the.form.of.questions.and.answers..The.film.deals.with.the.persecution.of.Jews.in.Belgium..The.“Democracy.or.barbarity”.team.also.provided.reference.works.to.help.the.teachers.to.initiate.the.discussion.with.the.young.people..In.addition,.at.the.schools’.request,.Hugues.Lanneau,.the.director.and.Willy.Perelsztejn,.the.film’s.creator.and.producer.regularly.attended.discussions.after.the.showing.of.the.film.

In.2009,.“Democracy.or.barbarity”.published.“Words.of.stone..Traces.of.history”.(“Paroles.de.pierres..Traces.d’histoire”),.a.tool.for.teachers.devoted.to.places.of.history.and.remembrance,.including.the.Holocaust,.and.to.the.two.World.Wars.in.Belgium.

In.2010,.the.Map.of.Nazi.Concentration.Camps.and.Other.Detention.Centres,.published.by.the.IV-INIG,.was.distributed.in.all.secondary.education.institutions.

11Seebelow3.Remembrance,forthedescriptionofthecontentandtheobjectivesofthisDecree.12Website : www.creccide.org

For.2011,.the.work.by.Anne.Roekens,.“Belgium.and.the.persecution.of.the.Jews”.(“La.Belgique.et.la.persecution.des.Juifs”).(La.Renaissance.du.Livre/CEGES,.2010).was.made.available.to.secondary.schools.and.teachers..The.French.Community.financially.supported.and.provided.widespread.distribution.of.the.abridged.version.of.the.report.“Docile.Belgium.(“La.Belgique.docile”).drawn.up.in.2007.by.the.CEGES.at.the.request.of.the.Senate.of.Belgium.(cf..below)..

The.French.Community.also.supports.the.initiative.“Train.of.1,000”.where.a.thousand.or.so.young.Belgians.and.Europeans.will.travel.to.Auschwitz,.in.a.train.specially.chartered.for.the.occasion..That.journey’s.threefold.goals.are.education.(visit.to.the.Auschwitz.Museum.and.to.the.Birkenau.extermination.centre,.firsthand.awareness.of.the.Nazi.concentration.camp.and.genocide.system),.memory.(visit.in.the.company.of.survivors.and.witnesses).and.social.awareness.(cf..above).

In.the.area.of.initial.and.continuous.training.provision,.several.initiatives.were.taken.so.as.to.raise.awareness.of.the.Holocaust.issue.among.stakeholders.in.the.world.of.education:-. Many.training.courses.are.proposed.to.

teachers.of.all.the.networks,.within.the.framework.of.the.IFC.(Institut.de.Formation.en.cours.de.Carrière).which.provides.mid-career.training,.and/or.by.acknowledged.operators.such.as.Accredited.training.or.Resource.Centres.within.the.scope.of.the.Decree.of.13.March.2009.

-. On.27.January.2011,.the.Brussels.French-speaking.Parliament.and.the.French.Community.(Democracy.or.barbarity).organised.a.study.day.entitled.“Maxime.Steinberg.Study.day..Places.of.memory,.places.of.history..From.the.work.of.remembrance.to.the.duty.of.history”.devoted.to.the.integration.of.visits.to.places.of.remembrance.(Holocaust.remembrance.in.particular).into.a.teaching.process..

-. Teachers.from.all.the.teaching.networks.of.the.French.Community.regularly.attend.training.sessions.organised.at.Yad.Vashem.

To.address.the.issue.of.the.Holocaust.in.their.classes,.many.teachers.organise.repeated.visits.to.places.located.both.in.Belgium.(Mechelen).and.abroad.(Auschwitz-Birkenau)..Likewise,.witnesses.are.frequently.approached.to.come.and.share.their.experience.with.pupils.in.schools..It.is.worth.emphasising.that.visits.to.places.of.remembrance.connected.with.the.Holocaust.form.a.significant.part.of.the.projects.acknowledged.and.funded.by.the.French.Community.within.the.scope.of.the.Decree.of.13.March.200913.

The.website.(www.decretmemoire.cfwb.be).set.up.within.the.scope.of.the.Decree.is.destined.to.become.the.reference.portal.of.the.initiatives.taken.in.the.French.Community.and.an.information.tool.for.teachers.involved.in.the.work.of.history.and.remembrance.


13See 3. Remembrance, for the description of the three types calls for projects.


Through.the.intermediary.of.the.Democracy.or.barbarity.unit,.the.French.Community.makes.a.range.of.tools.available.to.teachers.(reference.works,.educational.folders,.collection.of.documents,.evidence.and.testimony,.etc.)..Those.tools.are.either.produced.by.the.French.Community.or.purchased.to.be.distributed.among.teachers.

iii. The German-speaking Community

In.the.German-speaking.Community.too,.the.Holocaust.is.not.broached.exclusively.in.history.instruction..It.is.often.also.dealt.with.in.mother.tongue.classes,.religion.and.ethics,.in.the.first.and.second.stages.of.secondary.education..This.is.done.through.visits.by.witnesses.to.schools,.lectures.by.authors,.shared.book.readings.or.project-oriented.work..All.secondary.schools.in.the.German-speaking.Community.organise.regular.visits.for.the.students.to.the.Kazerne.Dossin.(Barracks)-Jewish.Museum.of.Deportation.and.Resistance.(JMDR).in.Mechelen.and.the.National.Fort.Breendonk.Memorial.

Pupils.from.the.German-speaking.Community.have.already.attended.the.international.youth.meeting.at.the.Flossenbürg.Memorial.four.times..This.meeting.always.takes.place.in.July.at.the.time.of.the.liberation.commemorations.

Pupils.involved.from.three.secondary.schools.of.the.German-speaking.Community.will.also.take.part.in.the.“Train.of.1,000”.project..They.have.

already.done.a.great.deal.of.work.on.the.issue.of.the.Holocaust,.other.Nazi.crimes.and.the.meaning.of.Human.Rights.(cf..above).

Various.adult.education.institutions.in.the.German-speaking.Community.organise.lectures,.seminars.and.excursions.on.contemporary.history.and.the.Holocaust.as.part.of.their.‘life.long.learning’.programmes..

All.these.institutions.can.use.the.material.on.offer.at.the.German-speaking.Community’s.“GrenzGeschichteDG”.[Border.History].(www.grenzgeschichte.eu)..This.department.at.the.Autonomous.College.in.Eupen.is.the.centre.for.regional.research.in.contemporary.and.social.history,.for.remembrance.work.and.Holocaust.education.in.the.Eastern.part.of.the.country.and.in.the.Meuse-Rhine.Euregio..

As.part.of.the.multidisciplinary.political.education.programme,.GrenzGeschichteDG.involves.witnesses.from.the.region.-.Survivors.of.the.Holocaust.and.other.Nazi.crimes,.resistance.fighters,.persons.who.helped.escapees..As.such.people.are.unfortunately.becoming.fewer.and.fewer,.GrenzGeschichteDG.secures.the.legacy.of.these.witnesses.through.professionally.conducted.life-story.interviews.and.also.through.documentary.film.productions..These.works.are.designed.so.that.they.can.be.used.as.is.for.teaching.purposes..

On.the.occasion.of.the.65th.anniversary.of.the.liberation.of.European.countries.and.the.camps.from.the.yoke.of.Nazi.fascism,.GrenzGeschichteDG,.during.a.gathering.of.survivors.at.the.Sachsenhausen.and.Flossenbürg.Memorials.in.April.2010,.screened.for.the.first.time.the.documentary.“Charles.Dekeyser.–.Ich.habe.Glück.gehabt.wie.man.es.kaum.beschreiben.kann”.(“Charles.Dekeyser.–.I.was.incredibly.lucky”).which.the.department.actually.produced..This.film.is.also.used.in.secondary.education.in.the.German-speaking.Community..The.author.and.the.producer.won.the.Dexia.prize.for.the.best.German-speaking.cinematographic.production.in.Belgium..In.2012,.the.French.and.Dutch.versions.will.be.available.



