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Euroasian Jewish News
Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC) Statement.
09.03.2006
The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC) expressed a protest to the decision of the Tajikistan authorities to pull down the synagogue building in Dushanbe, the Tajikistan capital. We find it unacceptable as it deprives the Jewish citizens, both religious and secular, of the last asylum it has been for them during the last hundred years.
We applied to Tajikistan leadership several times and asked them to reconsider their decision. And we were not alone. We know that community leaders and the Ambassador of the State of Israel met with officials of different ranks. In particular, the Mayor of Dushanbe promised to the Israeli Ambassador that the old synagogue building will be pulled down only when a new one is built. The same promise was given to the community representatives by the Deputy Prime-Minister of Tajikistan when the latter visited the synagogue.
We do admit that reforms held in the country during the last ten years under the leadership of the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rakhmonov were effective and consolidated the spirit of tolerance in the sphere of interethnic and inter-confessional relations making life of the Jewish community quite comfortable.
We believe that Tajikistan authorities do not intend to harm the Jewish community in the capital, which is not numerous and, unfortunately, aged, and urge them to settle the problem amicably by offering the community another building for synagogue and community center located in then neighborhood of the former one.
Alexander Machkevitch,
President of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress,
President of the Jewish Congress of Kazakhstan
Michael Chlenov,
Secretary General of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress,
President of the Vaad of Russia
Jozef Zissels,
General Council Chairman of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress,
Chairman of the Vaad of Ukraine
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