Betsy Gidiwitz Reports

[2] All population estimates can be found on the World Gazetteer website. See: http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php x=&men=gcis&lng=en&des=wg&srt=npan&col=abcdefghinoq&msz=1500&geo=-220. Retrieved April 12, 2009. In addition to the official figure quoted above, the population of Kyiv includes a large number of unreported migrant workers, both Ukrainians from villages and foreigners. However, many of the former have returned to their native towns in response to declining economic opportunities in the Ukrainian capital.

[4] Demographic trends in Russia are similar. Population loss in both countries reflects poor health care, inadequate nutrition, substance abuse (tobacco, alcohol, narcotics), aging of the population, low fertility, high mortality, emigration of younger age cohorts, impoverishment, and environmental degradation.

[5] World Factbook, ibid. Life expectancy in Russia is 59.33 years for men and 73.14 for women.

[6] The writer observed a demonstration of about 50 people outside a closed branch of Nadra Bank in Dnipropetrovsk. Demonstrators were carrying placards with slogans demanding that the bank release money in their accounts. Other individuals reported problems in obtaining cash from their accounts in other banks.

[7] Reported in Kyiv Post, 20:3 (April 9, 2009). The sovereign foreign debt of Ukraine is $24 billion and is expected to grow.

[8] Rusyns, also referred to as Carpatho-Rusyns, are a Slavic ethnic group that is descended from Ruthenians. Rusyns live in the Carpathian Mountain area in Ukraine and in Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and Serbia. Although no sovereign Rusyn state has ever existed, Rusyns have retained their identity, language, and culture.

[9] The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is governed by three distinct patriarchies. The Moscow patriarchy, which is by far the wealthiest, controls almost 68 percent of Ukrainian Orthodox communities, whereas the Kyiv patriarchy controls only 24 percent. An Autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church is independent and commands the loyalty of about seven percent of Ukrainian Orthodox communities, most in western Ukraine. See George Woloshyn, The Patriarch s New Clothes, Kyiv Post, 14:8 (February 19, 2009), page 4. Mr. Woloshyn, an American, writes that Orthodox Christians comprise 51.4% of all Ukrainians, Protestants 28.4 percent, Catholics (Greek and Roman rites) about 13 percent, Muslims 3.6 percent, and Jews 0.8 percent. Traditional Orthodox churches have been losing influence in Ukraine to Protestant churches, reports Mr. Woloshyn.

[10] In March 16 Ternopil general elections, an openly Ukrainian nationalist and antisemitic political party called Свобода (Freedom) earned 35 percent of the total votes cast, the largest number of any party in the contest, for seats on the Ternopil city council. The party, led by notorious antisemite Oleh Tyahnybok, captured 50 of the 120 seats; observers fear that the Ternopil victory may encourage Mr. Tyahnybok to post a slate in forthcoming national elections, where it is expected that the economic and political crisis may generate enough votes to propel him past the three percent minimum to earn seats in the Ukrainian Rada (parliament.). Ternopil is located in western Ukraine between Lviv and Vynnytsya. The current population of the city is about 230,000, including no more than several hundred, overwhelmingly elderly, Jews.

[11] The writer spoke with five individuals in Kyiv about MAUP. All acknowledged that the institution is no longer promoting antisemitism. All attributed the change in policy to outside pressure on the Academy, but no speaker seemed certain of the origin of such pressure; among the sources mentioned were the SBU (Служба безпеки України - СБУ; successor service to the KGB branch in the Ukraine), the Ukraine Ministry of Education, and other government agencies. It is likely that criticism from foreign organizations motivated the Ukrainian government to demand a change in MAUP practice. The individual who was president of MAUP during its antisemitic period no longer holds that position.

[12] The writer encountered a growing number of Orthodox rabbis who are now quietly admitting non-halachic Jews to their programs. Without exception, they acknowledged that such individuals are critical to the sustenance of such programs. Several such rabbis also implored the writer to refrain from identifying them publicly for fear of antagonizing rabbinic authorities in Israel with whom they had reached agreement on issues related to Jewish status.

