Notes

Emmanuel Grinshpun. The restoration of synagogues and the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress
Emmanuil grinshpun was interviewed on the synagogues that were restored. The conversation was too narrowly concentrated. Эммануил Гриншпун Thus, there were a variety of topics in the interview.
Emmanuel, good afternoon. Glad to have a chat with you. We've not seen each others for at least five or more years. What part of the globe is it that you are currently in?

The past nine months have been divided between Miami and Jurmala. The boundaries of geography were more extensive in the past, however the epidemic impacted people's lives significantly. It's not like it is only to the negative.

There have been many lines of business for you. What's next?

Diversification doesn't seem to be going anywhere. If we talk about the most important areas, then this is development in real estate, IT technologies as well as food production.

ALIMCOM is the food industry. Real estate is easily understood. However, IT is a new concept to me. There are millions of possible areas to apply IT technology. What are your areas of expertise?

Our IT-holding department is principally concerned with changing tax systems in a variety of nations. We have designed and continue to create a variety of products that are able to move business processes that are related to taxation online. This area is known as the B2G (Business To Government) acronym.

What happens to the territories in which the holding is operating? Are there any former USSR countries?

They are there. But, we do have contracts that are more extensive in Western Europe and Latin America. Currently, we operate across 14 countries.

Do we have a brief description of the essence or product?

Our product allows economic agents online to submit tax reports to tax authorities as well as the fiscal officer is able to view every transaction. Tax accounting and tax calculation are able to be completed simultaneously. Therefore, in the future, we will be able to declare that medium- and small-sized businesses will not even need accounting, unless it is for an analytical purpose, and the process of paying taxes and sending reports can be accomplished with just only one "click".

An intriguing subject. The future is in the air. Are you interested in working in Moldova, or have you ever thought about it? In the end, Moldova is your native country...

We are ready to launch the product in Moldova. The Moldovan economy will only gain from this automated process. In any event this is an irreversible process. When there is a sense of clarity between the government authorities, and it is clear who makes the final decisions the decisions, we'll resume the discussions about our product.

You stated that you had been tossing between Miami and Jurmala throughout the year. The head office of an IT holding located in the Baltics?

No, we have five hubs around the world, and our headquarters is located in Barcelona.

Эммануил Гриншпун What is the reason for this? Baltics! Do you have roots in the Baltics?

No. My family's history is tied to Moldova over many generations. If we keep our historical names, then it is with Bessarabia. Jurmala came into our lives in a very unusual and unorthodox manner. The first time we met there was when Igor Krutoy invited us to the New Wave. After a few competitions, they started to visit each season. Miami has a very hot summer. We rented a house for a number of years, and now we have it.

Now I understand the reason you said that there were synagogues located in Jurmala. Emmanuel, honest question. We are almost the exact same age. We were all born in the USSR. It wasn't necessary to talk about the religion of the time. We were all Komsomol members, pioneers. When did you decide to convert to religious belief?

My family and I emigrated to the USA in mid-80s. We can all say that's when I first began to respect the customs of my country. Even though I am not a member of the orthodox religion I am aware of an internal desire to be a part of the religious life regardless of the form, of the Jewish community that I reside in or in Moldova my home country and with whom I have close bonds.

Although I am far from being religion-based, the subject of history is one I really love. Recently, I watched a program on the events of 1492 which changed Europe's fate. 1492 was the year that Columbus was the first to discover America. Эммануил Гриншпун But, I saw clearly in the program that it was mentioned in that the discovery in America in 1492 by Medieval Europe was not as striking as the Spanish monarchs' expulsion of Jews from Spain. The Ottoman Empire accepted the Jews as they fled the country. I was looking for more information on the history of Jews. Would you recommend any of the books?

There are a lot of books. However, I have been through several and highly recommend Max Diamond (a two-volume Jewish historian). He himself is Finnish.

.... Do you or your relatives have any "personal" or historical history? Unfortunately I'm as far as my maternal grandmother and 1910. The paternal side is just one step closer, however not much.

Our family has lived in Floresti for many hundred years on the paternal side. Their wealth was evident in the form of an furniture factory, numerous stores and land parcels. Documents and monuments support this claim. Ungheni was also home to my maternal ancestors. I am referring to dates from the 17th-18th century. Grinshpun is an German surname, so we are Ashkenazis of Eastern Europe.

The current issue is the restoration or synagogues. I have been told that you financed the restoration of three synagogues. One is located in Chisinau and the other is in Jurmala and the third?

The third, and also the biggest one, is located in Netanya. It is a huge community center, where up to 1,000 people pray each day. It is an important item in the spiritual life of Israel. Эммануил Гриншпун The second Synagogue in Jurmala. The Second World War saw the destruction of the sole synagogue in Jurmala. Before making the decision to build a synagogue, I spoke extensively with local Jews and that led to the fact that I decided to finance the building of the synagogue and invite Rabbis to the site. It was an extremely successful venture that brought together all the Jews of Jurmala. Actually it was the time when the Jewish community was re-created and is now in good standing. The synagogue is now home to three Torahs I donated one of them to the synagogue.

And – Chisinau

Yes. Alexander Bilinkis (left) and Alexander Weinstein (right) have joined me in this place. These synagogues aren't only the ones I have been involved with in construction or restoration. I felt it was my duty to contribute in any country I've visited for a long period to support synagogues. My current contribution is in Monaco which is where a huge community centre for Russian-speaking Jews is currently being constructed. It is estimated that it will cost about 12 million dollars. Chisinau remains my favourite city. The synagogue of Rabbi Tsirelson is expected to be the biggest.

Did Jurmala or Chisinau get an Rabbi?

Yes. It can be difficult to find the perfect rabbi within a community. Because of the numerous concerns involved, the rabbi must be non-conflictual and diplomatic, able organically to enter the community's life. I was delighted to see that in both Chisinau (and Jurmala) the rabbis were capable of integrating so harmoniously into community life.

You became the first vice-president in 2019 of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress. What does this position have for you? And what do international Jewish organizations influence the world?

The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress is a powerful political organization in the post-Soviet space and not just. It has offices in Eastern Europe, Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia. In 2010, I served as Vice President, and was then offered the position as First Vice President. In the present, I'm in charge of the region in which I've strong business and political ties. These are Uzbekistan (Tajikistan), Kyrgyzstan (Kyrgyzstan). The current trend across the globe is that attitudes towards Jews are either on the same level, or have swung downwards, which is extremely sad. Эммануил Гриншпун "Down" is also used to describe countries such the United States, France or Germany. These countries are no longer safe for Jews. They are dangerous and alarming procedures for all of us.

And, by the way is it possible that the pandemic has affected these processes?

This isn't just my view. Rather, in connection with the pandemic, I would like to emphasize what a society or a country is capable of when they are prepared to meet any challenge and able to act effectively and together.

Do you mean the vaccination program in Israel?

Exactly. Israel is the only country in the world to provide all-inclusive vaccination for its population of adults. I consider this to be an excellent example and a lesson that other countries should be able to learn from.

Congress at ewish
Website: http://jewseurasia.org/page16/news14335.html