Holocaust Remembrance

The Holocaust perpetrated under Romanian authority is still underrated. A national survey condoned in 2021 shows that 65% of the respondents still externalize responsibility toward Germany as the main perpetrator of the Holocaust in Romania. It is both a lack of knowledge and a matter of thinking about what is particular in general terms.

To circumvent this problematic approach, THE „ELIE WIESEL” NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR TEH STUDY OF THE HOLOCAUST IN ROMANIA (INSHR – EW) and FREEDOM HOUSE ROMANIA (FHR) propose a new project named „Visualising the past through graphic novels. Prompting local involvement for Holocaust remembrance in Romania”, a local perspective materialized in 2 objectives:

1. To frame Holocaust memory by emphasizing local specificities and boosting local awareness.

2. To construct tools that will make visible the diversity of Holocaust victims. We aim to take the story to a micro-historical level and to particularize victimhood. Therefore, we propose a set of 10 outdoor exhibitions that will tell the story of the Jews and Roma from 10 counties.

The localities were selected to cover the multiple facets of the Holocaust under Romanian authority, primarily interested in places where there are few or no local recollections regarding the Holocaust.

Each exhibition will have eight panels, six covered by the project researchers and two by high school students from each city. All panels will be created as graphic novels.

Before each exhibition, a workshop will be organized for 20 local students to explain the concept, present the history of the local Jewish and Roma communities, and stimulate their input for the panels reserved for them.

All information about the project as well as the timetable and description of the activities can be found on the websites of the project partners, INSH – EW and FHR.

Events description

PLOIEȘTI. The exhibition opened in the Central Park of Ploiești and will be on display in the city until mid-August. The event was designed in two steps:

a public debate aimed at bringing the history of the Holocaust into to the present and making the discussion about the past relevant for current challenges. A representative of the students who participated in the creation of the graphic novel exhibition was invited among the speakers in order to emphasize the relevance of the young generation and to empower their voice in the public narrative. The debate was hosted by the Palace of Culture;
the vernissage of the graphic novel exhibition for the Prahova district. Diplomas were awarded to the students who participated to the creation of the exhibition and their coordinating teachers.

Representatives of the Prahova County School Inspectorate, Jewish Community, Roma NGOs attended the event.

Ploiești – Event description

BOTOȘANI. The exhibition was opened in the central pedestrian zone of the city of Botoșani and will be on display in the city until mid-August. The event was designed in two steps:

a public debate aimed at bringing the history of the Holocaust into the present and making the discussion about the past relevant to current challenges. Representatives of the students who participated in the creation of the graphic novel exhibition were invited among the speakers in order to emphasize the relevance of the young generation and to empower their voice in the public narrative. The debate was hosted by the Hotel Rapsodia;
the vernissage of the graphic novel exhibition for Botoșani county. Diplomas were awarded to the students who participated in the creation of the exhibition and their coordinating teachers.

Representatives of the Botoșani County School Inspectorate, Jewish Community, Roma NGOs, local administration attended the event.

Botoșani – Event description

CONSTANȚA. The event took place on June 12. 22 students from three local high schools (Colegiul Național George Călinescu, Colegiul Național Ovidius, Colegiul Militar Alexandru Ioan Cuza) and their coordinating teachers attended the meeting organized by the research team.

The research team introduced the project to the participants, explained their role in the project, and presented the first six panels of the future exhibition about the fate of the local Jewish and Roma communities during the Holocaust. The second part of the meeting focused on giving the students practical tools that will enable them to create a graphic novel scenario (their task within the project). To accomplish this task, the research team prepared a set of written Guidelines and explained to the students, step by step, the creative process that transforms an idea in an illustrated story that tells real stories from the local past.

No less importantly, the research team provided the students with a set of historical resources (official documents, petitions, testimonies) to be potentially used when creating the scenario of the two panels reserved for them.

Finally, the workshop was a great tool for the research team to test the comprehensibility of the first six panels of the future exhibition. The feedback gathered from the students proved to be a great instrument to improve the content of the future exhibition.

