Schindler’s Czech Factory to Become Holocaust Memorial

If you were to drive by the old factory in Brněnec, which lies on the border between Bohemia and Moravia in the center of the Czech Republic, you’d have little idea it once held great historical significance.

But this was the factory that Oskar Schindler used to employ about 1,200 Jewish workers he transported from Krakow during WWII, saving them from extermination in Nazi death camps.

The Fund was founded this year by human rights activist Jaroslav Novak, with aims to restore the decaying factory and turn it into a Holocaust memorial.

“Our main goal is to get the building, actually the whole camp, to its original historical appearance,” the publication quotes Novak as saying.

To start, that would mean enclosing the location in order to protect it from vandals, and building at least a temporary roof on the factory to protect it from the elements.

The Fund is currently attempting to raise money in order to do so, and working with local politicians including Martin Netolický, mayor of nearby Pardubice.

“We deem the foundation as a clear partner to find a solution for the future of the site,” Netolický told Pravo.

“Oskar Schindler can be considered a controversial person, but as of 2007, he has been listed as one of the many historical personalities of our region.”