SNIPISKES CEMETERY UPDATE: IS THE TIDE TURNING?

C O N F I D E N T I A L VILNIUS 000614

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2017
TAGS: PREL SCUL LH
SUBJECT: SNIPISKES CEMETERY UPDATE: IS THE TIDE TURNING?

REF: VILNIUS 379 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: Classified By: Charge Damian Leader for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).


1. (C) Summary. On August 27, Prime Minister Gediminas
Kirkilas announced a reorganization of the Working Group on
the former Jewish cemetery in the Snipiskes neighborhood of
Vilnius so that it consists of more senior staff and has a
more responsible chairman. The Working Group has until
September 4 to submit recommendations to the PM about what
actions the Government can or should take. We are receiving
positive signals that these recommendations will include
halting construction quickly. End Summary.

Working Group's membership and timeline
--------------


2. (U) The new chair of the Working Group is FM Petras
Vaitiekunas, replacing Vice Minister of Culture Gintaras
Sodeika, who remains a member of the Group. The new deputy
chair is MP Justinas Karosas, Chairman of the Parliament's
Foreign Affairs Committee. MP Emmanuelis Zingeris is also a
new member. Other new members include the Vice Minister of
Justice (upgraded from the working level),the Director of
the Cultural Heritage Department (upgraded from the Deputy
Director),and Vilnius Vice Mayor Algirdas Paleckis (upgraded
from the municipality's working level). Overall, the new
members appear to have a better understanding of the
international importance of this issue than their
predecessors.


3. (U) By September 4, the Group is tasked with making,
according to a press release from the PM's office,
"recommendations regarding the conclusions of the experts'
group and the continuation of the ongoing construction."
(Note: As reported reftel, international and Lithuanian
experts issued a unanimous statement on May 17 warning that
current construction almost certainly falls in part within
the confines of the cemetery. They called for more study and
a halt of construction until that study is completed.) By
December 31, the Group should submit to the PM its
conclusions regarding the boundaries of the cemetery and
suggestions for preservation.

Motivation for re-organization
--------------


4. (C) The Prime Minister announced the re-organization in
time for a visit by Israel's Minister for Religious Affairs
Yitzhak Cohen. The visit came hard on the heels of an open
letter from Rabbi Elyokim Schlesinger of the Committee for
the Preservation of Jewish Cemeteries in Europe and a Reuters
news story on the controversy. Schlesinger chastised the GOL
as having been deceptive and warned that the Jewish community
would "continue its campaign to stop this appalling
desecration with all the means at its disposal." The
Ambassador also raised the issue with the Prime Minister on
August 17, reminding him that without some good news soon,
the situation would continue to damage Lithuania's
reputation. PM Kirkilas noted to the press that it was
necessary to raise the Group to a higher level and that the
former membership lacked competence. He added that he had
been influenced by foreign media coverage.

Comment
--------------


5. (C) After well over a year of delays and diversions, this
is the first credible indicator we have seen that the GOL may
finally take concrete steps to resolve the controversy.
Former chair of the Working Group, Vice Minister Sodeika, was
a severe obstacle; allegedly he has ties to the developers of
the site. The new chair, FM Vaitiekunas, has shown a
constructive attitude on this issue to us on several
occasions. Our contacts in the PM's office and the MFA
believe that progress will finally be made on this issue
soon. For the time being, however, we have visited the site
and confirmed that construction continues. We will send an
update on this situation as soon as new information is
available.

LEADER