Interview with Holocaust survivors.

JACK and INA POLAK, authors of the best-selling book "Steel a Pencil for Me", are Holocaust survivors, whose romance took place at the Westerbork transit camp in Holland, where Jack pursued Ina in earnest through an exchange of love letters that continued until after their liberation in 1945. They are active at the Anne Frank Center and the Westchester Holocaust Educational Center (both in the United States) that Mr. Polak co-founded, through which they lecture at numerous conferences and schools all around the country, recounting their amazing story and the horrors of the Holocaust. The Anne Frank Center promotes the universal message of tolerance by developing and disseminating a variety of educational programmes. The Polaks are celebrating their sixtieth wedding anniversary in 2006.

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Avital Weill spoke with Jack and Ina Polak at UN Headquarters in New York on 27 January, which was designated by the General Assembly as an annual International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust.

What do you think is the role of the United Nations in preventing another holocaust?

Mr. Polak: Good question, but almost impossible to answer. What we should do is strive for a better world, as it can be a horrible and cruel place. The Holocaust was unbelievable; one cannot compare it with the situation today. There are places in the world today with so much misery, hate and bloodshed, such as in Africa, Iraq and Iran, where there is a potential for another holocaust. It is sad that after sixty years we still need to worry about this-that is why what the United Nations is doing in this respect is very important.

The Holocaust must be taught as an important lesson in history, since by remembering its horrors it will teach us how to avoid one in the future. And the only way to achieve this is through the United Nations, which was created in order to make a better world. The UN is working towards this goal by designating 27 January as the International Day of Commemoration of the Victims of the Holocaust and by organizing ceremonies like today, when we also celebrate the liberation of Auschwitz, by having six Holocaust survivors light candles, each hoping that it is the beginning of a better world.

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Before the Second World War, you lived in Amsterdam, the largest city in the Netherlands, where approximately 75,000 Jews resided. Can you describe the Jewish life back then?

Mr. Polak: Jewish orthodoxy was completely different then. Jews did not wear yarmulkes in the street and did not speak Yiddish at all. Ina's father, for example, was the president of the Jewish community in Amsterdam, with more than 100,000 members, and was therefore a very important man. I came from a very orthodox family; however, orthodoxy was not imposed upon me. I was also a member of a Zionist organization.

You lived your romance through an exchange of love letters to avoid gossip in the camp. Did these gossips among prisoners indicate their hope to resume normal lives?

Mrs. Polak: Nobody knew how long the war was going to last. The war started when we were still living in Amsterdam. People used to say that the war would be over by next Christmas or next Easter, etc. Nobody knew how long it was going to take.

Mr. Polak: In the camps, everybody was the same and had the same experiences. But differences that exist among people in regular society were still there a little bit; the way people spoke and their accent were still there. People are snobbish.

You both grew up in orthodox families. How has the Holocaust changed your perception of faith and religion?

Mrs. Polak: It changed a lot in me.

Mr. Polak: Belief in God has been very important for people. I have seen people dying peacefully because they believed in God, and I have seen people dying horribly because they cursed God. In our letters, you can find a lot of references to God; He continuously stood by us. I believe that God gave me life for a certain purpose: to give testimony to other people of the horrors of the Holocaust. On the other hand, praying is not that easy, because when you go to a service, whether Jewish or non-Jewish, how many times do you have to say how great God is? I say how great God is that allowed the Holocaust to happen. Although one can criticize the horrible things that have been happening in the world, for me religion is still very important.

In publishing your book, it must have been very uneasy for you to reread your letters.

Mr. Polak: You are right. When I read the book now, I sometimes want to cry--it's very emotional. This is a very good book, I must say. When it was published for the first time, a girlfriend of ours asked, "Why did my husband never write letters like that to me?" But, do not forget, I had a tremendous job on my hand. I was confronted with a wonderful and beautiful girl, who was ten years younger and much richer than me, and I was married. My letters were intended not only to capture her but to try to give her an example of what we could do and build together, and to let her know that I could offer her a better life as well.

You were bestowed a knighthood by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. What does this represent for you?

Mr. Polak: I am very honoured, of course, because getting the knighthood is something very special. However, getting it as a Jewish Holocaust survivor and a former Dutchman, who has given up his Dutch citizenship and became a United States citizen, is even more special. I am very attached to the Netherlands because of their appreciation for what I am doing here: that is, telling people of the importance of Anne Frank and how she is a symbol for young children. In addition, it brings a lot of American people to Holland where they go to see Anne Frank's house. I have somewhat a very dose relationship with the Netherlands.

What about your current activities?

Mr. Polak: I am involved in many organizations. Notwithstanding my old age (93), I spend at least one day every week at the Anne Frank Center. As to the Westchester Holocaust Educational Center, of which I am a co-founder, it organizes lectures about the Holocaust in that area where I live. In fact, I recently had a call asking me to come to a neighbourhood school of 800 children and speak there.

What is the most interesting or surprising question you were asked when you lectured in schools?

Mrs. Polak: The questions that come up most frequently are: "Did you know Anne Frank?" "Is Anne Frank still alive?" "Is Hitler still alive?"

Mr. Polak: There was an interesting question from a boy, who asked: "If there was no Holocaust, what would your life have been?" I answered, 'I would have had a very dull life in Holland'. I am a lucky person that I can answer these questions. Many times, when I speak in poverty-stricken schools, I am told: "If you can survive and be a happy person after all the horrors you have been through, maybe we have a chance too." The lessons of the Holocaust are multiple and I have been using the diary of Anne Frank. I would say that 40 per cent of children I speak to in schools have read the diary, especially by non-Jewish children. So it has been a really good way to relay knowledge of the Holocaust.

What is the driving force behind all these activities?

Mr. Polak: I will tell you a story: When I went to the synagogue after the war, I didn't know how to pray yet, as I was still bothered by everything that happened during the Holocaust. I was standing in the back and was asked to come forward to the third row. And as I stood in the front, it dawned on me that here I was, standing as an unimportant Jew, and suddenly I became important, because I survived the Holocaust. And I thought maybe God gave me a new life to try to tell other people about it. From then on, I looked upon my entire life not just for a Jewish cause but also a universal one. The fact that I survived the Holocaust compels me to tell other people about the horrors in order to avoid another catastrophe like that.

What do you think when you see your family?

Mr. Polak: I always say that I am a happy survivor. I am happy because I found a wonderful wife, I have three children, five grandchildren and eight great grandchildren. Life has been good to me. I am still healthy at 93 and am still able to talk and tell other people about the Holocaust. I feel unbelievably happy; that's why I tell young people in schools that I am a happy survivor. There are many survivors, even after 60 years, who are still very unhappy. When you think of the horrors of the Holocaust, there are many reasons to be unhappy, but I was able to shake them off. All my children have some understanding of the Holocaust. In fact, I just asked one of my sons to join me at the Anne Frank Center as a director and he is going to. I will have a big party on Sunday and each of my children is donating a substantial amount to the Center.