President Sarkozy should be praised for his audacious initiative.
Exposing fifth graders to the stories of children who were murdered by the Nazis, as long as it is done with care and responsibility, is an important programme.
Holocaust education should start at an early age and identification and empathy are the right tools.
Our Foundation has a wealth of experience in developing such programmes. We have learned that the lessons of the Holocaust should not only be based on the atrocities perpetrated by the Nazis, but also through the stories of the saviours, the heroes and the victims.
Sarkozy is leading France into a club of countries, such as the UK, Canada and Germany, which understand that educating the youngsters is the best antidote against a new genocide.
We applaude Mr Sarkozy's initiative.

Aldo Nasjleti

The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation
www.raoulwallenberg.net
Buenos Aires-Jerusalem-New York

Aldo Nasjleti, Jerusalem, Israel

Given the percentage of the Basque population that was Jewish, the numbers stated by Romain do not suggest a different perspective. And while there have indeed been other acts of genicide both before and after the Holocaust, the holocaust was the only one in which segments of the French population were complicit. It is fitting, therefore, that they teach it in their schools -- and that when they do, thy do not flinch about revealing the role of the Vichy regime.

S. Kaplan, NYC, USA

A moving and beautiful idea from Sarkozy. How different from the incitement to hatred of Jews being forced down the throats of children in Palestine and much of the Muslim world.

Andy Gill, London,

It is important for all children around the world to learn about the Holocaust and WWII. Through education comes understanding and tolerance. But to focus in this way on one group of victims from one period in time makes a mockery of all others who have died through violence, oppression and hatred throughout the centuries. What about the victims of the Vichy collaboration? What about victims of French colonialism?

If we truly want to teach this generation we need to place the study in the present, so its meaningful and appropriate. If Mr Sarkozy wishes to teach French children about suffering, have them each "adopt" a child from an impoverished region of the world - learn their plight, their suffering, and encourage them to help this child with writing, raising money for the care, etc.

Stop living in the past and wringing our hands about past injustices, and lets do something to deal with today's injustices and maybe set the stage to avoid future injustices.

Michael Gosemann, Surrey, BC Canada

Maybe the French children should also learn the names of all the people who activly participated in sending these people to their deaths.
As my Father often said, the French policemen who you see in many of the film reels of the liberation of Paris, were, two days prior to the event still rounding up French resistance fighters and also activly supporting deportations.

peter andrew, Montreal, Canada

Odd...I thought the American's killed all the Jews (or was that the Arabs). The world seems to think we are responsible for every other wrong on the planet.

Nice of the Euro's to address history in it's correct context. Maybe this will force the French to remember the rest of the lessons from WW2.

TheDudeUSA, Wilmington, USA / NC

In my region (french basque region), out of 880 people who died in the camps, 220 were jewish. I dont know what the narional records are. Our region was a prohibited zone, under full german military control.
That sImple statistic would suggest another perspective.
Romain

Romain, Bayonne, France

Palestine, Rwanda,Vietnam, Maos China, Iraq... just to name a few places where the world again bore silent witness to mass slaughter. We should remember the Holocaust but not exclusively or selectively. I suppose the easiest way is to let the Germans be a the bogeyman for all guilty parties everywehere for all time and then no one else has to fess up.

My address is in Germany but I'm not German ( They are not allowed an opinion as we know).

Alfred, Berlin

Alfred, Berlin, Germany

WHY?
Did the French somehow become responsible?
I thought that was the Germans - no wait.. thats the Palestiniansright?..and they traded land for their transgressions?

To the garbage with Holocaust education. Soviet Russias crimes dwarfed that.

Garbage.

ralphie, nashville, usa

Ben:

Denmark. Just a smaller country so obviously fewer Jews to save but 98% of Danish Jews survived. And to my knowledge the Danish government did not send Jews to concentration camps as the French one did. Whereas I agree that all the courageous people who saved Jews should certainly not be forgotten, it is time for the French to deal with all aspects of their history.

Sabrina, Horndon,

It's all very well looking back in sadness, but our view of history should not blind us to the present.
The UK is rapidly descending into the same kind of totalitarian regime that allowed the holocaust to happen. So learn from history and apply it to today, otherwise we might as well just forget it.

Mike Poulsen, Reading, Berkshire

How exactly is this controversial? Reading the diary of Anne Frank is a central part of every child's education, and this seems like a great proposal to share the story of many more children, and to do so with a France-specific theme.

Leave it to the French to find controversy where none exists. Is there anything they wont grill Sarkozy about?

Bryan, San Francisco, USA

There's nothing wrong and everything right about teaching history as it really happened. That said, this seems to be a sort of strange way to teach children about France during WW2.

At least they're not rewriting history.

gb, Austin, USA

There is also a problem with the figure of 75,000 Jews sent to nazi death camps. While this figure is true, you ommit to count the number of Jews living in France who escaped nazi barbarity. Do you know many countries in Europe, defeated by Germany, where as many Jews were saved from the nazis as the Jews of France ?

Ben, Paris, France

,,,,as a child schoa survivor I say Never to forgei,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

m. nadler, vancouver, canada