Constanța – Event description

Vernissages

Vernissage of the exhibition in PLOIEȘTI, Prahova county. The objectives of this work package as stated in the Grant Agreement were:

To raise awareness among the general public in Ploiești in regard to the fate of local Jews and Roma during the Holocaust.
To make visible for the general public, the dangers that prejudice, dehumanization and intolerance have for fueling crimes against humanity.

To achieve these goals the research team developed three distinct activities:

Guiding the high school students in the creation of the scenario for the two panels reserved for them.
Selection of the space designed for the exhibition and administrative work with the local administration.
The organization of the vernissage of the graphic novel exhibition for Prahova county.

The exhibition opened on June 15 in the Central Park in Ploiești and will be on display through mid-August. As the graphic novels are exhibited outdoor, in the central zone of the city, the general public has free and easy access to these stories of the recent past.

Online, the exhibition was made available to the public at the folowing link:

#imaginidintrecut / Holocaustul în Prahova

Ploiești – Vernissage

Vernissage of the exhibition in BOTOȘANI, Botoșani county. The objectives of this work package as stated in the Grant Agreement were:

To raise awareness among the general public in Botoșani about the fate of local Jews and Roma during the Holocaust.
To make visible for the general public, the dangers that prejudice, dehumanization and intolerance have for fueling crimes against humanity.

To accomplish these goals the research team developed three distinct activities:

Guiding the high school students in the creation of the scenario for the two panels reserved tot them.
Selection of the space to be used for the exhibition and administrative work with the local administration.
The organization of the vernissage of the graphic novel exhibition for Botoșani county.

The exhibition opened on June 17 on the central pedestrian street in Botoșani and will be on display in the city until mid-August. As the graphic novels are exhibited outdoor, in the central zone of the city, the general public has free and easy access to these stories of the recent past.

Online, the exhibition was made available to the public at the folowing link:

#imaginidintrecut / Holocaustul în Botoșani

Botoșani – Vernissage

Public debates

PLOIEȘTI. The event was hosted by the Palace of Culture and had 87 participants (50 female and 37 male). Attendance lists were filled out and could be provided to the project officer upon request.

The debate was moderated by the journalist Flavia Drăgan with the participation of Ion M. Ioniță, editor-in-chief of Historia, the most popular monthly magazine specialized in history, representatives of the project team, and of the local students involved in the project. The general public actively participated in the discussions, offering their feedback regarding the topic.

The discussions included topics such as; the peculiarities of antisemitism in interwar Romania, the specificities of the Holocaust in Romania, the relevance of the history of the Holocaust for the present, the need for educational projects focused on Holocaust history in Romanian schools, the importance of the local perspective when approaching the national past, the negationist rhetoric in contemporary Romania, the racist and anti-Roma rhetoric in contemporary Romania.

To increase the number of participants in the event, the discussions were broadcasted live on Facebook (https://fb.watch/lqnORTH2RD/).

Ploiești – Public debate

BOTOȘANI. The event was hosted by the Hotel Rapsodia and had 83 participants (32 female and 51 male). Attendance lists were filled out and could be provided to the project officer upon request.

The debate was moderated by the journalist Răzvan Chiruță with the participation of historian Dorin Dobrincu, former director of the Romanian National Archives, representatives of the project team, the educational counselor of Mihai Eminescu National College, Botoșani and local students involved in the project. The general public actively participated in the discussions, offering their feedback on the topic.

The discussions included topics such as: the peculiarities of antisemitism in interwar Romania, the specificities of the Holocaust in Romania, the relevance of Holocaust history for the present, the need for educational projects focused on Holocaust history in Romanian schools, the importance of the local perspective when approaching the national past, the public memory of interwar antisemitic militants or of those convicted for war crimes or genocide, the negationist rhetoric in contemporary Romania, the racist and anti-Roma rhetoric in contemporary Romania.

Botoșani – Public debate

TIMIȘOARA: The event was hosted by the Jewish Community and had 115 participants ( 61 female, 53 male and one not declared). Attendance lists were filled out and could be provided to the project officer upon request.

