David Zwartz, Author at J-Wire

A very Kiwi event

David Zwartz — Fri, 15 Dec 2023 07:23:55 +0000

Described as “a very Kiwi event,” the lighting of all eight Chanukah candles in front of Wellington’s Parliament Buildings during the MPs’ dinner break brought public celebration of the festival to a close. Chabad Rabbi Elchanan Kuperman provided the electric Chanukiah (very appropriate for “windy Wellington”), Parliamentary Services provided the electricity, and Rebbetzin Henny Kuperman […]

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Anne Frank: a unique day in Wellington

David Zwartz — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 07:00:23 +0000

A new memorial to Anne Frank has brought together a unique gathering of committed members of the Wellington community. A unique occasion. Bring together in a long-disused quarry a vigorous 95-year-old immigrant Dutchman who lived in the Netherlands during the Nazi German occupation and came to New Zealand in 1951, and his New Zealand-born Māori-speaking […]

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Boyd Klap honoured for maintaining the memory of Anne Frank

David Zwartz — Fri, 06 Aug 2021 06:02:54 +0000

Over a decade of activities promoting the memory and messages of Anne Frank’s short life was recognized last week with a special presentation to 94-year-old Dutch-born Boyd (Boudewijn) Klap.

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A thought-provoking Anne Frank memorial

David Zwartz — Wed, 16 Jun 2021 07:10:48 +0000

On a cold, windy Wellington day about 200 people gathered in a park – a former quarry – to watch New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister unveil a challenging new Anne Frank memorial in Wellington.

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Remembering the past – looking to the future

David Zwartz — Wed, 29 Jan 2020 00:51:20 +0000

Holocaust survivors were honoured at the Holocaust Remembrance Day commemorations in the capital, Wellington, at the same time as speakers referred to changes needed in New Zealand to counter rising antisemitism.

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Kristallnacht commemoration concert in Wellington

David Zwartz — Tue, 12 Nov 2019 23:05:16 +0000

This year’s Kristallnacht commemoration concert on 10 November brought us more of the annual event’s distinctive quality – works associated with the Holocaust performed by leading New Zealand musicians.

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Diary of a Young Girl = Te Rātaka a Tētahi Kōhine

David Zwartz — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 03:16:07 +0000

The commemoration of what would have been Anne Frank’s 90th birthday, had she survived Bergen-Belsen, was a double event for the Wellington Jewish community.

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Remembering Hungary’s Jews on Yom Hashoah

David Zwartz — Thu, 02 May 2019 04:54:05 +0000

The focus of Wellington’s Yom Hashoah observance on 1 May was the sad fate of Hungarian Jewry 75 years ago when hundreds of thousands were deported to their death in Auschwitz-Birkenau between May and July 1944.

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UNIHR Day in Wellington

David Zwartz — Thu, 07 Feb 2019 00:16:23 +0000

With the theme this year of “Righteous Among the Nations,” the overflowing marquee of people attending this year’s United Nations International Holocaust Remembrance Day, at Wellington’s rural Makara cemetery, heard many moving references to the Righteous, including a previously untold story of what befell a Dutch family.

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Strong messages from 2018 Holocaust observance

David Zwartz — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 01:48:07 +0000

Linking this year’s United Nations International Holocaust Remembrance Day (UNIHRD) with the New Zealand Human Rights Commission’s campaign “Give nothing to racism” produced some very forthright statements at the commemoration ceremonies. Many speakers quoted the slogan “Be an upstander, not a bystander”. At the Makara Jewish Cemetery’s Holocaust Memorial ceremony, the peaceful rural surroundings of […]

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