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The Internet, in its role as a superhighway of international communication is, I feel, the most important invention of modern times. The press, despite its many achievements, is limited in many ways, not only in terms of its global reach but also, among other things, due to the control exercised by groups, heads of state or private individuals. In many cases this can result in limited access that does not allow freedom of expression for all. As a consequence, the Internet, in contrast to the traditional press, enables immediate and unlimited delivery of messages across the globe.

It was our desire for years to utilize this media so that we could deliver our message to the international community. Unfortunately, we had neither the means nor the individuals  willing to take this task upon themselves. The concept of an association website was finally brought to fruition thanks to the initiative of our association members Arie Shilansky and Abe Larwe. We established an editorial commission which has conceived and developed the message we aim to deliver through this site.

We, the remnants of Lithuanian Jewry, are living witnesses to the terrible Holocaust and destruction of the majority of Lithuanian Jewry. We can never forget the horrors we saw,  especially those perpetrated against us  by Lithuanians with whom we coexisted for hundreds of years. This wesbite will enable us to send many important messages to the world, to the Lithuanian people and most importantly to our future generations.

Our messages have a special significance because we represent a magnificent Jewry, which, during its existence, developed a unique heritage, spiritual tradition and moral ethos. This was a community that produced scientific geniuses, rabbinical scholars, and gifted people in many fields of spiritual and material creativity, as well as sociology and philosophy. It was because of these unique features that Lithuanian Jewry was held in such high esteem by Jewish communities everywhere.

The Internet will, therefore, be the most fitting tool to communicate this legacy to our future

Regrettably, despite the devastating Holocaust of World War Two, we still have to defend ourselves against waves of anti Semitism on the Internet. It is especially painful to read anti Semitic attacks by Lithuanians who killed proportionally more Jews during the Holocaust than any other nation in the world.

The citizens of this nation not only killed nearly all Lithuanian Jews but also roamed all over east and central Europe killing hundreds of thousands more Jews (see section – The horrors of the Holocaust).  Instead of asking for forgiveness from the Jewish people they chose to deny the killings and adopted a policy under which they refused to restore citizenship rights to Lithuanian Jews living in Israel, refused to return property that Lithuanians stole from the victims they killed and avoided  prosecuting Lithuanian war criminals for the murder of Jews.

We will try to deal with these issues and give reliable information as to what transpired at that time and provide an appopriate response to those who slander us.  We will present people with material relating to Lithuanian Jewry over the ages  and their key historical achievements in education, culture and the economy. We will also, on the other hand, examine the origins of Lithuanian hatred of Jews, which exploded with bestial fury in June 1941, bringing about  the annihilation of Lithuanian Jewry. (See section Lithuanian Jewry).

 In the memorial section we will describe our various commemorative activities including our handling of the problems relating to memorials as well as the killing fields, strewn all over Lithuania. We have also provided a  bibliography of the books, periodicals and other Holocaust archive documentation that we have painstakingly collected over many years and which is now stored in the association library.

In the section entitled ‘Association of Lithuanian Jews in Israel’ you will find information about the Association and in the section ‘write to us’ we will answer letters, responses, and suggestions.

Adv. Joseph A. Melamed, Chairman