The rate of intermarriage among Jews in Ukraine is widely believed to be 80 to 90 percent.

[13] Encyclopedia Judaica, Vol. 12 (Jerusalem: Keter Publishing House, 1971), p. 1319.

[14] The Law of Return of the State of Israel specifies that individuals with at least one Jewish grandparent are eligible of Israeli citizenship.

[15] The rabbis and their empires are discussed below.

[16] See pages 21-22 for further discussion of Beit Grand. Community complaints about the Center echo those of St. Petersburg Jews about a comparable JDC institution in their city. See the writer s Observations on Jewish Community Life in Russia (Moscow and St. Petersburg): Report of a Visit, September 7-24, 2008, pages 111-113. Most of the writer s reports are available at www.betsygidwitzreports.com.

[17] A large number of Jewish schools in the post-Soviet states are located in former kindergarten buildings, many of which were designed for enrollments of fewer than 200 children between the ages of three and six. These buildings became available to Jewish institutions as a result of general population decline and the cessation of pre-school sponsorship by trade unions, factories, and other concerns that was common during the Soviet period. Because these structures were intended for small children, they do not contain science laboratories, appropriate physical education facilities, auditoriums, or other provisions commonly required for older pupils. Many Jewish day schools now occupying such buildings find suitable renovations prohibitively expensive or, in some cases, structurally impossible.

[18] Chabad schools, which are dominant in the post-Soviet states, usually schedule only six to eight classes of Jewish studies per week, including Jewish tradition, Jewish history/literature, and Hebrew.

[19] Obliged by budget shortfalls to eliminate subsidies to Jewish day schools in the post-Soviet states, the Jewish Agency notified such schools on August 31, 2008, that no allocations would be made for the 2008-2009 academic year.

[20] Tikva was established by Rabbi Baksht with active support from Ohr Somayach. However, financial constraints forced Ohr Somayach to end its financial and legal ties with the program, which now operates as an independent institution. Despite the lack of formal ties, however, Tikva and Ohr Somayach operate in an effective partnership in Odesa.

Tikva has received only occasional and very minor support from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

[21] A recruitment brochure distributed by the University lists courses of professional study, but does not mention compulsory Jewish studies or participation in prayer services.

[22] Mr. Lieberman was born in neighboring Moldova, an area considered backward by many Russians and urban Ukrainians. However, Mr. Biderman was firm in stating that his objection was to Mr. Lieberman s rightwing politics and often crude mannerisms, not Mr. Lieberman's origins.

[23] Migdal pays for the coal that is used in heating the building, custodial staff, and an elderly security guard.

[24] The website includes information about Migdal activities, as well as news about Israel, Jewish demography, an interactive forum, and numerous other features. Am abbreviated English-language version is accessible.

[25] See pages 9-10 and 12-15 for information about educational programs associated with Rabbi Baksht.

[26] STARS (Student Torah Alliance for Russian Speakers) aims to educate halachically-Jewish young people between the ages of 18 and 25 in Jewish tradition, philosophy, lifestyle, and history. It was introduced in the post-Soviet states in 2006 and is supported by Eli Horin of Brazil and Lev Leviev, a Tashkent-born businessman with homes in England, Israel, and Moscow. Participants receive stipends to attend weekly classes.

[27] The writer met Rabbi Avrum Wolf and his brother, Rabbi Iosif Wolf, in Kherson in 1996. Rabbi Iosif Wolf is now the Chief Rabbi of Kherson.

[28] See page 10 for a description of the Chabad day school. Its operating expenses are high because it uses multiple separate buildings.

[30] The Law of Return grants immigration rights to individuals with at least one Jewish grandparent. Such individuals may be joined by non-Jewish first-degree relatives.

[31] Camps are no longer supported by allocations from the JAFI core budget, but are dependent on supplemental funds, most of which are contributed through Jewish federations in North America.

[32] Nativ was known formerly as Lishkat Hakesher or the Liaison Office. During the Soviet period, its operations were directed from the office of the Prime Minister of Israel. Bargaining between Israeli political parties resulted in the transfer of Nativ to Mr. Lieberman s effective control in recent years.

