27 February 2009
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The Lo Tishkach Foundation has completed a report on legislation and practice relating to the protection and preservation of Jewish burial grounds in Hungary. The survey, based on preliminary research, finds that more than 800 of the country’s approximately 1,300 Jewish cemeteries lack regular maintenance. |
Funding for the maintenance and restoration of Jewish cemeteries in Hungary is insufficient. The state allocates annual cemetery maintenance subsidies of 40 million Hungarian forints (ca. 135,000 euros) to MAZSIHISZ, the Federation of Jewish Communities, which is the owner of around 1,000 of the country’s Jewish cemeteries. A 2004 bilateral agreement between Hungary and the United States on the protection of American heritage abroad, which extends to Jewish cemeteries, has not been properly implemented. Several private initiatives and municipalities maintain a number of cemeteries.
The vast majority of Jewish cemeteries in Hungary are not listed as protected sites of cultural heritage, for under Hungarian legislation, MAZSIHISZ as the main owner of Jewish cemeteries would have to bear the financial burden of maintaining these sites in accordance with official cultural heritage standards.
