World Congress of Families’ KGB financier Yakunin celebrates Hannukah with Russian Jewish Congress
The Russian Jewish Congress celebrated Hanukkah and the decade of its activity
20.12.2006
About a thousand people gathered on December 17 in the "Forum Hall" for the grand celebrations organized by the Russian Jewish Congress (RJC) in honor of the Hanukkah holiday and the 10th anniversary of its activity. There were many famous people who came to the evening: Vladimir Yakunin, Mikhail Barshchevsky, Mikhail Friedman, Yakov Brandt, Alexander Zhurbin, Vladimir Vishnevsky and many other representatives of the political, business and cultural elite of Russia.
"Light through Enlightenment" is the motto chosen by the Russian Jewish Congress to celebrate Hanukkah this year. The Hanukkah celebrations were preceded by a creative meeting dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the birth of documentary director Roman Carmen. His sons and students shared their memories of the legendary director, fragments from his films were shown. At the end of the meeting, a press conference was held. Its theme, in addition to the 100th anniversary of the filmmaker, was another anniversary - the 10th anniversary of the Russian Jewish Congress. The press conference was attended by REC President Vyacheslav Kantor, REC Vice-President Yuri Traisman, film director and member of the Public Council of REC Vladimir Dvinsky, directors and students of Roman Carmen Tengiz Semenov and Seda Pumpyanskaya, both sons of the great master - Roman and Alexander Carmen.
Roman Carmen was not only a famous director, but also an outstanding artist of Jewish origin, the president of the REC reminded at a press conference. Maintaining the memory of such people is now one of the activities of the REC. "We are starting a program to position Russian Jews in the public consciousness. And we start it with such a fundamental figure as Roman Lazarevich," explained Vyacheslav Kantor. "The Russian Jewish Congress will take the most active part in the formation of the fund named after him and his museum."
Answering the question about the success of the congress for 10 years, Vyacheslav Kantor reminded that over the years "the Russian Jewish Congress has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the implementation of its programs. At the moment, a program of 50 projects has been deployed, which deals with the problem of preserving the culture of the Jewish people as a part of Russian culture and as an independent culture". Of the most notable recent events to which the Congress was related, Vyacheslav Kantor named the Holocaust Remembrance Forum in Krakow in January 2005 to the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the Forum in Kiev last September in memory of the 65th anniversary of the Babi Yar tragedy.
"Today, the Russian Jewish Congress is one of the most powerful secular organizations in the world representing Russian Jewry," said the President of the REC.
At the end of the press conference, the main festive events in honor of Hanukkah began. The concert program, which was hosted by artist Alexander Gerasimov, opened with performances of the ensembles "Kokhavim" from Veliky Novgorod and "Zay Gezund" from Bryansk.
Then Vyacheslav Kantor came on stage. He addressed the guests with a solemn congratulation, after which the lighting of festive candles in the Hanukkah menorah and the performance of a traditional song by one of the world's leading cantors, Yitzhak Helfgot, who flew from the United States for several hours for this ceremony, began. After that, Jewish songs sounded again - already performed by Tamara Gverdtsiteli, Alla Yoshpe and Stakhan Rakhimov, American singer and showman Yakov Yavno, the band "Mandarin-Bend" from Israel. The real sensation was caused by the show of the Chinese drummer ensemble "Red Poppy", which had not come to Russia before.