Freezing silence: Opening of the exhibition dedicated to the Novi Sad raid
The Novi Sad raid, crime that took place during World War II certainly represents the most tragic event in the modern history of Novi Sad. An exhibition displaying the authentic locations from the Raid period, as well as the victims’ names, was opened on this occasion, at the Cultural center of Novi Sad.
Hungarian occupation forces committed genocide against Serbian, Jewish and Roma people, in a raid that lasted three days. From 21st until 23rd January 1942 mass executions took place in the streets of Novi Sad, during which citizens of Novi Sad, even the whole families, perished.
Cultural center of Novi Sad hosted a series of events to commemorate this horrible genocide, so the public had the opportunity to visit three exhibitions, a literary evening, listen to the testimonies of the surviving witnesses of the Raid, and commemorate the victims during a memorial service at the Liberty Square on Thursday, 23rd of January.
At the opening ceremony, the audience was addressed by Sunčica Marković, assistant director of the Cultural center of Novi Sad, and said that this program demonstrates that our city remembers every individual that is known to have perished during the Raid, and that Novi Sad still searches for the names of all the victims who died during those cold January days 72 years ago.
“The ployees of the Cultural Centre, with the help of numerous citizens have been writing the names of the Novi Sad Raid victims for the commemoration for days. The stones with the names of victims will be placed on the square, where citizens will be able to come and pay their respect to the victims of the most tragic event in the history of our city. Why did we do this? When you take a pen in your hand and start writing the names of our fellow citizens, sometimes entire families, and when you start getting to know them, only then you realize the magnitude of that heinous crime that cannot be measured in numbers. Each person brutally executed and savagely tossed under the ice of Danube is a crime.” – said Sunčica Marković, adding that a stone is eternal, and therefore, the memory of the victims is eternal as well. Pupils from the Novi Sad elementary schools visited today, and will be given opportunity to visit in the next two days as well, all the exhibitions at the Cultural center of Novi Sad in the company of an expert lecturer.
After the opening, the audience visited the Tribina mladih club, where another exhibition is set and will be officially opened today at 8 o’clock. This grievous event inspired young Novi Sad artists whose artwork may be seen until the 23rd January.
Another exhibition, about the Sárvár concentration camp, will be opened tomorrow at 12 in the Mali likovni salon, and in the evening, at 7 o’clock, Gordana Todorić will present the book “Novi Sad massacre” by Erich Kosch, a precious literary, as well as historic evidence of the dramatic days of the Novi Sad raid.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSxKQ4d1mws[/youtube]
