Wim Kok, who died on Saturday 20 October 2018 at the age of 80, was the chairman of the Supervisory Board of our organisation from 2004 to 2016. Born in 1938, he had his own memories of the Second World War. The memories of the atrocities of those years and their consequences lay at the basis of his commitment to freedom and democracy and his struggle against injustice. As a trade unionist, a politician and certainly also as the chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Anne Frank House, he worked with tireless dedication and commitment for those who cannot automatically count on equality and equal dignity.
Thoughtfully and purposefully, he utilised his chairmanship to convince young people of the significance of a history that they had not experienced themselves. ‘Let me be myself’, wrote Anne Frank on 11 April 1944. A society in which everyone has the freedom and the opportunity to be themselves was his aim, though he never neglected to point out that this individual freedom must go hand in hand with responsibility for society as a whole. You can only be yourself if others are given that opportunity too.
Wim Kok was both a reflective and a forceful chairman, who was deeply dedicated to the mission of our organisation. He knew from his own childhood how fragile freedom and justice are, and what the consequences can be if relationships between people are defined by the tendency to segregate them into groups.
We remember him with great respect, and with gratitude for all he contributed to our organisation. Our thoughts go out to his wife Rita, his children and grandchildren and the other members of his family.