Congressman Gregory W. Meeks Statement on Lithuanian Compensation of Jewish Communal Property

June 24, 2011

Congressman Gregory W. Meeks Statement on Lithuanian Compensation of Jewish Communal Property

(WASHINGTON, DC)– Congressman Gregory W. Meeks (NY-6), Senior Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Financial Services Committee released the following statement:

This week Lithuania’s parliament passed legislation that will provide compensation for hospitals, schools, and other property belonging to the Lithuanian Jewish Community prior to World War II. I commend the leadership of Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius Speaker of Parliament Degutiene, Member of Parliament Ceslovas Stankevicius, and his fellow legislators for taking this tremendously important step toward just recompense for legacy of the Holocaust.

While compensation will never make up for the losses this community suffered during the war, the strides that Lithuania has made toward reconciliation and to commemorate its once vibrant Jewish community and history are notable and positive. In the past few years, Lithuania has moved to preserve a centuries-old Jewish cemetery; Lithuanian authorities have identified sites of WWII-era mass graves and properly lay to rest recovered remains; and Lithuania incorporated tolerance education into the public school curriculum. Passage of this legislation reflects the years of consultations and involved efforts of numerous individuals. I applaud the dedication of U.S. Ambassador Anne Derse and her predecessors, Rabbi Andrew Baker of the American Jewish Committee, Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat and the State Department’s Special Envoy Ambassador Douglas Davidson who helped realize this U.S. foreign policy objective.