Denmark and the Philippines jointly commemorates a shared history of preserving humanity

Eighty years ago, in October 1943, the German occupying power in Denmark orchestrated a raid to capture and deport Danish Jews to Nazi extermination camps, forcing more than 7,000 men, women, and children into hiding. Many among the Danish people reacted promptly and jointly to this raid by organizing risky boat rescues to bring their Jewish countrymen to safety in Sweden. Due to swift action by the Danish Jewish community and helped by other ordinary Danes, 95% of the Danish Jews were rescued that month—a light in an otherwise dark period of world history.

The Philippines had taken similar action already in the late 1930s. Under the leadership of President Manuel L. Quezon, the Philippines offered sanctuary to Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust through an Open Door policy. The policy urged Filipinos to welcome refugees and aid them, extending a lifeline to 1,300 Jewish refugees at a time when too many countries kept their borders closed.

Last Oct. 4, these collective acts were commemorated by the Embassy of Denmark and the Embassy of Israel, together with the Philippine government in a ceremony attended by Danish Ambassador H.E. Franz Michael Mellbin, Israeli Ambassador H.E. Ilan Fluss, Executive Director of the Jewish Association of the Philippines Lee Blumenthal, and Vice Mayor of Quezon City Gian Sotto, at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

The commemoration served not as a proclamation of heroic deeds but as a reminder of the values that prevailed at that time—humanity, solidarity, compassion, and civic courage—with hopes for the continued relevance of these in today’s world.