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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 255 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 255

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

           September 26 (legislative day, September 17), 2008

                                Received

            October 2 (legislative day, September 17), 2008

             Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the United States commitment 
    to preservation of religious and cultural sites and condemning 
                 instances where sites are desecrated.

Whereas the Congress is committed to protecting and preserving the cultural 
        heritage of all national, religious, and ethnic groups, including sacred 
        sites of such groups, including cemeteries in the United States and 
        abroad;
Whereas the Holocaust annihilated much of Europe's Jewish population and in many 
        countries, none were left

              

 to care for the communal properties that represent a historic culture in 
the area and constitute an integral part of the Jewish religion;

Whereas the Holocaust and 45 years of atheistic, Communist governments created a 
        critical need that led to the establishment of the United States 
        Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad;
Whereas the United States Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage 
        Abroad is tasked with identifying and reporting on cemeteries, 
        monuments, and historic buildings in Eastern and Central Europe that are 
        associated with the heritage of United States citizens and obtaining 
        assurances from the governments of those regions that the properties 
        will be protected and preserved;
Whereas the United States Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage 
        Abroad has in effect over 20 bilateral agreements between the United 
        States and foreign governments assuring the protection and preservation 
        of cultural property;
Whereas many properties continue to be endangered and many governments and 
        communities continue to face fundamental and compelling challenges in 
        the preservation of these properties;
Whereas Congress is outraged by the construction that occurred within the 
        perceived boundaries of the historic Jewish cemetery located in the 
        Snipiskes area of Vilnius, Lithuania;
Whereas cemeteries are sacred sites and are established to remain undisturbed in 
        perpetuity, and the sanctity of a cemetery is determined by the bodies 
        buried therein;
Whereas construction of a commercial building on the site disgraces the 
        cemetery, it does not change its status;
Whereas experts within Lithuania and from around the world community believe 
        that the cemetery located in the Snipiskes area of Vilnius, Lithuania, 
        is a Jewish cemetery and is therefore sacred ground;
Whereas the Jewish cemetery located in the Snipiskes area of Vilnius, Lithuania, 
        is known by scholars within Lithuania and from around the world as the 
        first Jewish cemetery in Vilnius and dates back to the 15th century, and 
        it is believed that before the government closed the cemetery in the 
        early 1800s, more than 50,000 Jews were buried there;
Whereas the fact that the Government of Lithuania has allowed construction to 
        take place within the perceived boundaries of the Jewish cemetery 
        located in the Snipiskes area of Vilnius, Lithuania, and that 
        desecration continues into the 21st century is an affront to the 
        international Jewish community, the American people, and everyone who 
        values religious freedom and ethnic diversity around the world;
Whereas the failure of the Government of Lithuania to protect the Jewish 
        cemetery located in the Snipiskes area of Vilnius, Lithuania, violates 
        the October 15, 2002, bilateral agreement between Lithuania and the 
        United States on the protection and preservation of certain cultural 
        properties, including cemeteries;
Whereas specifically, Article 1 of the bilateral agreement states: ``[E]ach 
        party will take appropriate steps to protect and preserve the cultural 
        heritage of all national, religious, or ethnic groups that reside or 
        resided in its territory, including victims of genocide during the 
        Second World War. The term `cultural heritage' for purposes of this 
        agreement means `. . . cemeteries, and memorials to the dead. . .'''; 
        and
Whereas Congress welcomed the decision by the Government of Lithuania to conduct 
        a geophysical survey of the Jewish cemetery located in the Snipiskes 
        area of Vilnius, Lithuania, in the summer of 2008 to establish 
        definitively the boundaries of the cemetery, as well as to designate the 
        land as a cultural heritage site: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) expresses strong support for the work of the United 
        States Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage 
        Abroad and for the European countries that continue to work to 
        preserve sacred historical sites, despite ongoing challenges;
            (2) expresses strong sentiments to the Government of 
        Lithuania that the people of the United States believe the 
        Jewish cemetery located in the Snipiskes area of Vilnius, 
        Lithuania, must not be desecrated;
            (3) calls on the Government of Lithuania to give serious 
        consideration to the recommendations being prepared by the 
        international experts group on the basis of the geophysical 
        survey of the Jewish cemetery located in the Snipiskes area of 
        Vilnius, Lithuania, and to take steps that guarantee the 
        permanent preservation of the cemetery site, including the 
        possibility of placing the land under government ownership; and
            (4) declares that constructive bilateral relations between 
        Lithuania and the United States are important to the 
        governments, citizens, and shared agendas of both countries.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 25, 2008.

            Attest:

                                            LORRAINE C. MILLER,

                                                                 Clerk.
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