In.May.2011,.the.documentary.containing.testimony.about.Helmut.Clahsen.“Von.Schutzengeln.auf.zwei.Beinen.und.Verrätern.in.der.eigenen.Familie”.(“Guardian.angels.and.traitors.within.the.family”).had.its.première.showing.in.Eupen..With.his.brother,.the.Jewish.child.Helmut.Clahsen.survived.the.Nazi.terror.thanks.to.the.help.of.very.many.persons..They.hid.in.more.than.40.places.in.Belgium.and.Germany.

Research.and.interviews.with.witnesses.on.the.topic.“Jewish.life.in.north.of.the.German-speaking.Community.from.1920.to.today”.are.also.well.under.way.and.will.be.subsequently.used.for.a.cinematographic.project.and.a.publication..

In.addition.to.testimonials.and.contemporary.history.lectures,.GrenzGeschichteDG.also.organises.tours.of.escape,.resistance.and.persecution.locations.in.the.Dutch-German-Belgian.and.the.Luxembourg-German-Belgian.border.areas..For.these.visits,.schools.can.also.use.audio.guides.in.French.and.German.that.can.be.downloaded.from.the.website..Eminent.domestic.and.foreign.writers.read.from.their.works.on.the.Holocaust.before.local.students.and.partly.a.wider.audience.as.well..To.commemorate.the.25th.anniversary.of.the.German-speaking.Community,.GrenzGeschichteDG.organised,.on.behalf.of.the.Community.government.and.Exil-PEN.(writers.in.exile),.an.international.event.from.1.to.4.April.2009.on.the.topic:.“Stille.Retter.–.Menschen.

retten.Menschen.während.der.NS-Zeit.und.der.Besatzung”.[Silent.Rescuers.–.People.rescuing.people.during.the.Nazi.era.and.the.occupation]..Survivors,.scholars.and.committed.citizens.reported.on.their.personal.fate.and.rescue.situations.in.the.Netherlands,.Belgium,.Luxembourg,.France,.Switzerland,.Austria.and.Hungary.

For.the.65th.anniversary.of.the.attack.on.the.20th.deportation.train.from.Belgium,.with.the.support.of.the.City.of.Eupen,.the.government.and.the.Belgian.rail.board,.GrenzGeschichteDG.hosted.a.photo.exhibition.by.the.Mechelen.Jewish.Museum.of.Deportation.and.Resistance.on.the.only.train.transporting.Jews.in.Europe.that.was.stopped.to.free.the.prisoners,.entitled.“1200.Gesichter.–.Erinnerung.an.Transport.XX”.[1200.Faces.–.Remember.Transport.XX].from.8.to.31.May.2008.at.the.Eupen.train.station..The.high.point.of.the.opening.ceremony.was.the.speech.by.Régine.Krochmal,.now.91.years.of.age,.who.managed.to.escape.from.the.train.on.her.own..In.the.run-up.to.the.presentation,.she.arrived.in.Eupen.already.on.27.February.2008,.and.was.able.to.tell.some.200.students.her.life.story.and.to.urge.them.to.take.an.active.part.in.this.project..

GrenzGeschichteDG.is.currently.in.serious.negotiations.to.acquire.one.of.the.few.preserved.cattle.trucks.from.‘Transport.XX’.which.were.used.to.deport.Jews..The.aim.is.to.present.it.as.an.extracurricular.learning.and.remembrance.venue.in.the.German-speaking.Community..

Under.the.motto.“Then.persecuted.–.now.forgotten”,.a.Euregional.event.was.held.for.the.first.time.on.27.January.2001.at.the.Father.Damian.secondary.school.in.Eupen.on.Holocaust.remembrance.day..Representatives.of.different.groups.of.victims.–.Jews,.political.prisoners,.Jehovah’s.witnesses,.homosexuals.–.from.Germany,.Belgium.and.the.Netherlands.participated.in.the.inter-generational.dialogue.with.students.from.these.three.countries.who.presented.projects.on.the.topic..Euregional.further.education.courses.for.teachers.on.such.topics.as.“Nazis,.occupation.and.the.war”.and.“The.history.of.Jews.in.the.borderland”.have.already.been.organised.on.several.occasions..Contacts.with.‘witnesses’.also.took.place..

The.“Crocus.Project”.was.geared.to.students.in.upper.primary.schools.and.the.first.two.years.of.secondary.education..This.project.was.carried.out.in.the.German-speaking.Community..Developed.by.the.Holocaust.Educational.Trust.Ireland,14.it.has.since.been.disseminated.worldwide..The.trust.makes.yellow.crocus.bulbs.available.which.are.planted.by.students.in.autumn.to.commemorate.the.one.and.a.half.million.Jewish.children.who.died.in.the.Holocaust..This.is.certainly.one.way.to.give.upper.primary.school.students.a.first.insight.into.the.Holocaust.and.to.warn.them.of.the.dangers.of.discrimination,.prejudices.and.intolerance..

3. Remembrance

In.continuity.with.holocaust.remembrance.education.projects,.the.following.initiatives.are.also.worth.pinpointing.in.the.area.of.remembrance..

In.December.2004,.the.Belgian.Government.designated.January.27.as.“Remembrance.Day.of.the.Genocide.committed.by.Nazi.Germany”..The.remembrance.ceremony.in.Auschwitz.on.27.January.2005.was.attended.by.H.M..King.Albert.II.and.the.Prime.Minister.at.the.time,.Mr..G..Verhofstadt..In.2006.Belgium,.in.its.capacity.as.Chairman.in.Office.of.the.OSCE.(Organization.for.Security.and.Co-operation.in.Europe),.organized.an.OSCE.Holocaust.Remembrance.Day.in.Brussels.to.which.representatives.of.all.56.participating.States.were.invited.


14Website : www.holocausteducationaltrustireland.org 15This number may increase, since requests to be awarded this title may still be submitted. Seealso:“TheEncyclopaediaoftheRighteousAmongtheNations.RescuersofJewsduringtheHolocaust.Belgium”,DanMichman(ed.),YadVashem,Jerusalem.2005,296pp.TheworkwasproducedwiththesupportoftheCommissionoftheEuropeanCommunities,theConferenceonJewishMaterialClaimsagainstGermanyandtheBelgiangovernment.


On.8.May,.various.ceremonies.are.also.held.to.commemorate.the.liberation;.in.2011,.the.Federal.government.was.officially.represented.at.the.commemorative.ceremonies.at.the.Tomb.of.the.Unknown.Soldier.in.Brussels.and.at.the.National.Monument.of.the.Resistance.in.Liège..Up.to.now,.1,584.Belgian.citizens15.were.awarded.the.title.of.“Righteous.among.the.Nations”.for.having.saved.the.lives.of.thousands.of.Jews..Pages.of.testimony.of.the.“Righteous.among.the.Nations”,.some.of.which.are.Belgian16,.are.featured.on.the.Yad.Vashem.website..The.title.of.“Righteous.Among.the.Nations”.is.an.official.title.awarded.by.Yad.Vashem.on.behalf.of.the.State.of.Israel.and.of.the.Jewish.people.by.non-Jews.who,.at.the.risk.of.their.lives.saved.Jews.during.the.Holocaust..That.title.is.awarded.by.a.special.Committee.on.the.basis.of.established.regulations.and.criteria.On.8.May.2007,.the.Prime.Minister.and.the.Minister.of.Defence.at.that.time.inaugurated.a.commemorative.plaque.in.homage.to.the.“Righteous”.of.Belgian.and.to.the.citizens.who,.at.the.risk.of.their.lives,.came.to.the.assistance.of.Jews.persecuted.during.the.Nazi.occupation..That.commemorative.plaque.is.to.be.found.in.the.Albertine.gardens.at.the.Mont.des.Arts.in.Brussels..During.the.ceremony,.the.Prime.Minister.once.again.made.apologies17.for.the.collaboration.of.the.authorities.with.the.Nazis.in.the.context.of.the.persecution.and.the.deportation.of.the.Jews.

