The International Commission for the Evaluation of the Crimes of the Nazi and Soviet Occupation Regimes in Lithuania

In September 25, 2002, International Commission has signed cooperation contracts with Holocaust Centre Beth Shalom, International School for Holocaust Studies of Yad Vashem, The Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, and New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education.

The parties agreed on developing their cooperation seeking:

1. To contribute to the creation of the Holocaust education program for the secondary schools of Lithuania,

2. To participate in the preparation of the Holocaust education program, methodology, handbooks for the teachers and textbooks for the pupils and students referring to the advanced methodologies of foreign countries, to the accumulated knowledge and experience taking into consideration the peculiarities of the history of Lithuania

3. To motivate and to train professionally the sufficient number of the teachers of the secondary schools through Lithuania.

4. To unify and coordinate the efforts of the main institutions in the area of Holocaust education.

International Commission annually signs short-term cooperation agreements with B’nai B’rith International concerning organization of the seminars for the teachers on Holocaust education.

International Commission also cooperates with:

* Facing History and Ourselves and Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation: together oranizing teachers’ training programmes;

* National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism: partners in organizing International Vilnius Forum in 2000 and international conference “Holocaust in Lithuania in the Focus of Modern History, Education and Justice” in 2002;

* U. S. Holocaust Memorial Museum: teachers from Lithuanian participate in summer seminars organized by them.

In 2002, Lithuania became a member of the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research (International Task Force, ITF), assuming an obligation to discuss regularly the issue of the Holocaust, to improve the studies of the causes, course of events, and repercussions of the Holocaust in Lithuanian schools, universities, public organizations, non-governmental organizations, to inform the public, particularly young people, of the latest investigations of modern history.

The Executive Director of International Commission is a member of Lithuania Task Force group and participates in the annual Task Force meetings. Task Force finances the education projects and teachers’ training seminars on Holocaust education initiated and implemented by the International Commission.