Section B·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, September 23, 1999
World
Israeli, German leaders meet at site of concentration camp
The Associated Press
BERLIN, Germany—To a cantor's mournful chant of the dreaded names of death camps, Israel's prime minister joined Germany's chancellor yesterday at the ruins of a Nazi crematorium, the emotional peak of a charged visit to a resurgent Berlin.
The ceremony, like the rest of Ehud Barak's trip, was carefully crafted to recognize the sensitivities of the Jewish state. Although Barak was not the first Israeli leader to visit the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin, he was the first since Germany reclaimed the one-time seat of Nazil power as its capital
He also was the first state visitor invited since the changeover — a way for Germany to show it recognizes a special responsibility to those who might be offended.
The day was strong on symbolism, beginning with Barak's entourage. It included three aging, frail survivors of Sachsenhausen who now live in Israel, and a group of vibrant Israeli teenagers, mount to represent the strength of the country.
"I'm proud to be here," said 19-year-old Yuval Ronen, a soldier. He was accompanied by his grandfather, Yerachmiel Bahir, a 77-year-old Sachsenhausen survivor.
"It's important to be here for my grand father, of course, who suffered so much here," said Ronen, dressed in uniform. "But also to represent our country. We are here, and we are strong."
Yet he'also echoed a new generation of Israelis when he said he had sampled the sights of Berlin and had no trouble being in Germany.
"My grandmother refuses to come, but I have no problem with it," he said.
Still, emotions run deep among older Israelis, some of whom had deep objections to Barak's visit.
"A thousand years will pass and the disgrace of Germany will not pass," Dov Shilansky, a Holocaust survivor and former Israeli parliament speaker, said by telephone from Israel. "And yet, we, the Jews, have to be those who jump at the chance to attend every German celebration?"
The sensitivities were apparent in the
planning of Barak's 24-hour journey. A contemplated tour of the recently reopened Reichstag, once again the seat of the German parliament, was scuttled. Most Israeli officials said that was because of scheduling constraints, but others indicated the reason was more emotional.
The Reichstag has strong associations with the Nazi era, even though Hitler never governed from the building and the Nazis are believed to have set it on fire in 1933.
At Sachsenhausen, chosen for the visit due to its proximity to Berlin, the leaders passed through an iron gate with the Nazi slogan "Arbeit Macht Frei," a cynical pledge to the 200,000 inmates interned there from 1936-45 that work would free them.
Standing side by side near the ruins of a crematorium built in 1943, both men issued pleas for tolerance.
"We owe it to the dead, but also to ourselves and our children, that we win the fight against hate and contempt for humanity and lay a secure basis for a peaceful future." Schroeder said.
Verdict not in yet on 2nd annual 'Day Without Cars' in France
PARIS—Paris was quieter, and the air at least seemed cleaner yesterday as tens of thousands of drivers heeded an appeal to keep their cars in the garage to reduce air pollution.
The Associated Press
All too often these days, the Eiffel Tower is shrouded in smog, emergency rooms are crowded with people suffering from bronchial distress and visitors go away with memories of clogged streets and hazy skies.
Though it is unclear whether the one-day effort—first held last year—will cut smog significantly, environmentalists hope the "Day Without Cars" in Paris and 65 other French cities will force drivers to think about pollution and their role in creating it.
The effort to keep cars at home was voluntary and motorists were not fined for ignoring the appeal, though police-guarded blockades were set up at some points to discourage traffic.
Only buses, taxis, emergency vehicles and motorcycles were supposed to circulate in several central Paris neighborhoods.
About 3 million cars enter the French capital daily, and the resulting smog that engulfs the city causes health problems such as asthma and chronic coughing, particularly among children and the elderly.
The mayor's office estimated that the traffic in car-free zones yesterday afternoon was 59 percent less than on regular days. In all of Paris, traffic was reduced by 31 percent, the mayor's office said.
"Traffic never moves this quickly," said Patrick Khimonier, 43, a taxi driver observing the transformation.
But in neighborhoods not blocked off, some streets were as congested as usual.
"Look at that, just look," said bus driver Patrick Mottaes, 44, pointing to a row of vehicles at a standstill on a bridge in western Paris. "The French are just too attached to their cars."
About 90 cities in Italy embraced the no-car effort as well. Rome and several other cities offered free bus rides for the day to commuters who abandoned their cars. They were enticed with claims that traffic would be speedy. But waits for many routes in Rome were the same as on any other day.
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