Within.the.scope.of.remembrance.initiatives,.reference.can.be.made.to.the.Decree.of.13.March.2009.by.the.French.Community18..The.purpose.of.this.Decree.is.to.further.the.emergence.of.initiatives.aimed.at.encouraging.the.passing.on.of.that.remembrance.and.perpetuating.the.existing.projects.

In.concrete.terms,.the.Decree.organises.support.for:

-. Resource.Centres:.they.must.set.up.platforms.the.purpose.of.which.is.to.provide.the.target.groups.with.transversal.or.comprehensive.information.about.the.historical.facts.forming.the.subject.of.the.Decree..They.are.recognised.for.five.years.

-. Accredited.Centres:.They.may.be.on.a.smaller.scale.than.the.Resource.Centres..They.have.to.comply.with.a.more.limited.number.of.requirements.to.receive.support.and.are.recognised.for.two.years..

-. Organisations.or.schools.answering.calls.for.projects:.every.year,.three.types.of.calls.for.projects.are.launched..

The.first.type.of.call.for.projects.aims.at.gathering,.enhancing,.exploiting.or.preserving.evidence.in.relationship.with.the.subject.of.the.Decree.A.second.type.of.call.for.projects.aims.to.organise.visits.to.places.of.remembrance.and.seminars.intended.for.teachers,.in.relationship.with.the.subject.of.the.Decree..

16Website:www.yadvashem.org-Righteous–FeaturedStories-Belgium17In2002,ontheoccasionofthe60thanniversaryofthedeportationofJewsfromBelgium,thePrimeMinisterrecalledinMechelenourcountry’sshareofresponsibility,byreferringtotheroleplayedbyanumberofBelgianofficialsandcivilservantsandauthoritiesinthattragedy.In2005,apologiesforthatresponsibilitywereexplicitlymadeinfrontoftheentireinternationalcommunityatYadVasheminJerusalem.18Decreeof13March2009relatingtothepassingonoftheremembranceofcrimesofgenocide,crimesagainsthumanity,warcrimesandactsofresistanceormovements having resisted the regimes that aroused those crimes.

A.third.type.of.call.for.projects.is.aimed.at.projects.in.relationship.with.the.subject.of.the.Decree.but.neither.concerns.evidence.or.testimony.nor.visits.to.places.of.remembrance..

Twenty.or.so.projects.were.recognised.and.funded.by.the.French.Community.in.2009.and.2010..It.should.be.emphasised.that,.in.the.three.categories,.the.vast.majority.of.the.projects.are.related.to.the.Holocaust,.to.the.Nazi.concentration.camp.system.and.to.the.Resistance.The.resource.and.accredited.Centres.recognised.within.the.framework.of.the.Decree19.propose.significant.and.varied.resources:.publications,.seminars,.training,.visits.to.places.in.Belgium.or.abroad,.exhibitions,.activities.in.schools,.awareness-raising.actions.intended.for.the.general.public,.etc..Those.resources.not.only.concern.the.themes.referred.to.by.the.Decree.but.also,.and.on.a.broader.scale,.issues.involving.the.fight.against.extremisms.and.the.promotion.of.the.values.of.democracy.

The.Council.for.the.passing.on.of.remembrance,.set.up.within.the.framework.of.the.Decree.and.composed.of.representatives.from.the.academic.world,.from.civil.society.and.from.the.Ministry.of.the.French.Community,.was.established.on.30.June.2009..In.addition.to.its.role.in.the.procedures.for.the.recognition.of.centres.and.calls.for.projects,.it.gives.opinions.to.the.Government.of.the.French.Community,.either.on.its.own.initiative.or.when.requested.to.do.so,.

concerning.any.matter.relating.to.the.purpose.of.the.Decree..The.educational.coordination.unit.“Democracy.or.barbarity”.coordinates.and.monitors.the.actions.supported.by.the.French.Community.within.the.framework.of.the.Decree..It.is.also.assigned.to.collect.and.disseminate.information.about.the.issues.affected.by.the.Decree..

40 monuments and places of remembrance

Furthermore.it.may.be.mentioned.that.in.Belgium,.more.than.40.monuments.are.dedicated.to.the.remembrance.of.the.victims.of.the.Holocaust..Among.the.best-known.are.the.National.Monument.to.Belgian.Jewish.Martyrs.in.Anderlecht.and.“Les.Territoires.de.la.Mémoire”,.an.educational.centre.in.Liège,.which.adopts.an.educational.view.geared.towards.the.future20.and.the.National.Fort.Breendonk.Memorial..For.instance,.the.Union.des.Déportés.Juifs.en.Belgique-.Filles.et.Fils.de.la.Déportation.(Union.of.Jewish.Deportees.in.Belgium.–.Sons.and.Daughters.of.Deportation).organises.an.annual.ceremony.that.takes.place.at.the.abovementioned.Monument.in.Anderlecht,.in.the.presence.of.a.hundred.or.so.children.from.Jewish.and.non-Jewish.schools..That.ceremony.is.devoted.to.the.Holocaust.–.“Yom.Hashoa”.-.to.the.rising.of.the.Warsaw.ghetto.and.to.the.attack.on.the.20th.transport.headed.for.Auschwitz..This.Union.is.also.responsible.for.the.annual.pilgrimage.in.front.of.the.Dossin.Barracks.in.Mechelen.which.takes.place.in.the.


19The list, the references of the centres and any other information concerning the initiatives taken in the French Community can be found at the address: www.decretmemoire.cfwb.be 20Website: www.territoires-memoire.be


first.weeks.of.September..His.Majesty,.King.Albert.II.together.with.the.Prime.Minister.at.the.time,.Mr.Guy.Verhofstadt,.have.already.attended.this.commemoration.and.every.year.the.federal.government.is.represented..

Another.important.place.or.remembrance,.already.previously.mentioned,.is.the.Dossin.Barracks,.formerly.the.Jewish.Museum.for.Deportation.and.Resistance.(subsequently.referred.to.as.the.Kazerne.Dossin-JMDR),.which.is.located.in.Mechelen.in.the.SS-Samellager.of.the.period..These.barracks.are.also.called.‘the.Waiting.Room.of.Death’.due.to.the.central.role.it.played.in.the.deportation.of.25,834.Jews.(among.whom.514.from.northern.France).and.351.Gypsies.(among.whom.a.certain.number.from.northern.France).to.Auschwitz.from.1942.to.1944..Plans.and.the.construction.of.a.refurbished.museum.“Kazerne.Dossin..Memorial,.Museum.and.Documentation.Centre.on.Holocaust.and.Human.Rights”.in.Mechelen.are.making.good.progress.and.the.inauguration.is.scheduled.for.2012..The.funding.for.this.project.is.provided.by.the.Flemish.Government..Another.noteworthy.initiative.of.the.Kazerne.Dossin-JMDR.is.the.publication.of.a.4-volume.series.of.18,522.portraits.of.the.25,000.deportees.from.Mechelen.to.Auschwitz..This.work,.published.in.February.2009,.is.the.achievement.of.10.years’.work.in.archives.and.of.3.years’.scanning..This.unique.memorial.to.the.deportation.was.sponsored.inter.alia.by.the.European.Commission,.the.Claims.Conference21.

and.the.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation..The.Flemish.Government.purchased.a.copy.of.it.for.all.its.public.libraries..

The.safeguarding.of.archives.is.a.crucial.aspect.of.the.duty.of.remembrance..The.State.Archives.of.Belgium,.active.in.the.Belgian.ITS.(International.Tracing.Service).network,.have.in.the.recent.years.focused.special.attention.on.safeguarding,.preserving.and.making.accessible.the.archives.of.World.War.I.and.World.War.II,.especially.the.archives.of.the.Belgian.authorities.on.the.German.spoils.and.the.Belgian.restitution.and.indemnification.activities..Among.these.archives.are.the.very.rich.individual.files.of.the.former.Foreigners’.Police,.an.invaluable.source.for.the.relatives.of.deported.foreigners.and.for.the.historical.study.of.the.impact.of.

