ANTISEMITISM | LITHUANIA
◊
From the Saga of Žemaitaitis
A publicly antisemitic party is in the governing coalition of one of the Eastern EU member states for the first time, raising deep concerns both near and far
NOTE: These highlighted facets, Nov. 2024 through January 2025, do not represent a chronological history. They represent salient landmarks in the saga from the perspective of Defending History.
His party is in the governing coalition of an EU state
◊
Andrew Higgins in the New York Times on inclusion of party of avowed antisemitic MP Remigijus Žemaitaitis in Lithuania’s new governing coalition; Defending History is cited. As PDF.
Elchonon Baron, rabbi and head of Jerusalem yeshiva rooted in Lithuania, a champion of preserving heritage of Litvak Jewry, issued a last-minute plea. He met for 45 minutes with PM designate Gintautas Paluckas at the National Library on 7 Nov. During those critical hours and days leading up to the coalition agreement, the state-funded, official “Jewish (Litvak) Community of Lithuania” maintained public silence, but a robust statement did go up late on 9 Nov.
Sample Facebook post by Žemaitaitis, with annotated translation by Defending History.
Over thirty organizations appeal to Social Democrats to cancel agreement with antisemite’s party. Letters of protest from US Senator Ben Cardin, chair of Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and from members of Germany’s Bundestag and Poland’s Seim.
Lithuanian Jews who spoke out loud and clear: Arkady Kurliandchik. Liova Kaplan (2) (3). Sergey Kanovich (Sergejus Kanovičius).
Delfi.lt’s report. Social Democrats’ Rasa Budbergytė explains that they “hear the USA” but Žemaitaitis has “learned his lesson”. As if public posting of vicious antisemitic tropes for years, here on ground zero of the Holocaust in a country where 96.4% of the Jewish population was massacred, is a minor detail and “learning not to post” such things fixes all in the eyes of EU, America and the West, and above all, the overwhelming majority of tolerant citizens of Lithuania. Reports that American Embassy is quietly applying pressure, feeding the populist Žemaitaitis line that Lithuania risks becoming an American colony…
Vilnius observers noting “night and day” contrast with 2012 Social Democrats’ then courage and integrity in standing up to Conservatives’ many projects to “fix the Holocaust” via revisionist “Double Genocide” pseudohistory featuring state glorification of Holocaust perpetrators (and prosecutions and defamation of Holocaust survivors who joined the anti-Nazi resistance). Six SD parliamentarians signed the 2012 Seventy Years Declaration, and were themselves defamed by the then foreign minister, and — robustly defended by British MPs (the saga). Indeed, leader of the bold Social Democrats of 2012, Vytenis Andriukaitis, speaks up now about alliance with antisemitic party, votes against his own party’s coalition project.
Israeli embassy responds to Lithuanian gov. requests that it meet with the “party of antisemites”.
AJC’s Andrew Baker and LJC’s Faina Kukliansky meet speaker of parliament. They went to “protest” but as usual came away with nothing but another handsome PR photo-op. The antisemitic party remains a proud part of today’s Lithuanian government coalition. But the state-funded “Good Will Foundation” which spends tens of millions in Lithuanian taxpayer fund controlled at the whim of both machers (non-rotating permanent joint chairs) touts a supposed success.
Media reports: Reuters (2) (3); Jerusalem Post; The Times of Israel. Comment by Rimvydas Valatka in Delfi.lt.
Bravo, Lithuania, on substantial demonstrations opposing inclusion of “the antisemitic party” in new governing coalition: Reuters; LRT (2)