The Netherlands first apologized for its part in the Holocaust

To this day, the Dutch governments have been content with apologizing for their treatment of the Jews returning from the camps after the war, but the current Prime Minister Ruta apologized for her part in their persecution. How could this have happened? "He said at a ceremony in Amsterdam. 102,000 Holocaust victims were Dutch

The Netherlands first apologized for its part in the Holocaust

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rotte apologized yesterday (Sunday) for his country's part in the Holocaust and for not working to protect Jews. He is the first Prime Minister of the Netherlands to publish such an apology.

"As the last survivors are still with us, I want to apologize on behalf of the government for the government's actions at the time," said Rota at an event in Amsterdam to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp. "I do this with the understanding that no word can describe something as enormous and terrible as the Holocaust."

Previous governments in the Netherlands only apologized for the way Jews who survived World War II were treated upon their return from the concentration camps, but did not address the country's part in the persecution of Jews and other minorities during the German occupation.

He said that too many people in government institutions at that time simply followed the instructions of the Germans, without realizing the consequences of their actions. About 102,000 of the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust came from the Netherlands.

"We ask ourselves: How could this have happened?" Rota said. "In the end, we did too little. Not enough protection, not enough help, not enough recognition."

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Rota (left) lays wreath on Auschwitz victims' memorial at an event in Amsterdam yesterday (Photo: AFP)

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rotte (left) inaugurates a wreath at a memorial to Auschwitz victims at an event in Amsterdam, 26 January 2020 (Photo: AFP, GettyImages)