21TheConferenceonJewishMaterialClaimsAgainstGermany,website:www.claimscon.org

24..|...NA.DE..SHOAH..|..Een.overzicht.van.de.initiatieven

the.Holocaust.in.Belgium..These.40,000.or.so.files.are.currently.being.digitised.by.the.Kazerne.Dossin-JMDR..Yearly,.they.allow.the.State.Archives.of.Belgium.to.answer.accurately.hundreds.of.inquiries.from.deported.persons.or.their.close.relations..In.2009,.the.General.Archives.of.the.Kingdom.received.a.digitised.copy.of.the.archives.of.the.ITS,.kept.in.Bad.Arolsen,.in.Germany..Over.80.million.digitised.pictures,.representing.some.six.terabytes,.can.be.currently.accessed.by.researchers,.victims.of.persecutions.or.their.close.relatives.

Through.cooperation.between.the.Federal.Public.Service.Social.Security.Directorate-General.War-Victims,.the.Study.Commission,.the.Indemnification.Commission.and.the.Kazerne.Dossin-JMDR,.many.documents.and.personal.belongings.(referred.to.as.‘relics’),.which.had.been.confiscated.from.the.deportees.at.the.Dossin.barracks.in.Mechelen,.were.restored.to.families.

In.1992-93,.the.Belgian.authorities.granted.subsidies,.via.the.non-profit.making.organisation.Sauvegarde.d’Auschwitz.a.s.b.l.,.for.the.purpose.of.the.preservation.of.the.buildings.and.land.in.Auschwitz-Birkenau..In.2005,.they.took.the.initiative.of.revamping.the.Belgian.permanent.exhibition.of.Auschwitz,.so.as.to.actively.uphold.the.duty.of.remembrance..That.exhibition.project,.implemented.in.2005,.was.managed.by.the.JMDR.and.the.required.subsidies.


were.granted.by.the.National.Lottery.and.the.Judaism.Foundation.of.Belgium..The.Minister.of.Defence.also.provided.a.material.contribution..Furthermore,.every.year,.the.Museum.in.Mechelen.receives.subsidies.from.the.public.authorities.intended.for.the.upkeep.of.the.Belgian.permanent.exhibition.Belgium.also.provides.a.contribution.to.the.Auschwitz-Birkenau.International.Foundation.

Jewish Museum of Belgium

A.last.institution.obviously.worth.mentioning.is.the.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium..The.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium.was.relocated.in.a.new.and.larger.space.in.the.heart.of.Brussels,.with.financial.support.from.the.Belgian.authorities.and.other.partners..The.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium.organises.permanent.and.temporary.exhibitions;.it.offers.educational.services.and.different.activities.showing.the.richness.of.Jewish.culture.and.history..In.2007,.with.financial.support.from.the.Claims.Conference,.the.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium.digitised,.via.the.JMDR,.the.some.83,000.original.files.of.the.“Register.of.Jews”.(those.persons.who.declared.that.they.were.Jewish.pursuant.to.the.German.order.in.December.1940).which.it.preserves.and.created.a.database.which.may.be.consulted.in.its.premises.subject.to.compliance.with.the.terms.of.the.Privacy.Act..That.base.was.copied,.as.a.measure.of.security,.for.the.Yad.Vashem.(Jerusalem),.the.US.Holocaust.Memorial.Museum.(Washington),.the.Centre.

de.Documentation.Juive.Contemporaine.(Contemporary.Jewish.Documentation.Centre.-.Paris).and.obviously.the.JMDR.(Mechelen).That.important.collection.of.records.relating.to.the.Second.World.War.is.not.the.only.one,.far.from.it,.as.shown.by.“the.lists.of.Palestinian.exchanges”.or.the.study.concerning.looted.books.which.were.both.the.subject.of.publications..The.Museum.further.manages.several.thousand.files.of.private.persons,.in.addition.to.the.collections.of.Jewish.institutions.and.organisations.which.are.regularly.made.available.on.request.to.

researchers.or.private.individuals.in.search.of.their.roots..The.Museum.also.preserves.several.hundred.items.of.drawings,.objects.and.photos.in.the.departments.

As.far.as.teaching.is.concerned,.in.addition.to.the.permanent.exhibition.room.devoted.to.the.Holocaust.since.2010,.in.2014.–.as.from.the.inauguration.of.the.new.museum.–.a.more.comprehensive.circuit.will.be.opened.concerning.the.Holocaust.in.Belgium.and.its.consequences..Furthermore,.from.April.2012,.the.educational.guide.books.will.integrate.guided.tours.on.that.site.into.the.current.exhibition,.after.the.renovation.of.the.National.Memorial.to.Jewish.Martyrs.(located.in.Anderlecht)..Lastly,.for.the.adult.audience,.during.the.museum.Tuesdays,.specialised.conferences.about.the.Holocaust.both.in.Belgium.and.abroad.are.organised.

4. Research

In.addition.to.education.and.remembrance,.research.into.the.Holocaust.in.Belgium.plays.a.major.role..That.is.reason.for.the.founding.of.the.Centre.for.Research.and.Studies.on.the.History.of.the.Second.World.War.in.1969..It.is.currently.known.as.the.Centre.for.Historical.Research.and.Documentation.on.War.and.Contemporary.Society.(CEGES)..Many.archives.are.preserved.at.the.Centre.illustrating.the.persecution.of.Jews.in.Belgium..The.CEGES.was.involved.in.the.“Study.Commission.into.the.fate.of.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community’s.assets.which.were.plundered.or.surrendered.or.abandoned.during.the.1940-1945.war”.set.up.in.1997.by.the.Belgian.government..The.final.report.by.that.Commission.assigned.to.conduct.research.into.the.plundering.and.looting.of.the.assets.of.the.

Jewish.community.in.Belgium.was.published.in.2001.(see.below)..In.2000,.a.PhD.thesis.was.also.published.having.highlighted.the.extensive.collaboration.of.the.Antwerp.authorities22..As.a.result.of.these.different.studies.devoted.to.the.despoilment.of.Jewish.assets.and.to.the.collaboration.of.the.authorities.of.the.city.of.Antwerp,.there.was.increasing.support.within.the.Jewish.community.for.an.in-depth.study.to.be.conducted.into.the.possible.involvement.of.the.Belgian.authorities.in.the.persecution.and.deportation.of.the.Jewish.population.during.the.Nazi.occupation.of.Belgium..The.result.was.a.research.project.conducted.by.the.CEGES.at.the.request.of.the.Belgian.Senate.on.behalf.of.the.Federal.authorities..The.latter.also.funded.the.project..The.report.was.presented.to.the.Senate.in.2007.23.The.said.study.forms.an.important.contribution.in.this.area.

22LievenSaerens,scientificcontributorattheCEGES,authorof“Vreemdelingenineenwereldstad.EengeschiedenisvanAntwerpenenzijnjoodsebevolking(1880-1944)”,Lannoonv,Tielt,2000,800pp.23Thesameyear,thefindingsoftheresearchprojectwerealsopublishedinbookform,bothinFrenchandinDutch:‘LaBelgiquedocile:LesautoritésbelgesetlapersécutiondesJuifsenBelgiquependantlaSecondeGuerreMondiale’,(DocileBelgium:BelgianAuthoritiesandthepersecutionofJewsinBelgiumduringtheSecondWorldWar)RudiVanDoorslaer(ed.),EmmanuelDebruyne,FrankSeberechts,NicoWouters,withthecooperationofLievensSaerens,publishedbyEditionsLucPireandCEGES,2007,2vol.,1546pp.;“GewilligBelgië.OverheidenJodenvervolgingtijdensdeTweedeWereldoorlog”,RudiVan



Since.November.2010,.le.CEGES.has.been.involved.in.the.far-reaching.European.EHRI.project.(European.Holocaust.Research.Infrastructure24)..Funded.by.the.Seventh.Framework.Programme.of.the.European.Commission,.that.project.brings.together.20.institutions.from.13.countries.with.the.aim.of.developing.a.portal.which.will.offer.online.access.to.the.scattered.archives.of.the.Holocaust.in.Europe..The.purpose.is.to.stimulate.and.internationalise.research.into.the.persecution.of.the.Jews..The.project.will.continue.to.run.until.September.2014..The.CEGES.manages.and.coordinates.two.Work.Packages..The.contribution.by.CEGES.is.twofold;.its.contribution.is.situated,.at.the.level.of.the.identification.of.the.institutions.and.collections.and,.on.the.other.hand,.at.the.level.of.the.examination.of.any.problems.related.to.privacy.law.in.the.different.countries..

