On March 30, an event was held near the Holocaust exhibition on Pamėnkalnio st. to commemorate the Japanese Diplomat Chiune Sugihara.
This year marks 40 years since the death of Chiune Sugihara. On March 30, an event was held to honor the Japanese diplomat who extended a helping hand to people, mostly Polish Jews fleeing Nazism. At the event, participants reminisced about the visas issued by diplomat Sugihara. Shinsuke Shimizu, the Japanese Ambassador to Lithuania, and Kęstutis Vilkauskas, Chairman of the Culture Committee of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, discussed this topic. Ingrida Vilkienė, coordinator of the International Commission’s educational programs, read a speech written by Emanuelis Zingeris. He is a signatory of the Act of Independence of Lithuania, Chairman of the International Commission, and Member of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania. In the speech, Zingeris recalled the monument “Moonlight,” erected in 1992 in Sugihara’s memory on Pamėnkalnio street. Chiune Sugihara’s wife also attended the unveiling ceremony. At the same time, a cherry tree was planted in front of the monument. On March 30, the cherry tree had not yet bloomed, but it was adorned with symbolic ribbons. These ribbons bore words such as courage, respect for others, compassion, empathy, and more.
Ieva Šadzevičienė, director of the Vilnius Gaon Museum of Jewish History, presented the idea of installing informational stands by the end of summer to provide more information about the diplomat Sugihara and the monument erected in his memory.
Teachers and students from the Vilnius Naujamiesčio School, the Vilnius “Žaros” Gymnasium, and the Kaunas Jono and Petro Vileišių School attended the event.
The event commemorating Japanese diplomat Sugihara was organized by the Embassy of Japan in cooperation with the Vilnius Gaon Museum of Jewish History, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, and the International Commission for the Evaluation of the Crimes of the Nazi and Soviet Occupation Regimes in Lithuania.
