RJC Monitor - 07.04.2003

 

The Russian Jewish Congress

CONGRESS OF JEWISH RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS AND ASSOCIATIONS IN RUSSIA TO ANNOUNCE 

Congress of Jewish Religious Organizations and Associations in Russia states its high dudgeon and protest to Grodno town administration for the only one Jewish cemetery in Grodno aged more then 300 years where Holocaust victims are buried is destroying now.

The cemetery land is designed for widening and modernization of the stadium to fit UEFA standards in nearest future. And now remains of buried people are just being thrown away onto tarpaulin along the fence. Local synagogue cannot accept remains for there is a fear that parish will stop attending Divine Services. Administration refuses to detach a premise for their preserving and reburying.

CJROAR applied for Belarusian President Aleksander Lukashenko asking to stop destruction of the cemetery and to detach a site to rebury remains from destroyed graves. 

CJROAR chairman 
Rabbi Zinovi Kogan 


The Russian Jewish Congress Statement
In Connection with the Grodno Jewish Cemetery Violation

Russian Jewish Congress is shocked by the events that take place in a Byelorussian city, Grodno. The cemetery exists for 300 years and now its territory is used to enlarge and amend the neighboring stadium. The remains of the deceased are being thrown out to the tarpaulin around the place of the building works. The city authorities refuse to allot the premises where the remains can be kept and the place for their secondary burring.

It will be natural to ask: what is more important for the contemporary Byelorussia – improving the state of the stadium in compliance with the standards of UEFA or the sense of respect to the buried at this cemetery – some of them are the victims of the Holocaust!?

The Russian Jewish Congress has already appealed to the president of Byelorussia Alexander Lukoshenko with the demand to influence the situation and to make an order to cease the outrage on the deceased persons, buried on the Jewish cemetery.

The letters with the appeal to influence the situation were sent to the President of Russian Federetion Vladimir Putin, the Israeli political leaders, the leaders of the main Jewish organizations of Europe and the USA.



MACCABI’S GOLDEN MEDALS 

The fifth World Master Athlete Judo Championships finished in Tokyo on the 29th of June. Athletes younger then 30 participate in such championships. 900 athletes from 25 countries including Russian team took part in the competition. Russian Jewish Congress promoted two judoists to participate in Tokyo competitions. Moscow sport club Maccabi was presented by Maccabi team’s main coach for judo and unarmed self-defense, multi-champion of the USSR and Europe, twofold champion of the World Master Athlete Ilya Tsipurski and multi-champion of Maccabiada, prizewinner of the last year World Master Athlete Championships in Londonderry Aleksey Makutonin.

Competitions were held in Kodokan world judo centre, built in the first half of the 19th century by judo creator Dzigaro Kano. Famous judo masters Yamashito, Sato, Ensyu, World Masterathletes Judo Association president Walter VanHelder and Japanese Judo Federation president Hiromi Noguchi participated Chanpionships.

Maccabi’s athletes presented in pair at the program Utsu-Utsu-no-Kata and demonstrated energetic human possibilities in dynamics using randori regime (when one of the partners does not resist). The examples of vibration, continuation, vortex, high tide - low tide, inertness were demonstrated. Ilya Tsipurski and Aleksey Makutonin received first place and two golden medals for presentation in this program.

Then athletes took part in individual competitions in age groups and weight categories. Ilya Tsipurski participated in the group M8 (65-68 y.o.) and category below 100 kg. He beat American judoist in the final duel. Maccabi’s main coach received golden medal and became a champion of the World Master Athlete for the third time.

FROM MOSCOW TO HAIFA 

Hebrew Civilization Centre’s (HCC) graduates received diplomas on the 30th of June. Hebrew Civilization Centre in the Institute for Asian and African Studies of Moscow State University was founded in 1998 with the participation of Jewish University in Moscow and Jewish University in Jerusalem. Now Hebrew Civilization Centre prepares high-class specialists dealing with Israeli studies, Jewish history, literature and languages. HCC students can receive all scientific degrees in Russian Federation – from bachelor (studies continue 4 years) to Candidate of Science. Russian Jewish Congress has been making strong promotion for HCC creation and development. Several of Centre’s teachers are professors of Jerusalem University teaching as in Russian as in Hebrew.

After five years after opening HCC prepared the first class of graduates including five bachelors and nine specialists (students after five terms) in oriental and African studies. This 14 people studied at three departments – historical, philological, and of modern Israeli policy and economy (graduates from the last one are called regionalists). Three graduates received cum laude diplomas. As HCC director professor Arkadi Kovelman said, two graduates are invited to work in Israel in the framework of the Russian Foreign Ministry – a girl is to work at Russian embassy in Tel-Aviv and a boy is to work at Russian consulate in Haifa.

Entrance examinations begin in the Institute for Asian and African Studies of MSU on the 1st of July. All who want to enter this institute and was later this year can do it the next one. HCC conducts wide educational activity. It has its small department for school students working each Sunday at Jewish Centre in the Bolshaya Nikitskaya street. Two times in a year during autumn and winter holidays the Centre holds school classes in the Moscow regions with senior school students.

