Antisemitism
has neither
increased nor decreased during the past year, Mr. Rostovtsev stated in response
to a question. The rightwing Svoboda
political party is rooted in western Ukraine and has little influence in Dnipropetrovsk,
he commented.
Mr. Rostovtsev's office manages media relations
for the Jewish community from a suite of offices, studios, and workrooms in the
Menorah Center. The financial crisis
has had a serious effect on its work, he said.
Their budget was cut 40 percent, stated Mr. Rostovtsev, forcing them to use amateur
photographers, rather than professionals, with their own cameras; often, he continued,
these cameras are the ones on people's cell phones.
People take photos at events and send them to the media center, hoping that
they can be used. He does not have enough
photographers on retainer to cover multiple concurrent events, such as Purim celebrations
of different groups. He has applied for grants
from several international organizations, Mr. Rostovtsev said, but he realizes that
most organizations everywhere are having financial problems, so he is not optimistic
about potential grant money. Mr. Rostovtsev
pointed out that the furniture in his office is second-hand, donated by PrivatBank
when it remodeled some of its premises and by the Israel Cultural Center, when the
ICC moved most of its operations in eastern Ukraine to Kharkiv.
Oleg Rostovtsev directs media relations
for Jewish community organizations in Dnipropetrovsk.
His primary client is the Chabad Philanthropic Fund.
Photo: the writer.
In response to a
question about the general mood (настроение) in Dnipropetrovsk,
Mr. Rostovtsev said that he was a pessimist last year. He had not thought that conditions
would get worse (хуже), that the crisis would become deeper (глубже), but the situation
has indeed deteriorated. Perhaps the current
year is one of adaptation to a new environment, he mused; perhaps some of the difficulties
simply reflect the rapid growth of community infrastructure.
In any case, he continued, it is impossible to be optimistic about the future.
National and
International Jewish Organizations
48.
The Dnipropetrovsk office of the Jewish Agency for Israel (Sochnut,
JAFI) serves as headquarters for JAFI operations in all of eastern Ukraine. Another JAFI office, in Kharkiv, was reduced
in size and status last year for budgetary reasons, but local coordinators continue
to represent the Agency in Kharkiv, Donetsk, Krivoi Rog, and several other cities. The writer met with Ilana Shpak, an
Israeli who supervises JAFI operations throughout eastern Ukraine, in the new JAFI
premises in the Menorah Center. The
premises include a modest multi-purpose room, several small conference rooms, a
computer facility, and office space. When
asked if the suite of rooms was cramped relative to JAFI needs, Ms. Shpak responded
that JAFI rented additional space from the Menorah Center when required for large
meetings or other events. Renting occasional
space at the "community rate" offered to Jewish organizations was much
less expensive than renting it as permanent premises, said Ms. Shpak.
The writer's visit
coincided with a presentation by representatives of the Israeli company Iscar
Metals to 35-40 local Jews who were interested in pursuing engineering careers at
the noted Israeli company. In all, about
50 people would speak with company representatives during its recruitment stop in
Dnipropetrovsk, Ms. Shpak said. When JAFI
was informed by its Israel main office that Iscar would like to speak with Dnipropetrovsk
Jews considering aliyah, JAFI called individuals in its registry who had expressed
an interest in the type of work that Iscar offered.
If Iscar and a candidate reached agreement on employment, JAF then arranged
paperwork and transportation for aliyah.
Jewish Agency
goals
in its post-Soviet operations are to strengthen the Jewish identity of local Jews,
bolster ties between local Jews and Israel, encourage aliyah (immigration) to Israel,
and develop local Jewish leadership. It pursues
four specific program strategies in pursuit of these goals, said Ms. Shpak. The first is operation of Jewish summer camps,
with strong Jewish identity-building programs, for different age groups.
The training of local young adults as counselors is part of the JAFI leadership
development track, she continued. Ms. Shpak
said that 260 children and youth from the area attended JAFI summer and/or winter
camps in 2012; the 2013 total was likely to be lower, about 210, reflecting both
financial constraints and demographic losses in these age cohorts, Ms. Shpak stated. The organization of winter camps, Shabbatonim,
and other follow-up activities was dependent upon securing additional financial
resources.
