Diane pays her respects at Holocaust Memorial Day celebration at Town Hall

29 Jan 2010

Diane attended a service at Hackney Town Hall on January 27 to mark the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

The event led by Speaker of Hackney, Cllr Muttalip Unluer saw several schools present work under this year’s theme ‘The Legacy of Hope’.

Pupils from Simon Marks Jewish Primary School sang a traditional Jewish song ‘Eli, Eli’ and ‘Lean on Me’ and Cardinal Pole student Fiona Thompson, 16 performed Schubert piece ‘Du Bist Die Ruh’ meaning ‘You are Peace’.

Members of Hackney Council including Mayor Jules Pipe read a statement of commitment alongside pupils, pledging to condemn prejudice in favour of a free, tolerant and democratic society.

Fifteen year-old Zahra Bajuny from The Skinners' Company for Girls spoke about the Rwandan genocide, a conflict in her lifetime which had inspired her to persue a different career path. “I want to become a international criminal justice lawyer working for the EU or UN,” she said.

Sulaiman Babayemi, 12, from Petchey Academy lit a candle with the Speaker to remember those who suffered and lost their lives in the Holocaust and other genocides, ahead of a two minute silence.

Diane said: “I was very impressed by the performances of all the pupils. Zahra who made parallels with atrocities in Rwanda spoke very eloquently about how it had made a difference to who she wants to become in the future. I was pleased to see so many pupils from different schools come together to combine what they had learnt about the Holocaust.”

Pictures show Diane at the Memorial and with Zahra Bajuny, 15, of The Skinners' Company for Girls
 




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