The video clip (in Russian with Romanian subtitles)
ESJF’s work surveying 150 Jewish cemetery sites in the Republic of Moldova has been covered in a short documentary by journalist Eugenia Creţu for Radio Free Europe Moldova.
The news item, titled “Salvarea de uitare” (“Saving from oblivion”), is part of the series “Pur și simplu” (“Simply”) and follows an ESJF survey team with Moldovan national coordinator Irina Shikova. The documentary offers an insight into the work ESJF is doing to survey and map Jewish cemeteries, setting it in the larger context of cultural preservation in Moldova. It also emphasises the importance of involving local institutions and actors, such as museums and local authorities, in ESJF’s long term goals.
As a country with one of the highest densities of Jewish cemeteries worldwide, Moldova is home to many sites which are now under threat from a variety of factors, from the expansion of agricultural land to simple neglect. However, there are a number of civil initiatives working hard to preserve the country’s Jewish heritage, and ESJF is proud to play its own part in doing so.