In.December.2010,.a.partnership.agreement.was.concluded.between.the.CEGES.and.the.“Kazerne.Dossin/JMDR”,.which.means.in.particular.that.a.representative.of.the.CEGES.is.now.a.member.of.the.“Kazerne.Dossin/JMDR”.standing.consultative.committee...

Auschwitz Foundation

Another.institution.that.should.be.mentioned.is.the.Auschwitz.Foundation..That.institution.was.founded.in.1980.by.the.Amicale.Belge.des.Ex-Prisonniers.Politiques.d’Auschwitz-Birkenau,.Camps.et.Prisons.de.Silésie.(Belgian.

Association.of.former.political.prisoners.in.Auschwitz-Birkenau.and.Silesian.Camps.and.Prisons),.whose.prime.objective.is.the.study.of.history.and.the.remembrance.of.Nazi.crimes.and.genocides,.awareness.of.them,.the.passing.on.of.that.remembrance.and.knowledge.and.the.preservation.of.the.archives.relating.to.them..The.Association.set.up.a.non-profit-making.Study.and.Documentation.Centre.to.achieve.its.goals:.Mémoire.d’Auschwitz.(Remembrance.of.Auschwitz)..The.two.institutions.work.together.to.promote.scientific.research.and.multidisciplinary.publications.with.a.view.to.broadening.understanding.of.the.historical.processes.which.led.to.the.coming.to.power.of.the.Third.Reich.and.to.Nazi.crimes..and.genocides.while.developing.teaching.projects.intended.for.the.various.education.sectors.in.particular,.and.for.society.in.general.Both.institutions.have.significant.collections.of.archival.materials,.a.well-stocked.library,.together.with.a.vast.range.of.audiovisual.documentation.which.is.available.to.the.public,.to.researchers,.students,.teachers.and.young.people.25

The.Foundation.for.Contemporary.Remembrance.(La.Fondation.de.la.Mémoire.contemporaine.–.De.Stichting.voor.de.Eigentijdse.Herinnering).was.founded.in.1994.and.also.actively.conducts.research.in.this.area..The.Foundation’s.activities.are.supported.by.the.Ministry.of.Defence.and.the.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation..The.research.work.of.this.Foundation.is.structured.around.two.key.

Doorslaer(ed.),EmmanuelDebruyne,FrankSeberechts,NicoWouters,withthecooperationofLievenSaerens,Meulenhoff|ManteauandSOMA,2007,1163pp.Toreachabroaderaudience,anabridgedFrenchversionappearedin2010,withthesupportoftheFrenchCommunity:“LaBelgiqueetlapersécutiondesJuifs”,AnneRoekens,LaRenaissanceduLivreandCEGES,2010,124pp.Since2011,aDutchversionisalsoavailable:“GewilligBelgië”,AnneRoekens,DeBezigeBij,Antwerp,2011,166pp.24Website : www.ehri-project.eu 25Bronwebsite:www.auschwitz.be

notions:.‘remembrance’.and.‘vigilance’..For.instance,.the.Foundation.conducts.historical.research.into.the.Belgian.Jewish.community.in.the.20th.century.and.collects.evidence..It.conserves.that.evidence.and.those.essays.and.archives.together.with.photographic.material..Every.year,.it.also.publishes.the.review.“Les.Cahiers.de.la.Mémoire.contemporaine”.(The.Contemporary.Remembrance.Notebooks),.many.articles.of.which.are.devoted.to.the.tragedy.of.the.Holocaust.26....As.a.conclusion,.let.us.mention.that,.since.2000,.several.theses.and.monographs.have.been.published.on.the.following.subjects:.Jewish.refugees,.the.escape.of.Jewish.deportees.from.the.20th.convoy.and.Jewish.members.of.the.Belgian.Resistance;.the.assistance.to.Jews.(Jewish.children).and.post-war.problems.of.the.return.of.these.children.to.their.community;the.“Association.of.the.Jews.in.Belgium”,.founded.by.the.Nazis;.the.Belgian.diamond.trade.and.the.Jewish.educational.system.during.the.Occupation;Belgian.‘Jew.hunters’,.Liège.and.the.Jews.during.the.Occupation,.Jewish.cultural.assets.in.Antwerp.and.Kalmhoutand.the.re-establishment.of.the.Jewish.community.in.Belgium.after.WWII..Like.several.monographs.devoted.to.the.persecution.of.Jews.in.Belgium,.including.a.recent.one,.they.put.the.emphasis.on.the.German.approach.while.reserving.special.attention.to.the.great.responsibility.of.the.German.military.authority.27

B. Initiatives in the area of material reparations

Since.1997,.the.Belgian.authorities.have.taken.and.implemented.various.measures.aimed.at.identifying,.restoring.and.indemnifying.the.assets.despoiled.to.the.detriment.of.Holocaust.victims.and.at.promoting.the.welfare.of.Holocaust.survivors.28.These.initiatives.may.be.placed.within.an.international.perspective..The.opening.of.a.series.of.archives.(e.g..concerning.the.fate.of.stolen.gold).resulted.in.a.worldwide.search.for.unrestored.Jewish.assets..At.Belgian.level,.the.National.Committee.of.the.Belgian.Jewish.community.for.restitution.(CNCJBR)29.asked.the.government.of.the.time.to.take.the.necessary.steps..The.Belgian.public.authorities.have.always.closely.involved.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community,.represented.by.the.CNCJBR,.in.this.entire.process..

1. The Study Commission into the fate of the Belgian Jewish Community’s assets which were plundered or surrendered or abandoned during the 1940-1945 war

In.July.1997,.a.Study.Commission.into.the.fate.of.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community’s.assets.which.were.plundered.or.surrendered.or.abandoned.during.the.1940-1945.war.was.set.up.in.Belgium,.as.part.of.a.constructive.dialogue.between.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community.(the.CNCJBR.being.more.specifically.the.initiator).and.the.Belgian.authorities..That.Commission.was.assigned.the.

26Bronwebsite:www.fmc-seh.be27“DeShoahinBelgië”,InsaMeinen,DeBezigeBij,Antwerp,2011,333pp.InitiallypublishedinGerman:“DieShoahinBelgien”,InsaMeinen,WissenschaftlicheBuchgesellschaft,Darmstadt,2009,254pp.28Theexaminationoftheinitiativesislimitedtothosesubsequentto1997.ThevariouseffortsmadebytheBelgianauthoritiesintheaftermathofthewararethereforenotexplicitlymentioned.29Nowcalled:NationalCommitteeoftheBelgianJewishcommunityforRestitutionandRemembrance.



task.of.“investigating.the.fate.of.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community’s.assets.appropriated,.lost.or.abandoned.in.those.circumstances”.(Art..1.of.the.Royal.Decree.of.6.July.1997.concerning.the.founding.of.a.Study.Commission.into.the.fate.of.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community’s.assets.which.were.abandoned.at.the.time.of.their.deportation.during.the.1940-1945.war,.M.B..12.July.1997).30

The.Study.Commission.conducted.investigations.in.the.following.areas:-.the.financial.sector;-.real-estate.assets;-.life.insurance;-.businesses;-.the.diamond.sector;-.art.objects.and.cultural.assets;-.furniture.and.domestic.possessions.(overall...investigation).

The.investigations.conducted.in.these.sectors.(with.the.exception.of.furniture.and.domestic.possessions).made.it.possible.to.locate.and.identify.despoiled.and.not.restored.assets.within.insurance.companies,.financial.institutions.and.the.Belgian.State.31.