The debate was moderated by film director Florin Iepan, with the participation of the
project coordinator, the President of the Jewish Community in Timișoara, a representative of
the Timiș School Inspectorate, the local students involved in the project, and their
coordinating teachers. The general public actively participated in the discussions, offering
their feedback on the topic.

The discussions included topics such as the peculiarities of antisemitism in interwar
Eastern Europe the specificities of the Holocaust in Banat, the relevance of the history of the
Holocaust for the present, the need for educational projects focused on Holocaust history in
Romanian schools, the importance of the local perspective when approaching the national
past, the peculiarities of the Holocaust perpetrated under Romanian authority.

Timișoara – Public Debate

Media coverage

The events were covered by local and national media. A press release was published the week before the events and was widely distributed at the local and national levels. Also, articles and a video news about the events were published in the days after the events took place.

Press release – The Holocaust in Ploiesti:

Articles:

Press release – The Holocaust in Botosani:

Articles:

Press Release – The Holocaust in Timiș:

Articles:

Holocaustul din Banat, expus în benzi desenate

Press release:

https://timpolis.ro/holocaustul-din-banat-expus-in-benzi-desenate/
https://www.impactpress.ro/2024/09/16/holocaustul-din-banat-ilustratprintr-o-expozitie-de-banda-desenata-comunitatea-evreilor-din-timisoaragazduieste-un-dialog-despre-istorii-despre-care-se-stie-prea-putin/
https://www.presshub.ro/imagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-in-timis345812/
https://www.banatulazi.ro/imagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-in-timis/
https://m.ziare.com/stiri-timisoara/stiri-business/holocaustul-din-banattimisorenii-sunt-invitati-joi-la-comunitatea-evreilor-9020624
https://www.ziuadevest.ro/holocaustul-din-banat-timisorenii-suntinvitati-joi-la-comunitatea-evreilor/
https://vestnews.ro/descopera-istoria-holocaustului-din-banatexpozitie-de-benzi-desenate-si-discutii-la-comunitatea-evreilor-din-timisoara/
https://stiridetimisoara.ro/holocaustul-din-banat-intr-o-expozitie-debenzi-desenate_65532.html
https://www.agerpres.ro/cultura-media/2024/09/19/timis-institutul-eliewiesel-a-vernisat-expozitia-imagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-in-timis–1357472
https://lugojinfo.ro/elevii-de-la-hasdeu-la-inaugurarea-proiectuluiimagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-din-timis/
https://www.g4media.ro/galerie-foto-holocaustul-evreilor-si-romilordin-banat-povestit-pe-benzi-desenate-istoria-se-invata-mai-usor-astazi-prinalte-mijloace-de-comunicare-decat-vorbaria-prea-lunga.html
https://cniuliahasdeu.ro/imagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-din-timis/
https://www.tion.ro/capitala-culturala/povestea-holocaustului-dinbanat-prin-ochii-elevilor-din-timisoara-expusa-in-piata-unirii-1930126/
https://ghidulbanatului.ro/foto-holocaustul-evreilor-si-romilor-pebenzi-desenate-timp-de-doua-luni-cei-care-traverseaza-piata-unirii-vordescoperi-o-expozitie-inedita_22445.html
https://lugojexpres.ro/blog/elevii-liceului-iulia-hasdeu-lugoj-implicati-inproiectul-imagini-din-trecut-holocaustul-din-timis/
https://www.mediaquality.ro/holocaustul-evreilor-si-romilor-pe-benzidesenate-expozitie-inedita-la-timisoara/

Child Protection Policy

Fundația Freedom House Inc Filiala București is fully committed to safeguarding the welfare of children participating in the activities it organizes. FHR is committed to promoting safe practices, and protecting children from all forms of harm, abuse and exploitation.

FHR staff and collaborators will work together to promote diversity, defend and respect the childrens and youths rights. FHR will consider these Policies in the preparation of all projects and activities involving children.

This document outlines FHR’s commitment to protecting children.

