UN set to vote on global day to mark Holocaust

The United Nations General Assembly will vote tomorrow on the establishment of an international Holocaust remembrance day.

The proposal, which was submitted by Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, enjoys a solid majority, with at least 100 out of a total of 190 UN members promising to approve it.

The motion - which marks the first time Israel has submitted a resolution to the GA - calls for January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, to be recognized as an international day of Holocaust remembrance.

In recent years, a few European states have set an annual date on their calendar to commemorate the Holocaust. The proposal was submitted in cooperation with the United States, Russia, Australia and New Zealand, as well as members of the European Union.

As part of the proposal, all member states will be called upon to develop an educational curriculum meant to instill the memory of the Holocaust in future generations to prevent genocide from occurring again.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has expressed his support for the measure.

The draft resolution reads, in part: "The Holocaust constituted a systematic and barbarous attempt to annihilate an entire people, in a manner and magnitude that have no parallel in human history. Six million Jews, a full third of the Jewish people, together with countless other minorities, were murdered. And yet, while the Holocaust was a unique tragedy for the Jewish people, its lessons are universal.

"The United Nations, an organization founded on the ashes of the Holocaust and committed to `save succeeding generations from the scourge of war' and to uphold and protect the `dignity and worth of human beings,' bears a special responsibility to ensure that the Holocaust and its lessons are never forgotten and that this tragedy will forever serve as a warning to all people of the dangers of hatred, bigotry, racism and prejudice."

Shalom was scheduled to attend the session but will instead attend the opening of the Knesset's winter session tomorrow.

A number of foreign ministers, including those of Security Council members Britain, Russia and the U.S., are expected to attend the session.