30SeealsotheActof15January1999concerningtheStudyCommissionintothefateoftheBelgianJewishCommunity’sassets,whichwereplunderedorsurrenderedorabandonedduringthe1940-1945war,M.B.12March1999.31TheStudyCommission’sfinalreportmaybeconsultedonthewebsite:www.combuysse.fgov.be/index-oldsite.html

32Actof20December2001relatingtotheindemnificationoftheBelgianJewishCommunity’sassets,whichwereplundered,surrenderedorabandonedduringthe1940-1945war,M.B.24January2002,amendedbytheActsof8April2003,M.B.17April2003,9July2004,M.B.15July2004,and20July2006,M.B.28July2006.33The Act did not therefore lay down any nationality requirement. 42% of the claims came from abroad. 34TheIndemnificationCommission’sfinalreportmaybeconsultedonthewebsite:www.combuysse.fgov.be


2. The Indemnification Commission for the Belgian Jewish Community’s assets that were plundered, surrendered or abandoned during the 1940-1945 war

As.a.result.of.the.findings.made.by.the.Study.Commission,.contained.in.its.final.report.of.July.2001,.the.Act.of.20.December.2001.(M.B..24.January.2002).set.up.the.Indemnification.Commission.for.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community’s.assets.32.At.the.outcome.of.the.negotiations.conducted.with.the.CNCJBR,.the.amounts.identified.by.the.Study.Commission.were.paid.by.the.State,.the.banks.and.the.insurance.companies..Those.payments,.which.represented.a.total.amount.of.110.6.million.euros,.were.payments.in.full.discharge.for.the.bodies.concerned,.which.meant.an.extinguishment.of.the.right.to.submit.any.other.indemnification.claim.for.the.material.assets.and.financial.losses.affected.by.the.Act..This.amount.was.paid.into.the.special.account.opened.at.the.Belgian.National.Bank.and.placed.at.the.disposal.of.the.Indemnification.Commission..

The.Indemnification.Commission.then.began.the.individual.indemnification.procedure..The.claims.could.be.submitted.until.9.September.2003..Any.person.residing.in.Belgium.at.any.time.whatever.during.the.period.from.10.May.1940.to.8.May.1945,.whose.assets.had.been.plundered.in.Belgium.as.a.result.of.anti-Jewish.measures.or.anti-Semitic.acts.committed.by.the.

occupying.German.authorities,.was.considered.for.indemnification.33.When.the.despoiled.person.was.deceased,.a.rightful.claimant,.in.the.first,.second.or.third.degree,.could.submit.a.claim..

Individual compensation amounting to EUR 35.2 million

The.Act.of.20.December.2001.identified.the.assets.that.would.be.taken.into.consideration.for.indemnification,.namely.the.assets.and.possessions.looted.or.abandoned.of.which.restitution.had.not.been.made.by.the.State,.financial.institutions.or.insurance.companies..Those.assets.could.neither.have.already.been.the.object.of.any.compensation,.indemnification.or.reparation.and.should.have.been.identified.by.the.Study.Commission.or.the.Indemnification.Commission.(cf..Art..6.of.the.Act)..In.view.of.the.special.circumstances,.mainly.the.fact.that.the.records.were.not.complete,.the.Commission.chose.in.all.fairness.to.award.lump.sum.indemnification.when.there.were.sufficient.indications.making.it.possible.to.identify.despoilment,.but.no.proof.or.trace.of.the.assets.could.be.found.on.a.frozen.account.(Art..8.of.the.Act)..

All.in.all,.the.Indemnification.Commission.processed.5,220.despoilment.files,.with.the.total.amount.of.individual.compensation.amounting.to.35.2.million.euros..It.closed.the.examination.and.the.processing.of.the.files.on.31.December.2007.34.The.law.laid.down.that.the.remaining.


financial.balance.would.be.paid.to.a.public.utility.foundation,.in.the.event.the.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation.(see.infra.4..Judaism.Foundation).

3. Cultural goods, works of art and judaica: a continuous study

As.mentioned.above,.the.Belgian.Study.Commission,.in.accordance.with.the.conclusions.of.the.Washington.Conference.and.more.specifically.with.the.agreement.on.the.Washington.Principles.on.Nazi-Confiscated.Art,.investigated.the.lost,.plundered.and.abandoned.cultural.property.and.works.of.art.having.belonged.to.members.of.the.Jewish.community.in.Belgium,.more.specifically.to.victims.of.the.Holocaust..Simultaneously.a.historical.study.was.undertaken.to.clarify.the.cultural.losses.suffered.by.Jewish.owners.and.organisations,.and.the.ways.these.cultural.goods.were.plundered.and.disappeared.during.and.after.World.War.II..The.Belgian.Study.Commission.also.studied.and.investigated.indirectly,.in.a.more.general.way,.the.plundered.cultural.property.of.religious.communities.and.associations.in.Belgium..

The.Indemnification.Commission,.as.mentioned.above,.depended.for.the.examination.of.the.individual.claims.which.concerned.or.might.concern.disappeared.cultural.goods.on.the.constant.expertise.of.the.unit.Restitution.of.Looted.Jewish.Cultural.Goods.of.the.Federal.Public.Planning.Service.Science.Policy..On.the.basis.of.the.data.provided.by.individual.

claimants.and.the.restudying.of.the.Belgian.and.German.sources,.about.160.reports.were.drawn.up.regarding.disappeared.or.lost.works.of.art.and.cultural.goods..These.detailed.reports.led.to.financial.proposals.of.indemnification.which.the.Commission.followed..For.instance,.two.historical.clocks.from.the.Royal.Museums.of.Art.and.History.and.one.book.from.the.Royal.Library.of.Belgium.were.returned.in.2002.to.the.heirs.and.claimants.who.had.submitted.an.individual.claim..

i. Cultural goods and works of art in general

The.Study.Commission.studied.the.procedures.and.ways.in.which.Jewish.cultural.property.was.despoiled.in.Belgium.during.the.Holocaust..A.profound.investigation.was.also.made.of.the.Belgian.restitution.efforts.after.WWII..The.Office.de.Récupération.Economique.(ORE).was.nationally.and.internationally.responsible.for.the.Belgian.recovery.of.cultural.goods.from.the.public.domain.and.from.private.individuals.and.associations.and.was.also.responsible.for.the.liquidation.of.Nazi.material..Their.activities.were.seriously.hampered.by.the.prevailing.chaotic.situation.after.the.liberation.and.difficult.working.relations.with.other.services,.claims.for.repossession.by.(Jewish).owners.and.the.quartering.of.Allied.troops.and.material..

From.1999,.an.important.search.for.lost.Jewish.cultural.property.was.undertaken.in.cultural.

35“The‘MNR’,meaningthe‘MuséesNationauxRécupération’,referstothenationalmuseumsrecoveryprogramme.IthasadatabaseofworksofartretrievedinGermanyattheendoftheSecondWorldWarbutneverclaimedbytheirrightfulowners.ThoseworkswereentrustedbytheOfficedesbiensprivés(Officeofprivategoods–OBIP)tothecustodyoftheDepartmentofMuseumsofFrancepursuanttothedecreedated30September1949.”(sourcewebsite:www.culture.gouv.fr/documentation/mnr/pres.htm).36NK-works:NederlandsKunstbezit-collectie.“TheNKcollectionconstitutestheremainderoftheworksofartretrievedinGermanyinparticularaftertheSecondWorldWar.ThiscollectionismanagedbythepublicauthoritiesandwasentrustedtothecustodyoftheInstituutCollectieNederland(NetherlandsInstituteforCulturalHeritage-ICN).”(sourcewebsite:www.herkomstgezocht.nl/nl/nkcollectie/woordenboek.html).

institutions.and.museums.in.Belgium..The.aim.was.to.locate.works.of.art.and.cultural.goods.transferred.by.the.ORE.after.World.War.II.and.to.investigate.unclear.and.unidentified.provenances..The.approach.used.is.comparable.with.the.one.used.to.investigate.MNR-works35.of.art.in.France.and.NK-works36.in.the.Netherlands..On.the.basis.of.two.written.inquiry.lists,.details.were.demanded.of.all.acquisitions,.deposited.works.of.art.and.the.handled.or.restituted.cultural.goods.by.the.ORE..By.consulting.the.available.archives.and.correspondence.written.during.the.war.and.after.the.war.years,.a.clear.picture.was.established.of.the.involvement.of.the.cultural.institutions.and.museums.in.the.despoilment.and.restitution.activities..This.investigation.was.carried.out.in.full.cooperation.with.the.Communities,.responsible.for.the.cultural.domain.in.Belgium..After.the.inquiry.in.24.cultural.institutions.and.museums,.a.total.of.more.than.300.cultural.objects.were.discovered.with.an.unclear,.unidentified.or.a.Jewish.provenance,.linked.to.World.War.II..