This commitment is based on the following principles:

The child`s best interest will be the main priority of FHR. and the activities carried out will ensure the physical, emotional, and social safety all children need.
All FHR representatives must behave irreproachably towards children.
All children, regardless of age, culture, health, sex, language, racial origin, socio-economic status, nationality, ethnicity, religious belief, and/or sexual identity, have the right to protection from all forms of harm and abuse.
Child protection is everyone’s responsibility.
Children have the right to express their opinion on all matters affecting them and should be encouraged to do so.
FHR will partner with children and their teachers to promote children’s well-being, health, and development.
If children with special needs benefit from our programs, we will take all necessary measures to ensure their fair inclusion in activities and their safety.
All child protection concerns/reports/investigations will be treated with utmost responsibility and in compliance with the law. Communication will be confidential and secure.

To implement these principles, FHR will:

Promote the well-being and development of children by offering them opportunities to participate in workshops, film screenings, and other educational activities.
Respect and promote children’s rights, wishes, and feelings.
Ensure, through its representatives, a safe environment for children who come into contact with the Fundația.
Promote and implement appropriate procedures to ensure the well-being of children and to protect them from abuse (see Appendix I).
Train, support, and monitor staff so that Policies can be implemented to safeguard and protect children from abuse. The ethics advisor organizes information sessions, training and updating knowledge about working and interacting with children once a year.
Promote personnel selection policies that provide measures to prevent children’s rights violations.
Require its employees to adopt and comply with this Child Protection Policy.
Respond to any allegations of misconduct or child abuse and will, where appropriate, take relevant disciplinary procedures.
Monitor and regularly evaluate the implementation of this Policy and these procedures. All employees will be notified annually of any revisions or updates to the Policy.

Definitions

For the use of this Policy and associated procedures, a child is anyone under 18.

Child abuse refers to any action or inaction by natural or legal persons that directly or indirectly harms children or their prospects for safe and healthy development as future adults.

The main categories of abuse are: physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and exploitation.

Physical abuse involves using physical force to cause actual or probable physical injury or suffering (e.g., hitting, shaking, burning, torture).

Emotional or psychological abuse includes humiliating and degrading treatment, such as using offensive names, constant criticism, belittling, humiliation, and isolation.

Sexual abuse includes all forms of sexual violence, including incest, forced, and early marriage, rape, child pornography and sexual slavery. Child sexual abuse can also include indecent touching or exposure, using sexually explicit language in front of a child, and exposing children to pornographic material.

Any sexual activity with a child, whether consenting or not, is child abuse and a crime.

This Policy applies to the following individuals:

To all FHR staff, employed full-time, part-time, or under fixed-term contracts, who participate in activities involving children.
FHR partners who come into contact with children by the nature of their activities,
Journalists, public figures, politicians, and others who participate in FHR activities and come into contact with children.
All of the above must respect this Policy in their professional and personal lives. Failure to comply may result in disciplinary action, including dismissal. For partners/contractors, the violation may lead to, including, the termination of contractual and/or partnership agreements. Where appropriate, reference will be made to the proper legal and other frameworks under national law.

The selection of FHRs staff and collaborators:

All FHR staff members are employed following a selection process, with precise requirements regarding qualifications, professional experience, and job-related activities. In accord with the Romanian law, upon employment, all FHR staff members, must present a criminal record. In addition, those involved in activities with children must present a certificate of behavioral integrity showing that they have not committed the crimes provided for in art. 1, para. (2) from Law no. 118/2019 regarding the Automated national register regarding persons who have committed sexual crimes, exploitation of specific persons or against minors. The same recruitment procedures and means of verification are applied to all collaborators working together with FHR in projects/activities involving children. The child protection policy and code of conduct are presented to employees and collaborators, with related obligations and responsibilities. The coordinators of the projects involving children’s participation, monitor the activities of the participating staff (being FHR’s employees and/or collaborators), takes action, and alerts FHR ethics officer in case of doubts regarding the observance of the child’s rights.

