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Thanks to the efforts of scholars, people in culture, artists and educators who are telling the truth about the painful history of the Holocaust, which was hushed up in the Soviet times, Holocaust awareness is rising in Lithuania,” Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis said.

On 20 April, the Minister greeted participants of the March of the Living who came to the opening of a photography exhibition “Synagogues in Belarus – Jewish Heritage Reflections in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania” and attended a discussion on Lithuania’s Jewish history at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“There are more and more people in Lithuania who are determined to seek the truth relating to the horrible history of the Holocaust and nourish the cultural heritage of Lithuanian Jews. Thanks to the effort and diligence of scholars, historians, artists, museum staff, pedagogues, painters, musicians, theatre performers and other professionals, the missing parts in the history are being filled in in our society,” the Minister said.

According to him, excellent international cooperation with different partners, first of all, Israel and the U.S., active participation of Lithuania in the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research that brings together different professionals, diplomats and politicians from 28 countries across the globe as well as in the work of the International Commission for the Evaluation of the Crimes of the Nazi and Soviet Occupation Regimes in Lithuania, is already bearing fruit.

“I do hope that our mutual experience, our respect for the victims of the Holocaust, the historical memory and raising the awareness of general public and, especially, that of the young generation shall help us to fulfil the sacred oath “Never again”,” Ažubalis said.

The Minister believes that a comprehensive program of commemorative events dedicated to the remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust in Lithuania, which was implemented by the Seimas (Parliament) and the Government of Lithuania in 2011, has contributed considerably to the maturity of our society. 

“Therefore, in a free Lithuanian democracy the Holocaust that was kept in silence in the Soviet years is not any more “alien pain”,” the Minister stressed.

The photography exhibition “Synagogues in Belarus – Jewish Heritage Reflections in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania” was designed based on data of research of the synagogues that were built from the 17th century through the 19th century in the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The research was carried out by Lithuanian and Belarusian students from Vilnius Academy of Arts and Belarusian State University. The photography reflects the complex history of the Lithuanian Jewish cultural heritage that had flourished there since the 17th century and the tragic losses suffered in the 20th century.