[35] Most women in Ukraine are forced to retire at age 55, most men at age 60. As noted on page 4, the International Monetary Fund believes that Ukraine should raise these retirement ages.

[36] Few hospitals provide these services in Ukraine (or Russia).

[37] Budgetary constraints have forced a reduction in food services from hot meals when the program was launched to tea and cookies today.

[38] Grigoriy Ivanovich Petrovsky (1878-1958) was a prominent local pre-revolutionary political agitator, exile, and subsequent political figure in the city. His family name was combined with that of the Dnipr River to produce the current city name of Dnipropetrovsk.

[39] Two caveats are important in considering the economic capacity of Dnipropetrovsk. First, the city lacks the high-quality academic and intellectual infrastructure that is found in other large Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Donetsk. Second, many of the Jewish oligarchs who powered the city s growth in the 1990 s and earliest years of the 21st century have left Dnipropetrovsk and have resettled in Kyiv or in western Europe. It is too early to predict the impact of their departure, but some observers fear that some or all will turn their philanthropic attention elsewhere.

[40] According to Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki, an independent company will be formed to manage the commercial space so that the Jewish community is not entangled in disputes over leasing agreements and other commercial issues.

[42] Ukraine currently is in transition to a new school curriculum from a Soviet-era 10-year public education system with no fourth grade; under the Soviet model, children entered school at age seven and graduated from high school after grade 11 at age 17. Reforms now in progress will lead to a 12-year system with school entry at age six and graduation at age 18. The first cohort of youngsters to have entered school under the new reforms is now in eighth grade.

[43] Because it is a public school, teachers of secular subjects at School #144 are paid by the state. However, because teachers salaries are low, schools must pay supplements to attract the most effective teachers.

[44] Standardized national exams, comparable to the American SAT exams, were introduced to provide an objective measure of an individual s readiness for post-high school studies. The university admissions process in both Ukraine and Russia had become broadly corrupted by extensive bribery.

[45] Other factors working in favor of School #144 (and Jewish schools generally in Ukraine and Russia) are an absence of drug use among pupils, which is a growing problem in public and private schools, and the failure of many new, often very expensive private schools to achieve high academic standards.

[46] Hennadiy Boholubov, who is President of the Philanthropic Fund of the Dnipropetrovsk [Chabad] Jewish Community, and Ihor Kolomoisky, another prominent Dnipropetrovsk Jewish philanthropist, are co-owners of PrivatBank, the largest commercial bank in Ukraine. (Mr. Boholubov now spends most of his time in Kyiv and Mr. Kolomoisky has lived in Switzerland for some years.)

[47] Rabbi Weber said that 22 Beit Chana teachers are employed in Kyiv Jewish day schools, including the three Chabad-related schools (Perlina, Simcha, Mitzva) in the city, as well as Rabbi Bleich s school.

[48] Rabbi Kaminezki told the writer that he perceives Hillel as a promising alternative Jewish program for students who are not comfortable in the more religious STARS classes.

[49] See pages 93-94 for an interview with Dr. Anatoly Podolsky, Director of the Kyiv program.

[50] The second such facility is located in Kyiv. See pages 105-107.

[51] See pages 52-53 for an interview with Mr. Brez.

[52] The wealthiest people in Beit Baruch are World War II combat veterans, who receive generous pension bonuses.

[53] Ms. Kizhner stated that the leading causes of death were cancer, heart problems, and strokes.

[54] Beit Barukh has received significant assistance from specialists in Boston in dealing with dementia and with broken hips.

[55] Ufa is in Bashkortostan, just to the west of the Ural Mountains.

[56] The program also operates in several other cities. However, this report deals only with the actions that are directed from its Dnipropetrovsk office. In addition to assisting Jews, Adopt-A-Bubbe also reaches out to elderly Righteous Gentiles, i.e., those from families who helped Jews during the Holocaust.

[57] Yan Sidelkovsky also represents the Boston Jewish community in Dnipropetrovsk. See page 63.

[58] The coordinators, who used to be volunteers, now receive small stipends for their AAB work.