All FHR employees and partners must notify the responsible person within FHR of any incident/suspicion regarding the violation of this Child Protection Policy. Until the investigation is completed, employees and collaborators who are suspected of violating this Child Protection Policy are withdrawn from any activity with children.

For any notification, please get in touch with Mrs. Cristina Guseth, contact details:

Address: FUNDAȚIA „FREEDOM HOUSE INC” – FILIALA BUCUREȘTI – București, Bd.
Ferdinand , nr. 125, Sector 2,
Telefon: 0212532838
E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Externally, any suspected child abuse should be reported to:

Emergency service 112 (Police).
Child Phone Association, 116 111.

General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection(DGASPC), which works in every county and in every sector of Bucharest (https://anpd.gov.ro/web/informatii-utile/directiile-generale-de-asistenta-sociala-si-protectia-copilului/).

Review procedure

These Policies will be reviewed regularly:

In accordance with the legal changes regarding child protection or following any changes appearing at the FHR level.
In all circumstances, at least once every three years.

Date of adoption of this Policy: 14 March 2023.

Appendix I

In the development of educational projects and activities that involve interaction with children, both FHR employees and collaborators directly engaged in the activity must comply with the following specific rules:

1) Employees and all people who work with children:

a) Will act in good faith and treat all children equally, with dignity and respect, without any act of harassment, abuse, or neglect;
b) Will treat children equally, regardless of age, culture, state of health, sex, language, racial origin, socio-economic status, nationality, ethnicity, religious belief, and/or sexual identity;
c) Will encourage children to express their opinions according to their age and maturity level;
d) Will have irreproachable personal and professional behavior;
e) Will take measures to protect children from any kind of abuse, injustice, injury, or harassment;
f) Will ensure that, at all times, communication with children is done properly and does not constitute an invasion of their personal space or private life;
g) Will use language appropriate to professional standards and the age of the children without humiliating or offending them;
h) Will report to child protection authorities incidents and concerns regarding staff, activities, and programs that may harm or expose children to any risk of harm and/or abuse;
i) Will ensure the confidentiality of personal information about children;
j) Will obtain the consent of parents/guardians to use personal data (See Appendix 2);
k) Will obtain the consent of parents/guardians prior to photographing, filming, or using the child’s image (see Appendix 2), ensuring that photographs and/or video footage portray the child in a dignified and respectful manner;
l) Will not hit or physically abuse children;
m) Will not initiate and develop physical or sexual relations with the children with whom they communicate, interact, come into contact, or work; They will not have relationships with any child that could be considered exploitative or abusive, including in the online environment;
n) Will not act in an abusive manner or that could put children at risk of abuse, including in the online environment;
o) Will not use inappropriate language, make suggestions or give inappropriate, offensive, or abusive advice;
p) Will not engage in inappropriate or provocative behavior from a sexual point of view;
q) Will not invite a child to their home and will not develop a relationship with them that would be considered inappropriate according to professional standards;
r) Will not sleep in the same room or bed with any of the children they work with;
s) Will not spend time alone with a child, isolated from other people;
t) Will not support, encourage the child to display behavior considered delinquent, aggressive, or not in accordance with social and legal norms;
u) Will not act in a manner that humiliates, shames, degrades, makes children feel inferior, or that can produce any form of emotional abuse;
v) Will not attend activities that involve the presence of children under the influence of alcohol or prohibited substances;
w) Will not consume alcohol or smoke in the presence of children;
x) Will not provide children with alcohol, cigarettes, or other prohibited substances;
y) Will neither invite nor accept the invitation of children to communicate outside the purpose and context of the activity carried out within the organization.

The list is not exhaustive or exclusive. The principle is that employees or collaborators will not engage in harmful or abusive behavior or actions.

