This is the first meeting of the steering group convened to plan the Holocaust Memorial Day event which will take place on 27 January 2016.

Holocaust Memorial Day takes place on 27 January each year. This is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp, in 1945. It’s a time for everyone to pause to remember the millions of people who have been murdered or whose lives have been changed beyond recognition during the Holocaust and in subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. It is a time when we seek to learn the lessons of the past and to recognise that genocide does not just take place on its own. It’s a steady process which can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked and prevented. Discrimination has not ended, nor has the use of the language of hatred or exclusion. There is still much to do to create a safer future and Holocaust Memorial Day is an opportunity to start this process.