[59] Some may have had underground connections to Chabad during the Soviet era, but none had been openly religiously observant and few had any substantive Jewish education. All such families, whether foreign or local in origin, said Rabbi Kaminezki, now follow the Chabad dress code and are religiously observant in the Chabad tradition.

[60] See pages 87-88 for information about the Markovich school in Kyiv.

[61] See pages 41-43 for interviews with Rabbi Stambler.

[62] The Philanthropic Fund fiscal year corresponds to the Jewish calendar year.

[63] Construction of the Menorah Center is a project of Hennadiy Boholubov, not the Chabad community.

[64] The Holodmor (famine, pronounced golodmor in Russian) refers to the 1932-33 famine in Ukraine in which more than two million people died of starvation as a result of forced collectivization. Many Ukrainians believe that the Holodmor was an act of anti-Ukrainian genocide.

[65] The NKVD (НКВД, Народный Комиссариат Внутренних Дел; Narodnyy Komissariat Vnutrennikh Del) or People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs fulfilled both public police and secret police roles during the Stalinist era. It implemented the policy of political repression and police terror that characterized this period.

[66] The writer heard of several instances in which the loan fund also was used by men who had asked women to apply on their behalf.

[67] An abbreviated English-language option is available.

[68] Mr. Grinberg previously served as JAFI education shaliach in Dnipropetrovsk when the education portfolio was assigned as a discrete position.

[69] Several of these concentrations include intensive instruction in English.

[70] The Genesis Philanthropy Group was established in 2007 to bolster Jewish identity among Russian-speaking Jews. See the writer s Observations on Jewish Community Life in Russia, September 2008, pages 81-82.

[71] The Israeli Culture Center (see below) offers ulpans without charge to participants. However, these are often considered to be of lower quality and usually do not include structured Jewish identity components.

[72] Ms. Masakovskaya is the daughter of STARS coordinator Yosif Masakovsky. See pages 38-39.

[73] See pages 44-46 for information about the hesed in Dnipropetrovsk.

[74] The day school had opened in 2001 and enrolled 140 youngsters at its peak. The former school building in which it was housed is 4000 square meters in size. The move to the new building saves the community $10,000 each month in utilities and bus transportation charges, said Rabbi Stambler. (The synagogue is centrally located, close to bus lines and the central market.) Chabad owns the old school building and will wait until the real estate market improves to sell it.

[75] One individual familiar with foreign student enrollment in Kharkiv said that a substantial number of Arabs and other foreign Moslems study at various post-secondary education institutions in the city. However, continued this source, Islamic and/or pro-Palestinian agitation is minimal because security forces are quick to deport any foreigners who espouse extremist views.

[76] See page 73 for information about Beit Dan, the Jewish community center.

[77] Mr. Shoichet is a former national boxing champion of Ukraine and has coached some pupils individually.

[78] An ancillary program of the regular lyc e is a special needs initiative that enrolls 14 youngsters with psychological or developmental issues on a part-time basis and four children with limited intellectual capacity in home-tutoring.

See pages 75-76 for information about a Sha alvim community and learning center in the middle of the city that also is threatened with closure.

[79] The city owns the building, a former public school, in which the lyc e is located.

[80] The economics major resembles a business administration concentration in American universities and colleges.

[81] To date, the only foreign language offered is English.

[82] See page 76 for information about the STARS program in Kharkiv that is operated by the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America.

[83] The facility is named after Shaike Dan, who parachuted with others into Romania behind Nazi lines during World War II to rescue Jewish prisoners and arrange their departure to pre-state Israel. Mr. Dan later played a critical role in persuading Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaucescu to permit Romanian Jews to emigrate to Israel.

[84] The dormitories previously accommodated out-of-town high school pupils attending Lyc e Sha alvim (see pages 70-71), but because enrollment in that school has declined, these facilities now accommodate out-of-town university students. Local teens and young adults who wish to observe a full Shabbat also use the dormitory rooms.

[85] Rabbi Assraf is the founding rabbi of the OU Kharkiv project. He continues to supervise it from Israel, where he now lives.

