Honouring Raoul Wallenberg: A hero’s legacy
Not many in Sydney’s Jewish community would know that on a small traffic island on the corner of Queen St and Edgecliff Road in Woollahra there is a memorial dedicated to Swedish Holocaust hero Raoul Wallenberg, who during 1944 and 1945 saved thousands of Jewish lives in Hungary.
Danny Hochberg, Rabbi Ritchie Moss, George Foster, George Farkas, Councillor Sarah Swan. Hungarian Consul Szerena, Maria Gombar and Allegra Spender
A sculpture by Anna Cohn was erected in the garden in 1985.
Wallenberg was a Swedish diplomat based in Budapest who set up a department that issued local Jews certificates emblazoned with a yellow and blue flag and Sweden’s crown. The holders of these “Wallenberg passports” were protected from the Nazi bureaucracy and thereby avoided being deported to Auschwitz. It is claimed he saved up to 100,000 Jews. Wallenberg disappeared into Soviet custody in 1945. At one time, the Soviets claimed that he had died in custody in 1947, but it may never be known what happened to him.
In 2013, Wallenberg was made Australia’s first, and until today, only honorary citizen, by Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
Survivors, descendants, friends, and dignitaries, including Federal MP Allegra Spender, Woollahra Deputy Mayor Sarah Swan, and Hungarian Consul Szerena Gombar, gathered to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the mass deportation of Hungarian Jews to the death camp Auschwitz. The event also marked 80 years since Wallenberg’s heroic rescue.
The event was organised by the Australian Association of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants in partnership with the Sydney Jewish Museum and the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies.
Following the welcome from AAJHSD President George Foster, keynote speaker George Farkas spoke about his father, who served as a close aide to Wallenberg for six months and is believed to have been the last person in the free world to see him alive. Frank Vajda, a retired professor of neurology at Melbourne University, spoke by video of how he was saved by Mr Wallenberg’s actions as a nine-year-old boy in Hungary. Michele Goldman, CEO of the Jewish Board of Deputies, reminded everyone that the Commemoration takes place amidst an unprecedented rise in antisemitism worldwide.
Rabbi Ritchie Moss recites the prayer
Following the presentations, all attending made their way down to the memorial where dignitaries, survivors, and descendants were invited to lay a stone of remembrance. Rabbi Ritchie Moss recited El Maleh Rachamim, and his uncle Tom Moss, a Wallenberg survivor, said Kaddish.
Raoul Wallenberg was a beacon of light during the darkest days of the Holocaust, and his heroism warrants remembrance today. Indeed, the Commemoration comes at a particularly poignant and painful inflection moment in both historical and contemporary terms.
This was expressed best by George Farkas: “In today’s increasingly antisemitic world where a revisionist view of history is becoming increasingly fashionable, it is ever more important to record the testimony of people who were there and bore witness to what really happened. It is imperative that we never forget and honour incredible heroes like Raoul Wallenberg, who represent everything that is decent, humane and honourable and who, at the price of their own life, stood up against evil when it really counted.”
Raoul Wallenberg’s story is a powerful testament to the impact that one person can have in the face of overwhelming evil. His courage, humanity, and unwavering commitment to saving lives continue to inspire and resonate with people around the world. The memorial in Woollahra serves not only as a reminder of his heroic deeds but also as a call to action for future generations to stand up against injustice and hatred, no matter the cost.
Wallenberg’s example challenges us to confront prejudice and violence with bravery and compassion, to protect the vulnerable, and to uphold the values of decency and humanity in our own communities.
My late cousin Jonny Moser was also saved by Raoul Wallenberg, in Budapest. Jonny then went to work for this wonderful human being until Raoul disappeared.