The memorial to the Romani Holocaust in Lety will not be funded by the state

Lety - The memorial for the Roma Holocaust at the site of the former pig farm in Lety near Písek will not be funded by the state. At a discussion in Lety organized by the Museum of Romani Culture, Deputy Minister of Culture René Schreier stated this today. He confirmed that the memorial will be financed from so-called Norwegian funds.

The state will cover the demolition of the pig farm, including the removal of environmental burdens and reclamation. The demolition will cost 117 million CZK; the Ministry of Culture intends to transfer this amount into its budget from the governmental budget reserve.

"The state will not contribute financially to the construction (of the memorial)," Schreier said. Norway intends to contribute one million euros (about 25 million CZK) to the memorial.

The pig farm will likely be demolished only next year; originally, the director of the Museum of Romani Culture, Jana Horváthová, expected it to be demolished by the end of this year. Today she mentioned that the demolition will be more complicated than they initially thought. The museum will probably announce a tender for a demolition company at the end of the year. "By spring (2019), it should be clear who will carry out the demolition," Horváthová told ČTK today.

A two-month archaeological survey will take place at the site for 1.5 million CZK, starting in May. In the summer, the Museum of Romani Culture, which took over the site, plans to establish criteria for an architectural and artistic competition for the design of the future memorial site and visitor center. The former pig farm area is expected to include a visitor center with an exhibition of archaeological finds and a lecture hall for schools and group tours.

The meeting at the cultural center, attended by approximately 100 people, began with a minute of silence for the victims of the Romani Holocaust. "We want to outline to the locals that we have a great interest in collaborating with them and involving the community in our plans," Horváthová said. The organizers presented the concept of Holocaust memorials and the memorial design of former concentration camps in Germany.

A suggestion emerged from the audience during the debate that the best memorial is the pig farm itself. Horváthová also acknowledged the possibility of preserving at least parts of some of the halls. "It is a proposal that we are seriously considering. We do not yet know if a complete demolition will occur," the director responded.

Archaeologist Pavel Vařeka presented the results of the ongoing survey in the area, which uncovered less than one percent of the camp's area on municipal land. According to Vařeka, the remains of the camp have surprisingly survived well.

"We can accurately localize the camp, examine its individual parts. Another surprising finding was that the camp was destroyed in such a way that the wooden barracks were set on fire, everything was burned, although this contradicts written testimonies. In the cells we examined, personal belongings of the prisoners and parts of clothing were stored. It is a unique material record that allows insight into daily life in the camp," Vařeka said.

One visitor stated that the camp was not located at the pig farm, but next to it. Vařeka responded that an aerial photograph from 1949, which shows traces of the camp visible on the ground, indicates that a larger part of the camp was situated in the undeveloped part of the pig farm. "About a quarter overlaps under the halls. Most of the camp is within the pig farm," the archaeologist said. Discussion also occurred about whether the camp was a labor camp or a concentration camp.

The pig farm was transferred to the Museum of Romani Culture from Agpi in April. The pig farm, covering 7.1 hectares, was built from 1972; it housed 13,000 animals in 13 halls. Discussions about the acquisition and establishment of the memorial site have been ongoing for over 20 years.

"We feel no resentment towards the community, as some thought when we blocked access to the pig farm for several years in a row. I am glad that we can finally honor this cultural monument," said Josef Miker, a survivor of the victims from the camp in Lety, during the debate.