[86] See the writer s Jewish Community Life in Post-Kuchma Ukraine, Report of a Visit, March 20 to April 8, 2005, pages 52-53, for a report of an earlier interview with Mr. Murashkovsky.

[87] Local Jews are reluctant to support JDC in most post-Soviet cities because they regard it as a foreign organization controlled by non-indigenous forces. Although Ms. Galkevich is a local individual, she is not Jewish and thus is not considered a member of the Jewish community. (Her husband is Jewish.)

[88] World Jewish Relief is a British organization that focuses its efforts in the post-Soviet states on Ukraine. It works closely with JDC.

[89] For information on the Kharkiv Holocaust Museum, see the writer s Jewish Community Life in Eastern Ukraine, Report of a visit April 12-18, 2002, pages 53-54.

[90] Moscow, a city whose Jewish population probably is three to five times larger than that of Kyiv, has five Jewish day schools.

[91] An additional 17 boys are enrolled in a related heder and 46 more children attend a related preschool. The heder is located in a building adjacent to the synagogue and the preschool classes are held in an Orach Chaim dormitory building.

[92] Most of the four buildings were constructed in the 1960 s of material that is more sand than cement, according to Principal Khariton Gilgur. The girls school, in particular, has an unattractive fa ade, covered in graffito and with several broken outer windows. Orach Chaim must replace 100 broken windows in its four buildings every year, acknowledged Mr. Gilgur. (The damage appears to be pepetrated by common vandals bandits, as they are called in Ukraine - rather than by antisemites.)

[93] See below comments about a common Jewish high school by a Chabad rabbi. See also page 98 for comments by Rabbi Bleich.

[94] Schools with lyceum status are not permitted to enroll youngsters below the fifth grade.

[95] ORT schools frequently enroll some non-Jewish youngsters for reasons of public/community relations.

[96] The school has obtained a municipal hot lunch subsidy for approximately 90 youngsters from impoverished homes.

[97] Salary bonuses for underpaid teachers are routine in Ukraine and may be very high for gifted instructors in specialized subjects, such as mathematics, science, and foreign languages.

[98] See pages 98-100 for an interview with Rabbi Asman.

[99] For information about United Jewish Community of Ukraine, see page 109.

[100] The separation of Hillel from the Joint Distribution Committee is occurring throughout the post-Soviet states and also will lead to the departure of Hillel from JDC-controlled Jewish community centers in those cities in which such accommodations have been the norm.

[101] See page 16 regarding municipal space made available to Hillel of Odesa.

[102] The core collection of the library was provided by the Joint Distribution Committee.

[103] Mr. Karasik s wife is a teacher of mathematics and computer technology at the Perlina school and Mr. Karasik earns a small salary at the matzot factory operated by Rabbi Bleich. Mr. Karasik readily acknowledged that his inability to speak English is a deterrent to the acquisition of grants.

[104] The original Kyiv-Mohyla Academy was founded by the then Metropolitan of Kyiv, Petro Mohyla, in 1615 as a combined theological academy and liberal arts college. The college educated the Ukrainian political and military elite during the 17th and 18th centuries, but was closed in 1817 by Tsar Alexander I of Russia. The theological academy was permitted to operate under the direction of a St. Petersburg seminary, but was open only to children of Orthodox priests. Following the 1917 Revolution, Soviet authorities closed the theological academy and destroyed its library. The buildings were used as a military college during the Soviet period. Kyiv-Mohyla Academy was re-established in 1991 following the collapse of the USSR. The university is modeled on the North American post-secondary education system, offering bachelor s and master s degrees. Ph.D. programs will be added in the future.

[107] Newly available information posted on the Internet shows that a large number of Jews were working for the NKVD (secret police) at the time of the Holodmor.

[109] During the writer s meeting with Mr. Monastirsky, a Jewish man of retirement age came into the office and politely asked Mr. Monastirsky if he could play the piano in the multipurpose room. Mr. Monastirsky responded affirmatively and the individual proceeded to play classical music for the remainder of the writer s visit. Mr. Monastirsky commented that various individuals, including children, visit the center to play the Jewish Fund piano, apparently because they do not have other access to the instrument.

