35. One year after
transferring its Consulate for eastern Ukraine to Kharkiv from
Dnipropetrovsk,
the Government of Israel re-opened the Dnipropetrovsk consulate and its
attached Israel Cultural Center in office space within the Menorah
Center. Among other responsibilities, the Consulate provides Israeli entry
visas to new immigrants, a major convenience that eliminates the necessity of
travel to consulates in Kyiv or Kharkiv for such documents. Although the
official consul resides in Kyiv and is in Dnipropetrovsk only one week each
month, local activist Jews and Jewish organizations seemed greatly relieved
that an official representation of the State of Israel is once again present in
their city.
The major function of
the Israel Cultural Center, said an ICC professional, is to "bring
Israel to all people, not just Jews, in the area." It is important that
Ukrainians be exposed to Israel culture, education, and other fields, including
medicine and technology. The ICC organizes "Israel Days" in local
universities, offering presentations by Israeli specialists in computer
science, other high tech fields, and even Hebrew literature. Local
universities are eager for such events, said the professional, although current
political tension generated by Russian activity in Ukraine has rendered some
higher education institutions unable to plan ahead for them.
Additionally,
continued the professional, the government of Israel sponsors events showcasing
Israeli culture, including Israeli film festivals and tours of Israel musical
and theater groups. They have sent Israeli chefs to local restaurants
and other venues to demonstrate modern Israeli cooking and, thus, dispel
beliefs that Jewish cooking must be heavy, dense, tasteless, and unhealthy.
Representing Nativ,
an Israeli government entity outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that
deals with Russian-speaking Jewry, the Israel Culture Center also offers its
own ulpans and its own MASA programs.
The ICC also created and manages a version of the Israeli Scout program,
targeting youngsters whose families are uninvolved in any other Jewish
endeavors. The Scout program enrolls 40 youngsters in Dnipropetrovsk and has
additional groups in Krivoi Rog, Donetsk, and Melitopol. In August, said the
ICC professional, Nativ would convene three four-day Scout camps in Ukraine,
each enrolling 300 youngsters.
Responding to a
question about aliyah, the ICC professional stated that young families
seeking better opportunities for their children constitute a major portion of
local Jews moving to Israel. Another significant group consists of middle-age
adults joining their adolescent or young adult children who have already made
aliyah in the Na'aleh, Selah, or other programs for these age groups. Some
older people, said the professional, go to Israel for medical care, although
some in this age cohort also join family members already there.
36. The sister-city
relationship between the Boston and Dnipropetrovsk Jewish communities,
various details of which are noted elsewhere in this section, was initiated in
1992
and today is the most comprehensive of any “kehilla” project connecting North
American and post-Soviet Jewish population centers. It involves both Jewish
and non-sectarian entities in each city, although most of the latter appear to
have been promoted by Boston-area Jews. The relationship also includes some
projects involving Haifa, Boston’s partner city in Israel.
The relationship is
enabled by a number of different Jewish organizations in the Boston area, all
of which are associated in some way with Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP)
of Greater Boston, the local Jewish federation, and the Jewish Community
Relations Council (JCRC), a CJP agency. As noted previously, Action for
Post-Soviet Jewry, an independent organization, created and manages the
Adopt-a-Bubbe program, and Jewish Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Greater Boston (a
CJP agency) inspired and advises its Dnipropetrovsk counterpart, known as Older
Brother, Older Sister. CJP, JCRC, and other Federation agencies related to
Jewish education, employment services, and children's and elder care services
all participate in this relationship. Additionally, various Boston physicians
and medical institutions have played critically important roles in enhancing
women's health programs and pediatric care in Dnipropetrovsk.
Although some refer
to the relationship as a “partnership,” almost all initiatives and funding
originate in Boston. The major funding source is an allocation from CJP to
JCRC; however, some programs - particularly Action for Post-Soviet Jewry -
raise money separately. A Young Leadership group of CJP, in addition to CJP as
a broader institution, also is involved. Unlike other relationships between
North American Jewish federations and post-Soviet Jewish population centers,
the Boston-Dnipropetrovsk relationship does not include collaborative projects
with the Joint Distribution Committee (except for monthly teleconferences on
special needs children), te Jewish Agency for Israel, or the Hillel student
organization.
