"We commemorated the victims who were interned in labour camps here in Hanusovce but also in the surrounding villages, and who built this railway line under cruel conditions. And it's perhaps also a message for those who travel on this track, to remember and realise the conditions and circumstances under which it was built," said Government Proxy for Roma Communities Jan Hero. Hanusovce nad Toplou mayor Stefan Straka also took part in the event.
The plaque concerning the Roma community in Slovakia during WWII is in the entry hall of the railway station. A labour unit worked in the town between 1942-1943, with so-called 'asocial people', including Roma, engaged in forced labour.
They constructed a railway line between Presov and Strazske (Kosice region). There were over 2,600 Roma there until September 1942. A total of around 8,000 people worked on building the line. The people in those camps had to work 14 hours a day for a minimum amount of food. There were many cases of death or serious damage to health.
Source: TASR
