Holocaust survivor Margot Friedländer dies at the age of 103

Holocaust survivor Margot Friedländer dies at the age of 103. The important contemporary witness to the persecution of Jews during the Nazi regime died in Berlin on Friday at the age of 103, her foundation announced in the evening. Numerous leading politicians such as Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) expressed their sadness at Friedländer's death. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who had planned to award her the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany on Friday, emphasized in his message of condolence that Friedländer had “given our country the gift of reconciliation”.

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Friedländer went into hiding in Berlin during the Nazi extermination of the Jews, but was betrayed and deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp. She survived, but her entire family was murdered in the Auschwitz extermination camp. After the Second World War, Friedländer emigrated to the USA and only later in life did she come to terms with her experiences in the Holocaust. Friedländer described the move as her “fourth life”. Among other things, her autobiography “Try to make your life” made her famous.

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In 2010, at the age of 88, she decided to return permanently to her native city of Berlin. The following year, she was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit on Ribbon. The city of Berlin made Friedländer an honorary citizen in 2018. She campaigned against forgetting until the end, speaking at schools and events. She expressed her concern about the rise in anti-Semitism. "I am not surprised. Just disappointed and sad," said Friedländer in 2023. In the same year, she established the Margot Friedländer Foundation to preserve her legacy. Friedländer was honored with the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, which Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had planned to present to her in a ceremony on Friday. However, the ceremony could no longer take place.

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Steinmeier described Friedländer's legacy as a reminder and an obligation. “Especially at a time when democracy is being challenged and anti-Semitism is once again blatantly evident, it remains our responsibility to never again abandon the Jewish community in our country,” explained the Federal President. Many German politicians were saddened by Friedländer's death and paid tribute to the deceased. Chancellor Merz called Friedländer “one of the strongest voices of our time” in the online service X. It is “our task and our duty” to pass on the history of Holocaust survivors. Merz's predecessor Olaf Scholz (SPD) recalled Friedländer's message “Be human beings” on X. “Margot Friedländer will be greatly missed,” wrote Federal Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) on X.

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Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) paid tribute to Friedländer's commitment. "Her remembrance work, her commitment against forgetting, her involvement in schools and universities, her talks with young people were of inestimable value to us," explained Wegner on X. The Holocaust survivor had shown "that humanity can triumph over inhumanity". With Margot Friedländer, "not only has an important voice of a Holocaust survivor been silenced forever, but also a passionate ambassador for democratic values", explained Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer (non-party). Many people, especially young people, had been "touched by her warm-heartedness and kindness" during their encounters with Friedländer.

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EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen paid tribute to the deceased as “one of the greatest Germans of the past hundred years”. "Anyone who ever met Margot Friedländer was deeply touched by her. For us Germans, she embodied guilt, forgiveness and obligation at the same time," von der Leyen told the Bild newspaper.
Bundestag President Julia Klöckner (CDU) called Friedländer's return to her home country "a great gift for Germany." She announced that a book of condolence would be laid out for MPs at the beginning of the coming week of sessions in the Bundestag.

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"With this gesture, the German Bundestag is showing its respect and gratitude to Margot Friedländer," explained Klöckner. For the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, a society without Friedländer is "hardly imaginable". Her death shows "the transience of memory" and points to "the great responsibility we have towards this courageous and strong woman and her entire generation".

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The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, paid tribute to Friedländer as a "shining example of strength, of humanity, of reconciliation". The Holocaust survivor had always been at Israel's side, "with attitude, with clarity, with unshakeable strength". Friedländer's foundation emphasized: "Until the end, she urged the defence of democracy - remembering alone is not enough." Her example was "both a mission and an obligation"