Yan
Sidelkovsky,
who manages the relationship in Dnipropetrovsk, stated that several planned
delegations from Boston had cancelled trips scheduled for March and April,
reflecting anxiety about their safety in Ukraine. However, the chairman of the
Boston Dnipropetrovsk kehilla project and a JCRC staff member visited in June
and discussions are moving forward about significant Boston involvement in the
new premises of the Jewish Medical Center in the Menorah building. Boston is
providing very valuable consulting services regarding facility design and will
assist the JMC in acquiring necessary medical apparatus and tech- nology.
Additionally Boston physicians will organize continuing medical education for
selected local doctors in an effort to upgrade local medical practice.
Shown at right is a section of the
space in the Menorah Center in which the Jewish Medical Center will be
located. Photo dates from June 2014.
Photo: Ann Levin, Boston
Chairperson of the Dnipropetrovsk Kehilla Project.
Mr. Sidelkovsky
continued that the new focus of Boston medical work is primary
care, family medicine, and development of a Jewish community medical system.
Previously, CJP had concentrated more on certain specialties, particularly
women's health. The Boston effort also is directing more attention to special
needs education, using the Special Needs Educational Resource Center as a base.
37. Responding to a
request from the writer, Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki arranged an appointment for her
with Boris Filatov, Deputy Governor of Dnipropetrovsk oblast. Mr.
Filatov reports directly to Ihor Kolomoisky, Governor and a major financial
supporter of Ukrainian independence.
Mr. Filatov
underlined that the situation vis-a-vis Russia is fundamentally different in
Dnipropetrovsk from that in Kharkiv to the north or either Donetsk or Luhansk
to the south. Unlike Kharkiv/Donetsk/Luhansk, Dnipropetrovsk does not
border on Russia; therefore, it is more difficult for Russia to infiltrate
political agitators or harmful materiel into Dnipropetrovsk oblast. Further,
he said, it is problematic for Russia to agitate in Dnipropetrovsk on a Russian
nationalist platform because Dnipropetrovsk has long been tolerant of minority
groups; historically, the oblast has been home to large Jewish, Armenian, and
Azerbaizhani minorities so local people are accustomed to living among others
of different backgrounds and do not respond well to suggestions that one group
is superior to others.
Governor
Kolomoisky has determined four priorities for the oblast, said Mr.
Filatov. First, he said, is the primacy of continuing political dialog in an
effort to reach consensus on major issues and to unify the population. Mr.
Filatov will speak with representatives of any group that wishes to speak with
him, even people who are mashugana (Yiddish [spelling varies]; crazy).
Second, repression of people who were loyal to the Party of Regions (the party
of Yanukhovych) will not be tolerated; these individuals were
"hostages" to conditions beyond their control. Third, all action
proceeds on the principles of complete territorial integrity of Ukraine and
national authority of the central government in Kyiv. Fourth, guilty
individuals, that is, those who committed violent acts against individuals or
property will be pursued and punished.
Boris Filatov is Deputy Governor of
Dnipropetrovsk oblast and reports directly to the Governor, Jewish oligarch
Ihor Kolo-moisky. Mr. Filatov was very outspoken during the interview, which
occurred on April 4. A large Ukrainian flag stands next to his desk.
Photo: the writer.
In speaking with
various interest groups, Mr. Filatov said, consensus has been reached on
a number of different principles. All recognize that federalization and
language primacy (Ukrainian or Russian) are explosive issues and, therefore,
have agreed to postpone discussion on them until stability is restored to the
country. All have agreed that military weapons and face masks will be removed
from private persons. The different parties have agreed to abstain from
insulting each other; specifically, they have agreed to abstain from mentioning
Vladimir Lenin or Stepan Bandera in their speeches or on their websites; they
have agreed to refrain from using symbols of extremist groups. They will not
hold public demonstrations.
Documents stating
these principles have been signed (in both Ukrainian and Russian) by all
interest groups, said Mr. Filatov. In order to discourage opponents of the
agree-ments from attacking the signers for their "softness," the
names of the signers have not been publicized.
In addition to issues
concerning Russia, Dnipropetrovsk oblast also is attempting to address certain
basic domestic issues in the area. For example, said Mr. Filatov, it has
established task forces on corruption, open business practices, and comparable
matters. Everything now is "rotten," he stated.
When asked if the
writer could discuss his views publicly, Mr. Filatov responded affirmatively.
Truth will be helpful to Ukraine, he said. Truth is essential in all
"civilized" societies, he continued. He observed that Russia is
broadcasting anti-Ukrainian propaganda to Israel and Germany, countries in
which many Russian-speakers reside. Mr. Filatov expressed disappointment that
the government of Israel had declined to express public support for Ukraine in
the current situation, but said that he understands Israeli caution about
antagonizing Russia.
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