50 years after the terror, the Minister of Education is relieved. “I am deeply grateful that you are joining us for this memorial service today.” Michael Piazolo (Free Voters) addresses the families of the men murdered by a Palestinian terrorist squad on September 5, 1972. A dark shadow fell on the Olympic Games, and since then nothing has been the same in twelve families. On Monday morning, members of these families gathered at the Olympic Village for the first commemoration of this anniversary, the larger one being in Fürstenfeldbruck. Now everyone is meeting at the place of remembrance, in the memorial that opened in 2017 not far from Connollystrasse 31, where the Israelis were attacked.
Until recently it was unclear whether the relatives would travel to Munich, they were too hurt by Germany’s refusal to finally give them adequate compensation. The breakthrough came just a few days ago. 60 to 70 relatives have come, as well as many other people from Israel who have a connection to the games. Piazolo uses the commemoration to make a promise: that the Free State will work for democracy and fight against misanthropic efforts, against hatred and violence and against anti-Semitism. “Education and upbringing are effective tools against hatred and intolerance.”
Just why, asks Reiter, has it been so difficult to remember both sides of the games for so long
It is Mayor Dieter Reiter who clearly addresses the mistakes made during the failed liberation and in the years that followed. “The games must go on”, it was said at the time. They hid behind this sentence for a long time in order to avoid unpleasant questions. Why weren’t the athletes better protected? Just why, asks Reiter, has it been so difficult for so long to remember both sides of the games, the bright side and the dark side. “Ashamed” he had to say on behalf of the city of Munich today: “Those responsible for the 1972 Summer Olympics made serious mistakes. I’m sorry and I apologize for that.” Also for not doing what humanity would have demanded: admitting mistakes and taking responsibility for them. Addressing the relatives, Reiter said that it would have been difficult for him to imagine commemoration without them. “Thank you for coming to Munich.”
It would have been difficult for him to imagine an event without relatives, says Lord Mayor Dieter Reiter (middle), with (from left) Charlotte Knobloch, Petra Reiter, Minister Yehiel Tropper and Michael Piazolo.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Yehiel Tropper, Israel’s Minister of Culture and Sports, laments that the games then went on “as if nothing had happened”. Until recently, Olympia had suppressed the darkest spot in its history. Only now is that changing, also in Germany. It is only now that things have come full circle on September 5, 1972, which is mainly due to the commitment of the relatives. They would have refused to forget. “It took 50 years for justice to become visible,” says Tropper, probably thinking of the federal government.
Yael Arad, President of the Israel Olympic Committee, recalled that the assassination was also a “national tragedy” for Israel, with the country losing some of its best athletes and coaches.
The widow Ilana Romano speaks of a “colossal failure”
Ilana Romano, widow of weightlifter Yossef Romano, speaks of a “colossal failure” by the German authorities 50 years ago, followed by “five decades of judicial failure”. How could it be that many warnings from the secret service about attacks were ignored at the time? Along with Ankie Spitzer, Ilana Romano is the best-known fighter for justice among loved ones. “We managed,” she says, “to bring the screams of the murdered to the world’s consciousness.”
Israeli Olympic Committee President Yael Arad (from left) recalled that it took Israeli sport 20 years to recover from the tragedy. The bereaved Ankie Spitzer and Ilana Romano also came to the Olympic Park.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Shortly before the Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead, four German youths recite the names of the dead, eleven Israeli athletes and a German policeman: Amitzur Shapira, Kehat Shor, Mark Slavin, Moshe Weinberg, Eliezer Halfin, Yossef Gutfreund, Andrei Spitzer , David Mark Berger, Ze’ev Friedmann, Yossef Romano, Yakov Springer and Anton Fliegerbauer. The young people from the Evangelical Church of the Holy Spirit are currently taking part in a youth exchange. Young Israelis from Be’er Sheva were in Munich recently, and the Munich residents will be traveling to Israel during the autumn holidays.