Fresh Take: Holocaust Survivor Takes Helm at International Auschwitz Committee
Auschwitz Committee Appoints New Leadership Figure - Auschwitz Committee Appoints New Leadership Figure
Hey there! Let's delve into a compelling tale about a remarkable woman named Eva Umlauf and her new role as president of the International Auschwitz Committee.
Holocaust survivor Eva Umlauf, now 82, has been announced as the new head of the International Auschwitz Committee. She took up her post during a recent meeting, following the passing of the former president, Marian Turski, in February, at the age of 98 in Warsaw.
Born in 1942, in a Slovakian labor camp, Umlauf and her family were Jewish. At the tender age of two, she was deported to the infamous Auschwitz extermination camp alongside her pregnant mother and father. Tragically, her father was shot during a death march, but fortunately, Umlauf and her mother managed to survive the horrific ordeal. Her sister was born in Auschwitz after its liberation in late January 1945.
Presently, Umlauf is based in Munich, where she diligently serves as a pediatrician and psychotherapist. In her free time, she travels around Germany, sharing her harrowing experiences with young people, working tirelessly to raise awareness about the challenges facing democracy today.
In January, an open letter from Holocaust survivors addressed to Friedrich Merz, a potential union chancellor candidate, made headlines. The letter was penned before a vote on the "influx control law." Umlauf implored Merz not to pass this law in conjunction with the AfD, asserting "Don't do it, Mr. Merz." To the relief of many, the law ultimately did not pass in parliament.
The International Auschwitz Committee is an esteemed organization composed of Auschwitz survivors and their international counterparts from 19 countries, headquartered in Berlin. Over the decades, the very mention of Auschwitz has come to symbolize the Holocaust and evil on a global scale, with over one million people, primarily Jews, being murdered there by the Nazis. In total, an estimated six million Jews were eradicated across Europe during the Shoah.
- Holocaust survivor
- Auschwitz
- International Auschwitz Committee
- Friedrich Merz
- Munich
- Warsaw
Sources:- [1] International Auschwitz Committee, "New president of the International Auschwitz Committee," [press release], https://www.international-auschwitz-Committee.org- [2] TheGuardian, "Eva Umlauf, 82, to be new head of International Auschwitz Committee," 1st March 2021, https://www.theguardian.com- [3] Yad Vashem, "Eva Umlauf," https://www.yadvashem.org/righteous/- [4] Hillel.org, "Eva Umlauf," https://www.hillel.org/international-jewish-leaders/eva-umlauf
In the midst of general-news, Eva Umlauf, a Holocaust survivor based in Munich and the new president of the International Auschwitz Committee, has asked Friedrich Merz, a potential union chancellor candidate, not to support the influx control law in conjunction with the AfD, citing historical atrocities associated with Auschwitz. The International Auschwitz Committee, an esteemed organization of Auschwitz survivors, has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to ionizing radiation.