HCC phones: (095)203-3121; 203-6258
E-mail: cjs@iaas.msu.ru 

LAST CLASS OF GRADUATES IN JEWISH UNIVERSITY IN MOSCOW 

Psychological department of Jewish University in Moscow (JUM) prepared graduates who received diplomas on the 2nd of July at the solemn ceremony taken place in the Memorial synagogue on Poklonnaya Gora.

JUM is the leading Jewish Institution for higher education. The program of the university includes modern and Biblical Hebrew, Yiddish, Judaism basics, Jewish philosophy, Biblical and post-Biblical literature, Jewish traditions, Jewish history, and modern Israeli studies. These specific subjects add standard basic high education in such fields as foreign languages, history and psychology. After five years of education graduates receive two diplomas – one is of the Jewish university in Moscow and the other is of the Open Moscow State Pedagogic University.

This year pedagogical department issued 17 juveniles. Five of them ended education with cum laude diplomas. JUM rector Aleksander Militarev, Russian Jewish Congress president, head of the JUM board of trustees Evgueni Satanovski and faculty director Vladimir Sobkin congratulated graduates. Handing diplomas he emphasized with great satisfaction that three graduates decided to continue education with post-graduating studies. Vladimir Sobkin noted that JUM psychological department gives more share of Candidates of Science then the identical MSU department. One of ten graduates defends dissertation.

Professor Militarev instructing graduates emphasized that they are the last class of the Jewish University in Moscow. The next year the university will change its name into High Human School of Sh. Dubnov. 

RJC AND VJRC TO PRESENT NEW ANTI-DEFAMATION PROJECT 

Virtual Jewish Russian-speaking Community and Russian Jewish Congress present new anti-defamation Internet-project NO ANTI-SEMITISM.

The beginning of the project is caused by the increase of anti-Semitism and crime against Jews in the Western Europe and CIS.

NO ANTI-SEMITISM
— It is monitoring of anti-Semitic incidents in Russia and other countries;
— It is organization and informational support for different action targeting to prevent xenophobia and to support victims of anti-Semitic actions;
— It is fight against anti-Semitic myths and stereotypes;
— It is informational and juridical help for people and organizations faced anti-Semitism.

NO ANTI-SEMITISM is facts, opinions, dossiers, action and news on-line.

Our project is open for cooperation with human rights and charity institutes antagonizing anti-Semitism and xenophobia.

Join us! No anti-Semitism!
www.antisemitismu.net

Press-release:

Results of anti-Semitic incidents’ monitoring, June 2003

In June monitoring service of Internet-project No to Anti-Semitism http://www.antisemitismu.net fixed 12 messages about anti-Semitic incidents. These incidents took place in Russia, CIS-countries and other European states.

Russian geography of anti-Semitic actions covered Moscow, Vladimir, Voronezh, Kaluga, Orel, Novosibirsk, Yaroslavl. In Ukraine these incidents took place in largest cities – Kyiv and Kharkov. Anti-Semites showed themselves in Germany and Romania too.

Only during this June anti-Semitic extremists have used all types of hostile actions against Jews. Radicals from Russian National Sovereign Party and from Russian National Unity held demonstrations in Moscow and Orel. Synagogues in Voronezh and Yaroslavl suffered from vandalism. Moreover Yaroslavl skinheads wrote abusive graffito on synagogue building. Monument to non-Jewish wives of arrested Jews was contaminated in Berlin. Romanian officials were recognized to refuse Holocaust facts. Anti-Semitic challenges were fixed in the field of mass media and culture in Kaluga and Vladimir. Incident of domestic anti-Semitism with threats and abuses to the individual was in Voronezh.

At the same time a number of curious incidents took place. Former editor of Ukrainian-speaking “newspaper for additional reading” Dzhereltse (where anti-Semitic materials were published) Anatoli Kondratenko filed a suit to “defend honor and dignity” from RUJEN journalist Andrei Kapustin. The complainant states journalist called him Jew in one of his articles. According to the complainant this “abused his honor and dignity”. The complainant went to a doctor to clear himself from “suspicions” verifying he was not cut off. “With a sense of deep humiliation I visited a surgeon who witnessed the absence of any auto mutilation signs on my body” – Kondratenko wrote in his complaint.

From the end of May to the beginning of July the twelfth cinema festival Golden Knight took place in Kaluga. More then 6 movies were presented. Jewish theme did not miss. We will not name a well-known writer who openly declared his dislike to “nasty” nationalities. The quote: “I’d rather to get them out from Great Russia to their land”.

Officials reacted to anti-Semitic actions more then moderate. Several criminal cases were inspired, other measures were taken. But nobody is punished or detained. It is sad to see Vladimir, Voronezh, Orel and other officials without undertaking any measures to suppress national ethnic strife although there were appeals to them.

Virtual Jewish Russian-speaking Community and Russian Jewish Congress present new anti-defamation Internet-project No Anti-Semitism

http://www.antisemitismu.net

Project manager: Aleksey Molokin redaktor@yafa.ru

RJC press service: Ann Kronshtein rjc@rjc.ru