News

On 17 January the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania has adopted the Resolution on 2013 as the Year of Remembrance of the Vilnius Ghetto. Bearing in mind that September 2013 marks 70 years since the liquidation of the Vilnius ghetto by the Nazis the Seimas by adopting the resolution aims to commemorate this day painful both for the state and its people and resolves that 2013 is the Year of Remembrance of the Vilnius Ghetto.

The Government along with other public authorities should draft a special programme of the Vilnius ghetto remembrance events, to coordinate the implementation of the programme and to plan funds for the implementation of the programme.

On 24 January at the Tolerance centre of the Vilna Gaon Jewish State museum the documentary movie “A pit of life and pain” was screened. It is dedicated to the salvation story of Moshe Kukliansky and family during the Holocaust and their saviors - the Righteous among the nations.

On 25 January the exhibition of the pre-war documents of the Lithuanian Jewry was opened at the premises of the Israeli consul of honor Mikhail Rositsian in presence of the leading Lithuanian and Israeli politicians, diplomatic corps, academicians and businessmen.

On 27 January Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevicius stated, that “today Lithuania joins the international community in remembering the victims of the Holocaust. We bow our heads to their memory”.

The National television LRT has broadcasted a special reportage dedicated to the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

On 28 January marking the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Neris Germanas opened an exhibition of photographs “The Litvak Heritage in Belarus” at the Jewish Culture and Information Centre. At the opening ceremony, the Foreign Vice-Minister stressed that it was necessary to make every effort to prevent the horrible tragedy of Holocaust from occurring again.

According to the Vice-Minister, the heroic deeds of the “Righteous among the Nations” set the best example to all of us. The Vice-Minister noted that the younger generations kept the historical memory alive, helped to foster the Jewish cultural heritage not only in Lithuania, but also in neighbouring countries, and to reveal the significance of the preservation of the Jewish Culture in Europe after the devastation of the Holocaust.

The exhibition of photographs “The Litvak Heritage in Belarus” provided a spotlight on the latest research of the Jewish heritage of Lithuania and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that was carried out under the Development Cooperation Programme of the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since 2006, professors and students from Vilnius Academy of Arts and the Belarusian State University have been preparing an inventory of documents and buildings of former synagogues in Belarus, hoping that the rich Litvak heritage will not be forgotten.

The participants of the commemorative event got acquainted with the so-called “malina” shelter, i.e., the hiding place where Jews tried to save their own lives. A film about the Stutthof concentration camp was also screened.

On 28 January the special commemorative event took place at the Jewish community of Lithuania where the new book by Kazimierz Sakowicz „The Paneriai diary“ published by the State Genocide and resistance center was introduced and the documentary movie „Hostages in July 1941“was screened.

On 29 January at the Academy of Sciences the historical study „Meeting the Lithuanian Jews“ has been introduced by the leading historinians and specialists in Lithuanian Jewish culture.

On 25-28 January many commemorative events took place at the Lithuanian schools and Tolerance Education Centres (multi-subject lessons, competitions, project work presentations) throughout Lithuania - Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipeda, Kedainiai, Kursenai, Panevezys, Varena, Ukmerge, Kelme and other cities.