On May 4, the Netherlands commemorates the victims of the Second World War. Although the media are increasingly asking how long we have to continue with this, recent research shows that the May 4 commemoration is widely supported among the Dutch population, not least among young people. Camp Westerbork also annually commemorates the victims who largely stayed in this camp for a short or longer period of time. The May 4 commemoration at Westerbork camp takes place on the former camp site, which is located in the middle of the woods near Hooghalen, almost three kilometers from the associated museum. In that museum, the Camp Westerbork Remembrance Center, various activities are organized during the 4th of May, including the showing of films and lectures by people who can tell from their own experiences about Camp Westerbork or the Second World War. Guided tours are provided at the site where the camp once stood.
By car to the camp site
You normally have to cover the distance between the museum and the camp site on foot, by bicycle or by shuttle bus, but on May 4 the car-free zone will be opened at the beginning of the evening, so that all interested parties can drive their own car close to the camp site. . Once there, everyone gathers at the entrance to the camp. The barrier will remain closed until the start of the commemoration program.
Start of program
The program usually starts around 7:20 PM with a silent procession, which may or may not be preceded by a song. During the silent procession, the names of children who attended the camp are read out and the Westerbork bell is rung. The radio telescopes, which cover part of the camp grounds, are put in mourning position, which means that the dishes that normally point towards the universe, point towards the ground during the silent march and the commemoration.
Silent procession and memorial ceremony
The silent march is led by the students of the two primary schools in Westerbork, which adopted the monument, and the camp survivors. It leads from the entrance, along the old railway line, to the Westerbork National Monument, crossing the entire camp site. A podium has been set up near the monument (the upwardly curved railway line, a design by Ralph Prins), from which the various contributions to the commemoration are made. Alternated by music, the commemoration consists of the following – more or less – fixed points:
- Story of three generations
- Poem by the winner of ‘Closer to May 4’, an initiative of the National Committee May 4 and 5
- Reflection by a former prisoner of camp Westerbork
- Kaddish, an old Jewish prayer, spoken by someone born in Westerbork camp
- Two minutes of silence
- Last Post
- Flower laying
At the commemoration at Camp Westerbork, the students from the adopted schools are the first to lay down their flowers, a red rose. Then it is the turn of the camp survivors, their family and relatives, after which it is the turn of the other attendees. Contrary to what is customary elsewhere, the Dutch flag remains at half-mast after the commemoration at Camp Westerbork, the feeling is that the sadness remains.
After
After the commemoration, everyone is free to visit the camp site on their own and chat in the Camp Westerbork Remembrance Center. Due to the crowds, the car ride back to the museum can take a lot of time. Anyone considering attending this commemoration should therefore seriously consider bridging the distance from the museum to the camp site on foot or by bicycle.
The commemoration at Camp Westerbork is attended annually by 5,000 to 6,000 interested parties. Young and old, everyone is welcome.
read more
- Camp Westerbork, a timeline
- What preceded Westerbork: the anti-Jewish measures
- Johnny and Jones, the Netherlands’ first teen idols
- About Stumbling Stones and Stolpersteine
- Jewish labor camps