Innovative forms of memorial are vital to strengthen societal resilience as the age of survivor testimony ends, OSCE says on Holocaust Remembrance Day

BERN/WARSAW, 27 January 2026 – As the living memory of the Holocaust, the brutal extermination of the Jews by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II, continues to fade, new forms of remembrance are essential both to honour the victims and to safeguard security by preventing the hateful ideologies that enabled these atrocities and ensuring the lessons of the past are heeded, the OSCE said on today’s International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, OSCE Chairman-in-Office, said: “During the Holocaust, millions of people were murdered – Jews, Sinti and Roma, people with disabilities, gay people – and their hopes were erased by an ideology that rejected differences. But those differences are our strength, and we share a responsibility to defend it. We must continue to stand up for those who cannot defend themselves and for a free and democratic world based on the rule of law.”

In this spirit, the first conference of the Swiss Chairpersonship will take place in St Gallen on 9-10 February, focusing on combating antisemitism and other forms of intolerance and discrimination. “The conference will take stock of current trends, strengthen cooperation between participating States and civil society, and address concrete prevention measures, the exchange of best practices, and the role of sport in combating hatred and discrimination. Stadiums and sporting events can be places for expressing aggression, but they can also be powerful platforms for raising awareness and promoting inclusion,” stated the Head of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.

The OSCE is committed to promoting tolerance and to building peaceful and resilient societies in which diversity is celebrated and the inherent dignity of every individual is respected. Greater efforts need to be taken by governments to prevent and respond to manifestations of anti-Semitism, ensuring that acts motivated by intolerance, prejudice or hatred are prevented, prosecuted, and punished in a manner that reflects their destabilising impact on society.

In the new edition of its biennial publication ‘Holocaust Memorial Days: An overview of remembrance and education in the OSCE region’, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) notes that youth engagement and innovative remembrance are recurring themes in the work of countries across the region to commemorate the Holocaust and educate both children and adults about its background and ongoing consequences. 

“As we move beyond the age of direct survivor testimony, preserving the memory of the Holocaust becomes ever more critical,” said ODIHR Director Maria Telalian. “Anti-Semitism is a malignant prejudice that causes untold suffering and has no place in our societies. Ensuring that younger generations keep the memory of this terrible tragedy alive and understand where hatred can lead is essential to preventing violence and safeguarding our democracies.”

Many countries across the OSCE region are developing and implementing innovative responses to these challenges. New technologies enable greater access to online mapping of local Holocaust sites, virtual tours of memorials and museums, and recordings of survivor testimonies. Such inclusive and engaging teaching and content helps to counter historical distortion, strengthen critical thinking, and empower young people to stand up to hatred and prejudice.

“It is distressing if not surprising that survey data from many OSCE participating States report decreasing knowledge about the most basic facts of the Holocaust, and this is especially true with young people today,” said Rabbi Andrew Baker, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chair on Combating Anti-Semitism. “Thus, our education efforts must rely on new tools and methods and fully engage with social media platforms if we are to reverse this trend.”   

Every participating state of the OSCE has “clearly and unequivocally” condemned anti-Semitism and other forms of intolerance. They have also recognised the need to “promote educational programmes for combating anti-Semitism and provide young people with opportunities for human rights education” in order to combat anti-Semitism and other forms of religious, racial and ethnic prejudice and hatred. ODIHR, together with partner organisations, support governments and civil society in addressing anti-Semitism through Holocaust remembrance and education, helping both to address the root causes of hatred and discrimination and equip young people with the resilience needed to resist prejudice and toxic ideologies.