jewish cemeteries, synagogues, and mass grave sites in ukraine

cemetery sites. Thus, many Jewish cemeteries were destroyed during this period, and thousands
of Ukrainians now live atop the graves of generations of Jews.
Cemeteries also became the sites of sport complexes, and more. In some cases, newly-made
reservoirs and ponds flooded Jewish cemeteries. As for the places of mass execution of Jews, in
most cases they were not marked by any means or were not marked as Jewish mass burial sites,
just as sites of “Soviet martyrs.” Only since 1991, have places of mass execution of Jews begun
to be marked, thanks mostly to financial contributions from foreign individuals. At present,
there are still too few of these places properly recognized.
IV.3
The Care for Jewish Sites in Independent Ukraine
Since 1991, there has been a gradual recognition of the identity of numerous Jewish sites. Full
legal recognition of Jewish communal ownership of religious and other buildings, as well as the
establishment and recognition of the historic boundaries of cemeteries involves, however,
extensive research and, oftentimes, lengthy litigation. Even then, the final disposition of a
property may have as much to do with the prestige and power of the current occupant or user as
to any established legal claim. Thus, in many cities where there are established or newly revived
Jewish communities, some properties have been returned for Jewish use. Most of these are
former synagogues in need of costly repairs.
International Jewish organizations, including the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee,
Agudath Israel, and the World Jewish Restitution Organization, have all played a role in this
property restitution process. Smaller groups have also intervened directly to assist Ukrainian
Jewish communities bear the cost of renovations. Early in the process, for example, the Jewish
Community Relations Council of Cincinnati, Ohio (USA) joined the Jewish Community of
Kharkiv in their efforts to reclaim and restore the synagogue of that city. 46
IV.3 (a) Cemeteries
Unlike synagogues, the recovery and restoration of cemeteries has been much slower. The
reason is that protection of these sites is not an urgent social need, although, it is a pious duty and
cultural obligation. Main cemeteries in communities that have Jewish inhabitants are being
nominally maintained.
The hundreds of cemeteries in more remote areas, especially western Ukraine, where few Jews
live, remain in sorry condition. Of the 731 cemeteries visited as part of this survey, 60% have no
wall, fence, or gate. A full 90%, have no sign indicating their presence, intended use, or history.
For the most part, economic pressures for development remain scant in these small agricultural
centers, but there is always the risk of theft of stones for construction, or the opening of new
paths and roads across the grounds of cemeteries without walls or fences.
As the data collected for this report demonstrates, the majority of Jewish cemeteries and mass
burial sites in Ukraine are abandoned and neglected. They lack clearly marked boundaries,
46 For a full description of the process of communal property restitution in Ukraine and other countries of the former
Soviet Union, as well as of 49 synagogues returned for use by Ukraine’s Jewish communities, in 2004, the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine published that 55 of 109 listed synagogues had been returned, see Michael Beizer,
Our Legacy: The CIS Synagogues, Past and Present (Moscow and Jerusalem: Gesharim, 2002).
42