Time capsule has been buried next to emerging Warsaw Ghetto Museum

Prof. Gliński on Tuesday took part in the ceremony of burying of a time capsule in the gardens of the former Bersohn and Bauman Children's Hospital in Warsaw. The event, held on the eve of the 80th anniversary of Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, marked a symbolic beginning of the creation of the new seat of Warsaw Ghetto Museum.

"The best way to institutionalize memory is to create wise and friendly institutions that educate and establish dialogue. Thanks to them, we can look towards the future with hope. That is why today I wanted to thank all those who have contributed to the creation of this institution," the deputy PM said.

The minister also stressed that the idea of the museum had been initiated by many people, but he had been personally inspired most by the late Prof. Paweł Śpiewak, who died in March.

"It was the second half of 2017 when Paweł Śpiewak, the then director of the Jewish Historical Institute, my friend, a sociologist, came over with some official matters and told me about this idea, that there is this property here, that Jewish communities think it should be the place dedicated to the memory of the Warsaw Ghetto, that a museum should be created here. Basically, we took the decision straight away. I even wondered why such decision could not have been made for so many years," he said.

Prof. Gliński added that the uprising in the ghetto had been a tragic event. "Its goal was dignified death, it was meant to demonstrate that human beings can retain the highest level of humanity under the most dire of circumstances, in hell on Earth. And that it is possible to stand against this evil also in such a fashion. In that sense, the uprising was a victory. Because, just like Polish uprisings became the foundation of the Polish identity, it too was and is the foundation of the Israeli identity," the minister stressed.