The.provenance.of.those.cultural.goods.continues.to.be.investigated..This.investigation.will.make.it.possible.to.restore.goods.to.their.rightful.owners.or.their.heirs..If.necessarily,.when.the.provenance.remains.unclear,.further.inquiries.will.be.undertaken.and.international.attention.will.be.drawn.to.these.cultural.goods.by.PPS.Science.Policy..In.the.next.years,.a.comprehensive.study.of.the.history.of.the.

cultural.spoils.and.post-war.restitution.policies.in.Belgium,.including.complete.lists.of.the.cultural.goods,.will.be.made.available.for.the.public.on.the.internet..Secondly,.PPS.Science.Policy.will.continue.to.provide.information.free.of.charge.to.victims,.their.heirs.and.their.legal.representatives.concerning.their.cultural.losses,.and.also.to.auction.houses.and.to.cultural.institutions,.in.pursuance.of.the.Washington.Principles..Thirdly.an.awareness.campaign,.in.cooperation.with.the.Communities,.will.be.organized.to.widely.inform.all.cultural.actors.of.the.Washington.Principles.and.the.Terezin.Declaration.

ii. Judaica

The.Judaica.issue.is.best.illustrated.with.the.help.of.an.example.On.Easter.Monday.14.April.1941,.one.public.incident.occurred,.which.proved.to.be.an.isolated.event.in.the.history.of.the.persecution.of.Jews.in.Belgium..A.small.anti-Semitic.mob.invaded.the.Jewish.quarter.of.Antwerp.breaking.dozens.of.windows.and.displays.and.setting.fire.to.two.synagogues.and.the.house.of.Rabbi.Markus.Rottenberg..The.synagogues.were.desecrated.and.plundered..The.Torah.scrolls,.sacred.books.and.furniture.were.openly.burnt.in.the.streets.and.buildings.were.set.on.fire..National-Socialist.services.were.present.and.did.not.intervene..The.some.200.to.400.pillagers.were.mostly.members.of.collaborationist.organisations..German.soldiers.were.also.present..



In.August.1940,.shortly.after.the.occupation.of.Belgium,.the.Sicherheitsdienst.had.targeted.and.ransacked.Jewish.and.Zionist.organisations.both.in.Belgium.and.in.northern.France..After.the.liberation.of.Belgium,.the.local.Jewish.community.was.partly.compensated.by.the.Ministry.of.Reconstruction.for.material.damage.and.the.synagogues.were.re-consecrated..

In.2001.and.2002,.after.successful.Belgian-Russian.negotiations,.Belgian.‘Trophy’.archives.were.returned.by.the.Russian.Federation..The.archives,.mostly.military.documents.from.the.Belgian.Ministry.of.National.Defence,.contained.14.dossiers.from.Jewish.organisations.(such.as.the.Alliance.Israelite-Committee.Antwerp.and.the.editorial.board.of.Hatikva,.newspaper.of.the.Fédération.Sioniste.de.Belgique)..Those.14.dossiers.together.with.74.dossiers.belonging.to.leading.Jewish.personalities.were.returned.to.the.rightful.organisations.and.owners..The.reason.for.the.small.amount.of.documents,.less.than.1%.of.the.total.of.the.Belgian.‘Trophy’.archives,.was.that.the.main.objective.of.the.Nazi.services,.such.as.the.Einsatzstab.Reichsleiter.Rosenberg.in.Belgium,.was.primarily.the.confiscation.of.library.material..Most.of.those.books.and.libraries.remain.until.now.unrecovered..

The.Belgian.Study.Commission.made.a.profound.investigation.of.the.Nazi.spoils.and.the.Belgian.restitution.efforts.after.WWII.and.

an.inquiry.and.research.for.lost.Jewish.cultural.property.were.conducted.in.the.most.important.cultural.institutions.and.museums.in.Belgium..Special.attention.was.given.to.the.provenance.of.religious.objects.and.silverware.collections..The.investigation.in.the.Belgian.cultural.institutions.showed.that,.besides.the.discovery.of.some.objects,.that.those.silver.objects.were.not.registered.or.deposited.in.Belgian.cultural.institutions.in.mass..The.findings.were.published.in.the.final.report.of.the.Study.Commission..The.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium.discovered.in.the.nineties,.450.books.written.in.Hebraic.script.in.an.attic.which.had.been.confiscated,.during.the.war.years,.by.the.“Anti.Jewish.National.Agency.for.Wallonia.and.Flanders”,.a.collaborationist.organisation.created.with.the.help.of.the.Sipo-SD..

More.importantly,.the.Jewish.Museum.of.Belgium,.active.in.the.research.of.lost.cultural.Jewish.property,.was.one.of.the.first.international.Jewish.museums.to.fully.cooperate.in.the.provenance.research,.as.stipulated.by.the.Washington.Conference..

As.a.conclusion,.let.us.emphasise.the.need.to.attach.increased.attention.to.the.(personal).religious.Jewish.objects.and.the.cultural.property.of.associations..More.extensive.research.should.be.conducted.in.this.area.if.we.are.to.fully.understand.the.devastating.despoilment.during.the.war.years.in.Belgium..

4. The Belgian Judaism Foundation

As.stipulated.in.the.Act.of.20.December.2001,.the.financial.balance.remaining.after.the.Indemnification.Commission.had.concluded.its.work,.was.transferred.to.a.public.utility.foundation,.namely.the.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation..Justified.collective.restitution.is.thereby.guaranteed..In.the.statutes.of.the.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation,.it.is.stipulated.that.the.Foundation.is.formed.with.the.aim.of.gathering.together.Jewish.assets.plundered.or.abandoned.on.the.territory.of.Belgium.between.1940.and.1945.for.which.no.rightful.claimant.was.able.to.be.found.(M.B../.B.S..30.July.2004..The.Foundation’s.mission.is.also.set.out.in.the.Statutes,.i.e..the.management.of.the.Foundation’s.intangible.capital.and.the.periodic.distribution.of.the.interest.from.that.capital.by.means.of.subsidies.so.as.to.make.it.possible.for.the.Belgian.Jewish.Community.to.ensure.its.continuity..Applications.for.subsidies.must.also.meet.certain.conditions..It.is.mentioned.that.the.projects.must.concern:Holocaust.remembrance;social.issues,.in.the.widest.meaning.of.the.word,.education,.worship.and.everything.related.to.it,.culture,.solidarity.and.support.for.the.Jewish.victims.of.the.Second.World.War,.in.particular.for.Holocaust.survivors,.including.those.who.settled.in.Belgium.after.the.Liberation,.solidarity.with.persons,.such.as.Gypsies,.who,.like.the.Jewish.Community,.were.the.



victims.of.discriminations,.racist.persecutions.or.‘racial’.deportation.during.the.Second.World.War,.solidarity.with.persons.outside.the.Jewish.Community,.among.whom.the.Belgian.Righteous.among.the.Nations;the.combat.against.anti-Semitism.and.intolerance;scientific.and.historical.research.into.Jewish.subjects.or.subjects.relating.to.the.Second.World.War,.etc.

