Holocaust survivor turns peace advocate
Margot Friedlander spoke around the world, extending the hand of reconciliation despite losing her family at Auschwitz
When Margot Friedlander speaks, you cannot help but listen with all your heart. She does not recount the details of her suffering, but rather tells part of the contemporary history of Europe and the world, and through her story the lessons learnt are evident.
She is one of the last survivors of the Holocaust. She lost her mother, father, and only brother when they were gassed during World War II in the Nazi’s Auschwitz concentration camp. In this camp alone, about 1.1 million Jews died. Auschwitz, located in Poland, was considered the largest Nazi concentration camp. The prison camp was converted into a museum two years after the end of the war.
Friedlander published her memoir at the age of 87 and then began telling her story to students all over Germany. In a TV interview she said “They — students — listen to me very carefully, and I tell them that what happened cannot be changed. The main reason for my presence is to meet young people like you who have nothing to do with what happened to the Jews during the war.”
I met Margot Friedlander for the first time during a concert by the musician Daniel Barenboim’s orchestra in Berlin in the presence of the German president and the mayor of the city. I introduced myself to her as the UAE Ambassador, and she said, “I heard about your country, but I have never visited it,” and her voice disappeared in the noise around us.
Our second meeting happened few weeks later after I sent her a lunch invitation. We had lunch in a restaurant overlooking one of Berlin’s landmarks, the Gendarmenmarkt Cathedral. She was 95 years old.
She told me that she did not leave Germany during the war years, but rather she immigrated to New York after the defeat of Nazi Germany and did not return to her country until 2010 after more than 50 years.
Recounting memories
I asked her to recount some of her memories of the Nazi years, inquiring, “What is the story you most often tell students when you visit them?” She replied, “I tell them about the German Christian family that risked their lives by hosting me, and I had to wear a cross to hide my Jewish identity when I went out with them.” She stops to sip her juice and continues with a smile, “I tell the students that the cross saved my life.”
When we met, Daesh was occupying the city of Mosul. In the meantime, Germany was one of the first countries to open its arms to oppressed Iraqi families. The German press was focusing during that time in publishing stories of the Yazidis and other minorities who sought refuge in Germany, which was a haven from the inferno of Daesh.
I said to her “You must be proud of Chancellor Merkel’s position on the issue of refugees.” She replied, “Yes, it is an honourable position for my country, which has learnt its lesson. Even if the 12 years of Nazism stained part of our history, the contributions of the German people are clear in the course of human civilisation.”
But what do Germans say today about Margot Friedlander? Andre Schmitz, Chairman of the Schwarzkopf Foundation for European Youth, based in Berlin, explains, “Despite our awareness and recognition of the value of her work and her message to youth, we are aware that this is a continuous process and a warning message so that the tragedy will not be repeated. Margot extends the hand of reconciliation and thus makes it easy for us Germans. She is a pleasure to listen to. She doesn’t make accusations against us. She’s saying ‘Watch out, it happened once, and it can happen again.’ Through this, she renders an invaluable service to us.”
In 2014, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the launch of the Margot Friedlander Prize. The prize according to Friedlander ‘is a recognition of a truth that has no limits; about human commitment to always listen to our consciences and remain vigilant in order not to lose our humanity.’
Mother’s message
Last year, to celebrate her 100th birthday, Friedlander said, “When my mother gave herself up to the Gestapo to be with my brother, who was four years younger than me, she left me a message saying, ‘Try to make your own life.’ They were both murdered few weeks later. These words shaped the course of my life, and today I feel that I have accomplished something not only for my mother, not only for the six million Jews who lost their lives in the Holocaust, but for the millions of people who were killed because they stood for the truth and did not want to do what they were told because it went against their values.”
Margot Friedlander not only forgave, but she has dedicated her life to become a peace advocate.