Bergen Belsen survivor to speak on Holocaust

Published: Tue 19 Jan 2010, 4:57 PM

Last updated: Tue 19 Jan 2010, 4:58 PM

A survivor of a Nazi concentration camp is to be the next speaker in the monthly lecture series which the Army is hosting locally at Columb Barracks.The memories of Tom Reichental are a first hand account of one of the darkest periods in world history.Between September 1939 and May 1945, almost six million Jews perished in Europe as a result of Nazi persecution.However the Holocaust did not begin with gas chambers and crematoria, it began with whispers, taunts, discrimination and segregation. It began with attitudes, bigotry and prejudice. Adolf Hitler stated that his goal was "to remove Jews from German Society" and the associated words of expulsion and evacuation, soon became euphemisms for annihilation.Tomi Reichental was born on a small farm in Piestany, Slovakia in 1935. The then Slovak government was a puppet administration of the Nazi Party and actively aided Nazi policies.Initially, Tomi and his family were forced to endure increasing levels of state oppression and humiliations from their peers, simply for being Jewish. However this soon escalated to detention and in November 1944, Tomi and other members of his family were arrested by the Nazis and deported to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Northern Germany. Tomi, along with his mother, aunt and brother survived to be liberated by the Allies in April 1945. Some 35 members of his family were less fortunate and perished in captivity. He came to Ireland in 1960 and has lived here ever since.Tomi and the other members of the Holocaust Education Trust Ireland, hope that by sharing their unique and terrifying experiences of that era, they will educate and inform about the Holocaust in order to address anti-Semitism and all forms of racism and intolerance in Ireland, and beyond, today.Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Armstrong extends his cordial invite to attend this significant presentation by Tomi on Tuesday February 9.The evening will start with a reception at 7.00pm in Harney Hall, followed by the lecture at 7.30pm sharp.