The second strategy
is providing opportunities for young people to participate in Israel experiences,
specifically Taglit (birthright Israel) and MASA.
120 individuals from the area participated in JAFI-organized Taglit tours
in 2012, Ms. Shpak stated; the number for 2013 is likely to be lower as a result
of 'competition' from other Taglit providers, such as Hillel, Nativ (government
of Israel), and other groups. However, continued Ms. Shpak, the
number of MASA participants is likely to rise from 36 to in 2012-2013 to 60 in 2013-2014. Local conditions are spurring aliyah, she said,
and many young people perceive MASA as an excellent way in which to explore opportunities
for their future lives in Israel. Many new
MASA programs have been developed, Ms. Shpak stated; young people must have a "supermarket"
of options for their five- to 10-month stays in Israel.
A recent MASA fair in Dnipropetrovsk drew 16 different MASA experience providers,
she said. In addition to participating in
a program that may be related to their career ambitions, Ms. Shpak noted, MASA young
adults also learn Hebrew and live in apartments, buy and prepare their own food,
and have other daily experiences similar to those of resident Israelis.
About 50 percent of MASA participants remain in Israel as new immigrants
after the conclusion of their MASA program, stated Ms. Shpak, and others settle
in Israel after a brief return to Ukraine.
Taglit, said Ms. Shpak, is emotion; MASA, she continued, is real life.
(МАСА - это
жизнь!)
The third strategy,
continued Ms. Shpak, is the provision of opportunities for grassroots organizing
and for leadership development. The goal of this strategy is to empower younger
Jews to build a sustainable local Jewish community, recognizing that not all young
Jews will leave Ukraine. JAFI currently is
sponsoring four different grassroots "incubator" (Hamama) projects; among
these is one fostering the development of android apps on Jewish topics and another
that attempts to plan a local Jewish community of the future.
Leadership development includes discussions on the responsibilities of leaders,
identification of leadership skills, training in leadership skills, and supervised
experience in leadership positions. Many
veterans of leadership tracks become JAFI camp counselors, youth leaders, and full-
or part-time employees of JAFI or other Jewish organizations.
JAFI makes a special effort to recruit Taglit returnees to these ventures,
said Ms. Shpak. Funding for these programs
comes from the JAFI budget, the Pincus Fund of the Jewish Agency, and money raised
by participants themselves.
The fourth strategy, Ms. Shpak, stated is encouragement
of aliyah and preparation of aliyah candidates for a smooth absorption into
Israeli society. Candidates are assisted
in learning about employment opportunities in Israel and making contacts with potential
employers, finding appropriate absorption programs in Israel, and becoming acquainted
with various facets of daily life in Israel, such as the Israeli education system,
medical insurance, the banking system, etc.
Enrollment in local Hebrew ulpan courses while still in Ukraine also is encouraged.
Ilana Shpak began her tenure in
eastern Ukraine in summer of 2012. She is
well-respected in the region.
Photo: the writer.
In response to a
question, Ms. Shpak said that JAFI is operating five ulpan groups in the
region that enroll a total of 98 students.
One such group is for university-age students only.
Additionally, she noted, JAFI manages a Sunday school in Krivoi Rog;
the school meets in the local synagogue at the invitation of the Chabad rabbi there,
who does not charge them for the space.
Local residents
are employed as aliyah coordinators in major regional cities.
Three coordinators work in Kharkiv, two in Donetsk, and one each in Krivoi
Rog, Kremenchuk, Luhansk, Mariupol, Poltava, and Sumy.
Kharkiv, with its large Jewish population and many universities and other
institutions of higher education, is so important that Ms. Shpak spends three to
six days in the city every month. She visits Donetsk for two days every
second month, she said. The local aliyah
coordinators in each city are sufficiently competent, stated Ms. Shpak, that high-quality
work is done without her immediate presence.
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