Newsletter
Newsletter Support JNS

First permanent Holocaust exhibit comes to Muslim-majority Indonesia

It opened at Shaar HaShamayim Synagogue on the island of Sulawesi and is called “The Holocaust: How Was It Humanly Possible?”

Shaar HaShamayim Synagogue in Tondano, Indonesia. Source: Google Maps screenshot.
Shaar HaShamayim Synagogue in Tondano, Indonesia. Source: Google Maps screenshot.

In honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yad Vashem opened the first permanent exhibition in Indonesia about the Nazi genocide of Jews during World War II, reported Ynet.

It is one of Yad Vashem’s “Ready2Print” exhibitions aimed at promoting dialogue about the Holocaust in museums, educational and community centers and places of worship around the world.

This particular exhibit, which opened on Thursday at Shaar HaShamayim Synagogue on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, is called “The Holocaust: How Was It Humanly Possible?”

According to the Yad Vashem website, the exhibit “deals with major historical aspects of the Holocaust, beginning with Jewish life in pre-Holocaust Europe and ending with the liberation of Nazi concentration and extermination camps across the continent.” It also documents the “remarkable return to life of the survivors.”

Richelle Budd Caplan, a representative of the International School for Holocaust Studies at Yad Vashem, took part in the exhibit’s opening ceremony via video.

Israel has no official diplomatic relations with Indonesia, which has the largest Muslim population in the world. Still, Yad Vashem chairman Dani Dayan said that “we will be happy to open an exhibition wherever there’s interest in the memory of the Holocaust and its commemoration, and all the more so in the largest Muslim country in the world.”

He added: “We see great importance in physically presenting Yad Vashem’s knowledge and content outside … Jerusalem, and we are happy to cover new grounds like Indonesia.”

The Board of Deputies of British Jews condemned the demonstration, as antisemitism concerns continue to rise in Britain.
The plan is expected to establish Karnei Shomron as a major urban center in the heart of Samaria, linking nearby areas including Alonai Shiloh and Emmanuel, and marking what participants called a historic step in the development of Jewish communities in the region.
Martín Menem praised Israel’s “freedom, identity and values” in the Knesset guest book.
The U.S. president says that the memorandum ensures Tehran together with Washington will dilute its high-level enriched stockpile of uranium.
Israeli Minister Amichai Chikli decries the absence of any transparent evidentiary process.
The Israeli Defense Ministry says Eurosatory blocked displays of defensive systems despite compliance with French restrictions, while offensive weapons remained on show.