THE benevolent act of the late President Manuel Quezon, who granted asylum to 1,300 Jews escaping Nazi persecution during World War II, was honored during International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Tuesday.
Held at the National Museum of Natural History in Manila, the ceremony was led by representatives from the United Nations, the Embassy of Israel in the Philippines, and the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Manila.
“For me, and for many Jews and Israelis, it is not a distant history; it is personal. My grandmother was born in Warsaw, Poland, during the Holocaust. The Nazis murdered her parents and seven of her brothers and sisters. She was the only survivor among eight siblings. She chose life, rebuilt, and passed the memory forward,” Israel’s Ambassador to the Philippines Dana Kursh said.
She added that during the Holocaust, much of the world closed its doors to Jews fleeing mass executions, yet Quezon “opened his heart and his country.”
“Generations live today because one leader chose humanity over fear,” Kursh said, stressing the importance of educating the younger generation about the past to prevent history from repeating itself.
“Our responsibility is to ensure that Generation Z and the generation that will follow do not encounter history as distant facts but as a source of values and guidance,” she said.
UN Resident Coordinator to the Philippines Arnaud Peral said antisemitism has no place in the world.
“We must renounce hatred for justice wherever we appear. We must defend the rights of every person who lives here in dignity,” Peral said.
The event featured a screening of the film “Quezon’s Game,” with actor Raymond Bagatsing, who portrayed Quezon, in attendance.
Six candles were lit during the ceremony to symbolize the 6 million Jewish people who died during the Holocaust.