Dovydo žvaigždė Dundagos koncentracijos stovyklos memorialinėje vietoje
Nepriklausomybę atgavę dundagiškiai žydų žudynių ir perlaidojimo vietoje prie kelio Mazirbė-Dundagas pastatė didelę medinę Dovydo žvaigždę, o vėliau Latvijos žydų kongregacijų ir bendruomenių taryba prie jos atidengė ir paminklinį akmenį.
Dondagen II koncentracijos stovykla buvo atidaryta 1943 m. lapkričio 26 d., o pirmasis jos komendantas buvo Gröschel Max Ernst. Nuo pradinių 155 kalinių (1944 m.) stovykla išsiplėtė iki 1000 kalinių. Dauguma kalinių yra iš Rygos, Vilniaus, Daugpilio, Liepojos getų, taip pat getų kitose vokiečių okupuotose šalyse. Kaliniai – moterys ir vaikai, dirbantys sandėliuose, kareivinių statyboje, miškininkystės darbuose, geležinkelių ir bunkerių statyboje, taip pat aerodromo statybose.
Stovykla buvo evakuota Raudonajai armijai 1944 m. liepos 24-25 d. pasiekus Tukumą. Tai vyksta geležinkeliu į Liepoją ir Ventspilį, o toliau – į Štuthofo koncentracijos stovyklą.
Gräschelis taip žiauriai kankino kalinius, kad daugelis patyrė mirtinus sužalojimus ir mirė. Grėschel buvo nuteistas SS ir policijos teismo už nusikaltimus, padarytus Rygos-Kaiservaldo koncentracijos stovykloje (SS stovykloje Dondangen), ir buvo išsiųstas į Štuthofo SS ir policijos koncentracijos stovyklą Dancige-Matzkau mieste. Drezdeno teismas 1951 m. vasario 23 d. nuteisė jį mirties bausme, o 1951 m. birželio 23 d. Drezdeno kalėjime jam buvo įvykdyta mirties bausmė.
1992 metų birželį kraštotyrininkės Jautrytės Freimutės iniciatyva Dundagos gyventojai žydų nužudymo ir perlaidojimo vietoje Čiekuruose įrengė didelę medinę Dovydo žvaigždę, kuri toje vietoje nebeišliko.
Tačiau 2007 metų spalį Latvijos žydų kongregacijų ir bendruomenių taryba šalia jo taip pat atidengė paminklinį akmenį su dviem Dovydo žvaigždėmis ir užrašu latvių kalba: „1200 Latvijos ir Europos žydų, sunaikintų Dundagos mirties stovyklose 1943–1944 m., atminimui“. Paminklo atidengime dalyvavo atstovai iš Latvijos žydų kongregacijų ir bendruomenių tarybos, vyriausybės ir vietos valdžios bei Vokietijos, Izraelio, Slovakijos, Čekijos, Austrijos ir Vengrijos ambasadų.
http://www.tenhumbergreinhard.de/1933-1945-lager-1/1933-1945-lager-d/dundaga-ii-dondangen.html
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SS troops training area "Seelager" and memorial to the prisoners of the concentration camp
At the end of 1943, the Nazi German occupation authorities, planning to expand the SS motorised weapons units, started to build a training ground called "Seelager" (Sea Camp) in the vicinity of Dundaga. The inhabitants of the parishes of Dundaga and Arlava were evacuated to set up the training ground.
In order to build the infrastructure for the camp, several branches of the concentration camp "Kaiserwald" were located in the vicinity of Dundaga, where around 6000 Jews from various European countries (including Latvia) and around 1000 prisoners of war and partisans were imprisoned. Many prisoners died as a result of executions and poor living conditions. Some of the dead were buried in the "Čiekuri" branch camp, which according to some accounts was also the murder site of a group of Jews who were building a narrow-gauge railway towards Mazirbe.
At the beginning of August 1944, after the Soviet invasion of Zemgale, the training ground was liquidated, several thousand untrained SS recruits were sent back to Germany, and the SS motorised brigade Gross was formed from the command, instructors and trained soldiers, named after the commander of the training ground, SS Standard-Sergeant Martin Gross. The Brigade took part in the Battle of Tukums in August 1944, and in the Battles of Iecava and Baldone in September 1944.
After the departure of the SS units, the infrastructure of the training ground was used to accommodate Jews evacuated from Riga and other regions of Latvia, who continued to be used as slave labour.
Memorial to the victims of holocaust in Liepāja
The largest memorial to Holocaust victims in Latvia is located in Liepāja, in the Šķēde dunes. The memorial is dedicated to the memory of more than 3,000 Liepāja Jews killed during World War II. It is in the form of the Israeli national symbol, a seven-branched candelabra known as the menorah. The contours of the memorial, which are clearly visible from a bird’s eye view, are made of split boulders and granite blocks. The ‘lights’ of the menorah are made of granite pillars with inscriptions of verses from the Lamentations of Jeremiah in Hebrew, English, Latvian and Russian.
Riga Ghetto and Latvian Holocaust Museum
The Riga Ghetto and the Latvian Holocaust Museum is located in Riga close to the Riga Central Market and the Riga Central Station. The museum was opened in 2010 on the site where the city's warehouses once were. It is located in the historical part of the city, next to the border of the former Jewish ghetto. The territory of the ghetto is unique, because in terms of architecture it has not changed since World War II. It is a memorial dedicated to the tragedy suffered by the Jewish people. The German policy regarding the Jewish population in Latvia until the end of 1939 was for the German diplomats and politicians to try and pressure the Latvian government to take action against the Jews by restricting their freedom. After the emigration of the Baltic Germans in 1939, the German embassy no longer had as good an access to information on the mood of the population and the events happening in Latvia as before. When the Red Army occupied Latvia, they manipulated the society to gain some support of the Jewish population for the new occupying power. However, after the regime started a crackdown on the society as a whole, the support fell rapidly. As a result of all this, a deep divide had formed between the people. And later on, the next regime – Germany – tried to exploit it. They hoped that the local population would harass and attack the Jews, but that did not happen. So, Germany adjusted their approach and devised a new plan to initially establish a Jewish ghetto and later destroy its inhabitants.