With 157 votes in favor, the bill presented by Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano for the establishment of the Shoah Museum in Rome was unanimously approved by the Italian Senate.
The text of the law, consisting of a single article, envisions “creating the ‘Museum of the Holocaust’ with headquarters in Rome,” which will be managed by the Shoah Museum Foundation.
“For the construction and operation of the Museum,” the bill states, “an expenditure of 4 million euros is allocated for the year 2023, 3 million euros for the year 2024, 3.050 million euros for the year 2025, and 50,000 euros per year starting from 2026.”
Before the vote, Minister Sangiuliano spoke, emphasizing the importance of a Shoah Museum in the capital. “With the establishment of the Shoah Museum, we address a significant gap on the part of the Republic: a museum that preserves the memory of the Holocaust exists in all major Western capitals, and it is therefore fitting that Italy has one as well,” he said.
“We have an absolute duty to preserve the memory of the Holocaust, an event that I believe stands out historically due to its unprecedented horror,” he added. Sangiuliano concluded by stating that the establishment of this museum had been discussed for a long time, as the idea of a Shoah Museum in Rome had been under consideration for thirty years. “We have humbly achieved it,” he concluded.
The unanimous vote was followed by a long round of applause in the House.
“I believe you should applaud yourselves because a vote with such a result is not common; it is a testament to the Senate as a whole,” commented Senate President Ignazio La Russa. “The museum,” La Russa added, “will keep the memory of the Holocaust alive.”
