Lietuvos žydų kultūros paveldo išsaugojimo strategijos 1990-2019 metais

LTStraipsnyje siekiama ne tik atskleisti Lietuvos kultūros paveldo politikos formuotojų ir vykdytojų požiūrį į žydų istorinio ir kultūrinio paveldo problemas, bet ir perteikti joms spręsti skirtas priemones. Publikacijoje pristatomi Lietuvos Seimo, Vyriausybės ir kitų valstybės institucijų potvarkiai, susiję su žydų kultūros paveldo (ap)saugos reglamentavimu bei jo vykdymo priežiūra, ir pateikiami įgyvendintų bei vykdomų projektų, skirtų žydų istorijai ir kultūros paveldo objektams (iš)saugoti ir pritaikyti šiandieniniams poreikiams, rezultatai. Reikšminiai žodžiai: žydų kultūros paveldas, paveldo išsaugojimo strategijos, projektai, Kultūros paveldo departamentas. [Iš leidinio]

ENThe aim of the article is to reveal the attitudes of Lithuanian cultural heritage policy makers and practitioners to the problems of Jewish historical and cultural heritage and present the political means used to solve them. After the restoration of Lithuania’s independence on March 11, 1990, the government of the country immediately took care of the preservation of the historical heritage of Lithuanian Jews. This was encouraged by the aspirations of the Lithuanian political circles of the time to come closer to the Western bloc countries. This is why the first steps were taken to establish the foundations of a Holocaust remembrance culture. On November 7, The Presidium of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania passed a resolution ‘On Clearing up of Graves and Cemeteries of the Victims of the Genocide of the Jews and the heritage marking’ on August 21, 991. The Presidium approved the decree ’On the Resolution No 1-763 of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania of November 7, 1990: ‘On Clearing up of Graves and Cemeteries of the Victims of the Genocide of the Jews and the heritage marking’. On April 29, 1992 a resolution on ‘Completion of Clearing up of Graves and Cemeteries of the Victims of the Genocide’ was adopted. The problems of the management of former synagogue buildings and their adaptation to the needs of the society were important during the first years of independence of Lithuania and they still are actual. Initially, the first timid steps were taken in carrying out essential works in the previously renovated synagogue buildings: Vilnius Choral and Marijampolė Synagogues.Efforts were made to regulate the process of restoration of property rights, as a result of which some of the former synagogue buildings were returned to the Lithuanian Jewish (Litvak) community: wooden choral synagogues in Pakruojis, Žiežmariai, Alanta, Kurkliai, Seda, Tirkšliai, Kaltinėnai, Kėdainiai, Kalvarija, Pušalotas, Čekiškė and Kaunas. However, some of the synagogue buildings remained the property of municipalities: the Kėdainiai Synagogue Complex, Alytus, Simnas, Švėkšna and Žemaičių Naumiestis Synagogues. Some former synagogues were privatized due to various circumstances, e.g. in Šiauliai and Jonava. The restoration of property rights was accompanied by discussions in political circles and in society raising questions about who should care for and manage the former synagogues and what activities they could serve. The discussions helped to realize that, without the support of local communities and municipalities, such success of the projects of preservation and adaptation of former synagogues is unlikely, in the absence of religious communities, former synagogues have lost their primary function and meaning of being a home for community gatherings, praying, and Talmud-Torah studies. The collapse of the Seda synagogue in 2005 was the impetus for decisive political action. Cultural Heritage Department under the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania and Lithuanian Jewish (Litvak) community initiated discussions with city and district municipalities, local communities and cultural institutions on management and usage of Jewish cultural heritage by taking over or renting synagogue buildings owned by Jewish (Litvak) community, restoring them and adapting to public needs in modern forms.Examples of Kėdainiai, Pakruojis, Žiežmariai, Alanta, Kurkliai, Tirkšliai, Kaltinėnai, Marijampolė, Joniškis (‘Red’ and ‘White’), Vilnius (Chorai ir Gėlių St.), Alytus, Kalvarija, Pušalotas, Panevėžys, Kupiškis, Čekiškės and Švekiai Synagogue management and adaptation projects demonstrate that this political decision was justified. Similar political tactics of preservation of Jewish historical and cultural heritage have also been used to find opportunities for such objects as the former Jewish boys' school building in Ukmerge, Telšiai yeshiva, Chaim Frenkel Mansion in Šiauliai and Nochern Schmidt Mill in Kupiškis. Over the past fifteen years, efforts by Lithuanian state institutions have introduced a tradition of commemoration of the European Jewish Culture Day, which is wide not only geographically but also in forms of activities: various Jewish history and cultural topics are explored to help understand their legacy, not just ‘formally’but also empathically. [From the publication]

• Lietuvos žydų tradicinio meno ir simbolių pasaulis : atvaizdai, vaizdiniai ir tekstai / Aistė Niunkaitė-Račiūnienė ; katalogo bendraautoris Vladas Niunka. Vilnius : Valstybinis Vilniaus Gaono žydų muziejus, 2011. 695 p.
• Nykstantis kultūros paveldas: Lietuvos sinagogų architektūra / Marija Rupeikienė. Vilnius : E. Karpavičiaus leidykla, 2003. 190 p.