[110] The Great Choral Synagogue on Schekavitskaya street in the Podil district of Kyiv should not be confused with the Main Choral Synagogue in the same city. The latter, better known as the Brodsky synagogue, is larger and more centrally located. Built with funds contributed by Lazar Brodsky of the wealthy sugar industry family at about the same time as the Schekavitskaya street synagogue, the Brodsky synagogue was confiscated by Soviet authorities in 1926 and converted into a workers club. It later became a variety theater and a children s puppet theater. After substantial international pressure, the Brodsky synagogue was returned to the Jewish community in the 1990 s and restored. Rabbi Moshe Reuven Asman, an independent Chabad rabbi, presides over the Brodsky synagogue. See pages 98-100.

[112] Rabbi Deutsch was in Kyiv en route to his home in Israel from the Hadytch burial site of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of the Chabad movement. Rabbi Deutsch is involved with the construction of a guesthouse and other facilities near the Hadytch site, which attracts thousands of Chabad visitors annually. Hadytch is located in the northern part of Poltava oblast between Kyiv and Kharkiv.

[113] Mr. Rabynovych is accused of involvement in money laundering, weapons sales to rogue states, and narcotics trafficking.

[114] See pages 88-89 for Rabbi Asman s comments about the financial condition of his day school and his home for at-risk children.

[115] The head of the government archival office responsible for the restitution of religious objects, said Rabbi Asman, is a communist who acquired her position through government coalition politics. She even went to Mexico, related Rabbi Asman, to the place where Leon Trotsky was murdered by Soviet agents to visit a museum established there in his memory. A non-Jew married to a Jewish Ukrainian, she uses her husband s family name, Ginsburg.

[117] Mrs. Haydar also is active in Project Kesher, which meets in the Hatikvah premises.

[118] Rabbi Dukhovny noted that one of the strongest congregations, Lutsk (in western Ukraine) raised $300,000 over six years to renovate their building, a historic synagogue that had been returned to the congregation in a restitution process.

[119] The second rabbi is Rabbi Mikhail Kapustin, who serves three congregations in Crimea.

[120] Some Progressive preschools consist of a Jewish component within a municipal preschool.

[121] Rabbi Markovich, Rabbi Bleich, Iosif Zissels, and the Jewish Agency for Israel all are noted elsewhere in this report.

[122] Mr. Donskoi did not mention that the hesed is some distance from public transportation routes and is located atop a small hill that is difficult for some elderly individuals to ascend.

[126] The net worth of Mr. Kolomoisky, co-owner of the PrivatBank business group, is estimated at $2.3 billion. See JTA, June 11, 2009.

[127] For the remainder of the interview with Isoif Akselrud, see pages 89-90.

[128] Other than the Ukrainian Jewish Committee, Mr. Feldman s major Jewish commitment appears to be support of Rabbi Moshe Moskovitz, the Chief Rabbi of Kharkiv.

[129] Although he is often in Kyiv, Mr. Dolinsky is chairman of the Lutsk Jewish community, a relatively strong small Jewish center. Lutsk and Ternopil are in the same general area of western Ukraine, a region known for Ukrainian nationalism and antisemitism.

[130] Joint actually started reducing aid to elderly Jews in the post-Soviet states several years before the onset of the current crisis.

[131] http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/10/O14U.html, retrieved June 15, 2009, and JTA, June 11, 2009. Mr. Pinchuk's portfolio includes metallurgy (especially pipe and tube production), media, and aviation. The Forbes article noted that Mr. Pinchuk hobnobs with glitterati: he hosted the biggest private lunch at this year's Davos forum to promote Ukraine; also funded an exhibit at the Venice Biennale. Victor Pinchuk is married to the daughter of former Ukraine President Leonid Kuchma.

[132] See pages 110-111.

[133] Mr. Akhmetov, a Donetsk-based industrialist of Tatar origin, is among the wealthiest men in Ukraine. His current net worth is estimated at $1.8 billion. See http://www.forbes.com/lists/2009/10/billionaires-2009-richest-people_Rinat-Akhmetov_JIRK.html. Retrieved June 15, 2009.