by Sergejus Kanovičius

Rūta Vanagaitė’s book has raised several more unpleasant matters. Although it seems to talk about victims and perpetrators, neither side making comments about the book seem to care. What does interest the Genocide Center and the manipulators of history who stand behind it is the status quo of the center’s immunity, which has been seriously threatened recently, and the Jewish Community doesn’t seem to care either, because its chairwoman has voluntarily fallen into the same orchestra pit where, faking the notes, the Genocide Center symphony orchestra is performing, the shining white knights cavorting with television entertainment figures out for ratings, and someone in the background whining about Holocaust education. But the people who were pushed below the turf 75 years ago still lie there as they lay before. Usually nameless, very often surrounded by used hypodermic needles, condoms and plastic beer bottles. As nameless as their murderers. Trying to name the latter causes great controversy, and again all sorts of “I do this for you, you do that for me” deals begin to find voice, after which prosecutors are supposed to suddenly confirm a list already confirmed long ago by historical fact of those who did the shooting or helped shoot almost all Lithuanian Jews to the very last individual.

For some reason prosecutors aren’t requested to confirm lists of rescuers, or of those murdered. Just as they didn’t have to confirm a list of people who worked with the KGB. That other list is very inconvenient to representatives of the “I help you, you help me” clan. The deepest shame. An even deeper shame is that soon for some of those who, it seems, Holocaust victims and the view of that crime is only a guarantee for the (in-)stability of the political or social positions they occupy—if I blow the horn stuck in my face by from a certain institution, that means I will continue to live well enough and will live better, but if I don’t blow that horn, just wait and see what happens… And soon these people will again be fervently engaged in having themselves photographed and will mourn at the microphone set up at the edge of the pits, an entire queue of fake mourners will stand by the microphones… Which of them really cares about the victims? Does one of them care about the truth? A post and a convenient bureaucratic swimming with the current, which means that again, a year later, totally apathetic regarding that crime, they will speak about it into the microphone… Because that’s what should be done. And if what needs to be done is to lie to their faces, you will again lie. Because it’s not the victims and the perpetrators you care about. Talking about the victims and the perpetrators could cost people their jobs. It pays to keep silent. Just as it pays to lie. Sometimes payment is in kind: I will keep silent about your sins, and you won’t notice mine. The wheel comes full circle and closes and the average drunk’s bladder rushes to the tree holding vigil over the mortal remains of Sarah and Chaim, who were shot by Petras or Vytas. You may only call Sarah or Chaim by name. Without permission from the prosecutors. You aren’t allowed to name Petras or Vytas…