2) All employees and all persons working with children under the coordination of FHR must:

a) Identify situations that pose risks to the child’s life and development;
b) Plan and organize their work and workplace in such a way as to reduce the risks of exposing the child to abuse;
c) Show transparency, as much as possible, in the activities they carry out with children;
d) Create an open and honest environment so that any issue can be brought up and debated;
e) Ensure that subordinate or coordinating personnel have a culture of responsibility so that there is an immediate reaction to inappropriate practices or potentially abusive behaviors;
f) Discuss with the children the relationship they have with other employees and encourage them to communicate any problems that may arise;
g) Encourage the children – talk with them about their rights, what is acceptable and what is not, and what they can do if there is a problem;
h) Immediately inform the coordinators of the project in which they are working if they come into direct contact with a situation that violates these specific rules of conduct in activities with children.

Appendix II

CONSENT TO PROCESS PERSONAL DATA

The undersigned ………………….…………….……………………………………………., ID-code: …………………………….…………………………………….., holder of the ID-card, series ………….., no………………, issued by …………………, on the date of ………………., home address ……………………………………………………………………………………………….,
………………………………….………………………………………………………..……, e-mail ………………………, phone ……………………, (1) as (whatever applicable): PARENT/LEGAL GUARDIAN ……………………………… (2), of the minor ………………………………………………………………………………………………………, born on …………………………, student in class …………………, at school (name of school and town) ………………………………………………………………………., school phone …………………………….,

I give my consent for the processing of the personal data mentioned above, as well as for the processing of the image and voice of the minor/student (in photographs and/or audio-video recordings) (*3), in accordance with the provisions of Romanian law and the provisions of the European Union Regulation no. 679/2016 on the protection of persons with regard to the processing of personal data and the free movement of such data, by the, „FREEDOM HOUSE INC” – FILIALA BUCUREȘTI (FHR) as operator.

I consent to my data, mentioned above, being processed for communications, including electronic ones, related to my capacity as a parent/legal guardian of the minor/student …………………………………………………………………….

I consent to the personal data (mentioned above) of the minor/student being processed for:

promoting the activities organized by FHR that involve student participation;
communication activities regarding the projects carried out by FHR that involve the student’s participation.
I declare that I have been informed about the following:
personal data will be stored for the duration of the student’s participation in the projects carried out by the school in collaboration with FHR, as well as for three years after the termination of this capacity, taking into account the general limitation period and if the legislative provisions do not provide for other storage periods;
after the end of the data processing operation, they will be deleted or destroyed, depending on the medium on which they were stored, under security conditions;
if there is a legal obligation to archive them, the data will be archived according to the legal provisions;
I benefit from the right of access, rectification, deletion, restriction of processing, the right to oppose the processing, the right to withdraw my consent at any time, but without this affecting the legality of the processing carried out on the basis of consent before its withdrawal, the right not to be subject to an individual decision, the right to complain with a supervisory authority, the right to go to court.
to exercise these rights, I can send a written request, dated and signed, to the General Director
of FHR, adresa: București, Bd. Ferdinand , nr. 125, Sector 2, adresă de e-mail:
[email protected].
the above-mentioned personal data may be disclosed to the following recipients (*4): the data subject, legal representatives of the data subject, operator, proxies/representatives of the operator, FHR partners, the public, public authorities (to the latter, if any a legal/regulatory obligation to do so).
personal data will not be transferred outside the European Union.

The person responsible for the protection of personal data within FHR is Ms. Cristina GUSETH, who has the following contact details:

Address: : București, Bd. Ferdinand , nr. 125, Sector 2
Telefon: 0212532838
E-mail: : [email protected], [email protected]
Name and surname:
…………………………….
Signature: ………………………..
Date: ………………………………

Only the data necessary to be processed in order to achieve the purpose for which the consent was obtained will be completed;
The capacity of the data subject at the time of signing the consent will be specified;
Consent regarding the processing of the image and voice of the data subject (in photographs and/or audio-video recordings) will only be given if it is necessary to achieve the purpose for which the consent was given.
Only the categories of persons to whom the personal data will be disclosed, in order to fulfill the purpose for which the consent was given, will be mentioned.

The document can be downloaded HERE:

FHR-Child-protection-policy_EN Descarcă

Holocaust Remembrance

Definitions

Review procedure

Appendix I

Appendix II

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