One.of.the.initiatives.of.the.said.foundation.is.the.“Solidarity.3000”.action..The.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation.was.anxious.to.guarantee.personal.compensation.of.at.least.3,000.euros.for.the.despoilment.of.their.material.assets.to.each.victim.of.anti-Jewish.persecutions..That.sum.was.awarded.to.those.persons.who.had.not.already.been.personally.indemnified.(and.had.not.received.at.least.3,000.euros).under.the.German.Reparation.Acts.or.the.Belgian.Indemnification.Act..If.necessary,.the.Foundation.made.up.the.difference.between.the.3,000.euros.and.the.compensation.received..

C. Initiatives in the area of moral compensation – Welfare programmes

1. Welfare Programmes - Federal Public Service Social Security Directorate-General War Victims

In.Belgium,.victims.and.survivors.of.the.Holocaust.can.benefit.from.a.series.of.general.measures.aimed.at.improving.the.welfare.of.those.who.suffered.from.the.Second.World.War..The.legislator.has.already.adopted.several.Acts.containing.measures.in.favour.of.Holocaust.survivors..For.instance,.the.Act.of.26.January.1999.created.the.status.of.the.Jewish.child.hidden.during.the.Second.World.War.and.the.status.of.Jewish.political.prisoner.for.those.who.did.not.have.Belgian.nationality.during.the.Second.World.War..This.recognition.is.an.honorary.recognition.of.their.status..The.Royal.Decree.of.19.April.1999.established.the.creation.of.the.medal.of.Jewish.political.prisoner..In.2003,.the.legislator.devoted.a.whole.series.of.new.measures.in.favour.of.victims.from.the.Jewish.and.Gypsy.communities.particularly.concerning.deportees,.the.orphans.of.deportation.and.children.and.adults.in.hiding..The.lifelong.annuity.for.the.orphans.of.deportees,.adults.and.children.who.were.in.hiding.as.well.as.the.compensatory.pensions,.annuities.and.fixed.rate.compensation.for.deportees.are.worth.mentioning.in.this.respect..The.Act.of.11.April.2003,.making.provision.for.new.measures.on.behalf.of.war.victims,.

substantially.complements.the.assistance.provided.to.the.various.categories.of.persons,.victims.of.anti-Jewish.persecution.at.that.time,.as.well.as.to.their.children,.children.in.hiding.or.orphans.

2. The Belgian Judaism Foundation

The.Belgian.Judaism.Foundation.(see.above).is.a.foundation.devoted.to.Holocaust.remembrance.and.provides.its.support.to.the.Belgian.Jewish.community.in.the.social.and.psycho-medical-social.fields.and.in.the.areas.of.education,.culture.and.worship..



General information

Federal Public ServiceChancellery of the Prime MinisterRue.de.la.Loi.-.Wetstraat.16B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.501.02.11Website:.kanselarij.belgium.be.Website.Indemnification.Commission:..www.combuysse.fgov.be

Federal Public ServiceForeign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperationrue.des.Petits.Carmes.-.Karmelietenstraat.15.B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.501.81.11Website:.www.diplomatie.be

Specific information

Federal Public Planning Service Science Policy Avenue.Louise.-.Louizalaan.231B-1050.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.238.34.11Fax:.+32.(0)2.230.59.12.E-mail:[email protected]@belspo.beWebsite:.www.belspo.be/belspo

Federal Public Service Social SecurityDirectorate-General War-VictimsSquare.de.l’Aviation.-.Luchtvaartsquare.31B-1070.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.528.91.00Fax:.+32.(0)2.528.91.22E-mail:[email protected]:.warvictims.fgov.be

Flemish Ministry of Education and TrainingBoulevard.Roi.Albert.II.-.Koning.Albert.II-laan.15B-1210.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.553.88.51Fax:.+32.(0)2.553.88.35E-mail:[email protected]:.onderwijs.vlaanderen.be

Ministry of the French CommunityBoulevard.Léopold.II.-.Leopold.II-laan.44.B-1080.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.413.29.53.E-mail:[email protected]:.www.cfwb.be

Flemish Ministry of Culture, Youth, Sport and MediaRue.d’Arenberg.-.Arenbergstraat.9B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.553.06.79Fax:.+32.(0)2.553.68.43E-mail:[email protected]:.www.cjsm.vlaanderen.be

Educational coordination unit “Democracy or barbarity”Ministry of the French Community - General SecretariatOffice 3F338Rue.A..Lavallée.–.A..Lavalléestraat.1B-1080.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.690.83.52/53/54Fax:.+32.(0)2.690.85.84E-mail:[email protected]:.www.enseignement.be/dob

Ministry of the German-speaking Community Gospertstraße.1B-4700.EupenTel.:.+32.(0)87.59.63.00Fax:.+32.(0)87.55.28.91E-mail:[email protected]:.www.dglive.be

38.....AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Practical.information

III. PrACTICAL INFOrmATION

.AFTER.THE.HOLOCAUST..|..Practical.information.....39.

GrenzGeschichteDG an der Autonomen Hochschule in der DGMonschauerstraße.26B-4700.EupenTel:.+32.87.59.05.00E-mail:[email protected]:[email protected]:.www.grenzgeschichte.eu

The Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to RacismRue.royale.-.Koningsstraat.138B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.212.30.00Fax:.+32.(0)2.212.30.30E-mail:[email protected]:.www.diversite.be

Institute for Veterans - National Institute for Invalids of War, Veterans and Victims of War (IV-INIG)Boulevard.du.Régent.-..Regentlaan.45/46.B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.227.63.00Fax:.+32.(02.227.63.31E-mail:[email protected]:.www.warveterans.be

Centre for Historical Research and Documentation on War and Contemporary Society (CEGES-SOMA)Square.de.l’Aviation.-.Luchtvaartsquare.29B-1070.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.556.92.11Fax:.+32.(0)2.556.92.00e-mail:[email protected]:.www.cegesoma.be

The State Archives of BelgiumRue.de.Ruysbroeck.-..Ruisbroeckstraat.2.-.6B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.513.76.80Fax:.+32.(0)2.513.76.81E-mail:[email protected]:.arch.arch.be

National Committee of the Belgian Jewish community for Restitution and RemembranceAvenue.Ducpétiaux.-..Ducpétiauxlaan.68B-1060.Brussels

The Belgian Judaism FoundationAvenue.Ducpétiaux.-..Ducpétiauxlaan.68B-1060.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.538.45.00.Fax:.+32.(0)2.534.30.32E-mail:[email protected]:.www.fjb-sjb.be

Jewish Museum of Belgiumrue.des.Minimes.-.Miniemenstraat.21B-1000.Brussels.Tel.:.+32.(0)2.512.19.63Fax:.+32.(0)2.513.48.59E-mail:[email protected]:.www.mjb-jmb.org

Kazerne Dossin. Memorial, Museum and Documentation Centre on Holocaust and Human RightsGoswin.de.Stassartstraat.153B-2800.MechelenTel.:.+32.(0)15.29.06.60Fax:.+32.(0)15.29.08.76E-mail:[email protected]:.www.kazernedossin.eu

Auschwitz Foundation - Remembrance of Auschwitz Rue.des.Tanneurs..-..Huidevetterstraat.65B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0).2.512.79.98Fax:.+32.(0).2.512.58.84E-mail:[email protected]:.www.auschwitz.be

Bijzonder Comité Herinneringseducatie (Special Committee for Remembrance Education)Goswin.de.Stassartstraat.153B-2800.MechelenTel.:.+32.(0)15.29.06.60Fax:.+32.(0)15.29.08.76E-mail:[email protected]:.www.herinneringseducatie.be

Foundation for Contemporary RemembranceAvenue.Victoria.-.Victorialaan.5B-1000.BrusselsTel.:.+32.(0)2.650.35.64Fax:.+32.(0)2.650.35.99E-mail:[email protected]:.www.fmc-seh.be

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Recent Belgian initiativesEducation | Remembrance | Research

Material and moral reparations 2012

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AFTEr ThE hOLOCAuST · A. Initiatives in the areas of education, remembrance and research 1. In general Belgium.is.an.active.member.of.the.Task.Force. for.International.Cooperation.on

Documents