The museum’s resident family is once again at the epicenter of the scandal: the Seimas has begun to resolve the conflict

The district government accused “soulless”

“The Social Democrats, who rule the Kaunas district, have long sincerely and sincerely tried to expel their founders Vida and Arūnas Sniečkas from the exclusive Museum of Brothers A. and J. Juškis in Vilkija, who have given 30 years of life to the creation of this museum and live in one of its rooms.

Formally, the government is right, this is not the house of the museum founders – mol, thanks for putting together the exhibits, you made the sculptures here and produced the gardens, but von time. Since the first of May, since the day of the workers’ festival, ”the poet, interpreter and director Vytautas V. Landsbergis recently announced on the Facebook social network.

A renowned national artist considered that this museum could continue to be as welcoming, “homey” and as it is now.

“Unfortunately, the government has no soul, it does not feel that the life of the museum can be killed quickly and it will remain cold, official, official. We have a lot of those “spiritless” memorial museums. Maybe someone could warm up and wake up those officials? Perhaps Prime Minister I. Šimonytė accidentally uses an alarm clock? ”VV Landsbergis wrote.

Defend museologists and politicians

News of the planned changes also reached the Seimas members. One of them, the “peasant” Robertas Šarknickas, spared no criticism of this decision and highlighted the uniqueness of the museum, where his patrons still live.

“The unique and historic Juškai farm in Lithuania is not only supervised, but at the same time educational programs are carried out not only of local or republican importance, but also international. The farm is unique because it is alive day and night. We could hardly find another ethnographic farm of this type in Lithuania. There are many such living museums abroad, as it is a continuation of the traditions and history of the state, an opportunity to touch on the past and origins of the state, which is now the most attractive to young people and tourists.

Unfortunately, a few years ago there was an attempt to downplay all of this or worse yet, to evict the museologists who gave their hearts to the farm. The Kaunas district municipality is categorical: it is necessary to move the point, no matter what is in the past and what is in the present. Yes, it is difficult to understand logically that the municipality no longer needs a living and resurrected hamlet, that there is no more gratitude to allow us to grow old – with the present, with experience, with a living history, with the present.

What it takes to have a heart you don’t like, what it takes to have a heart to deal with this exceptional museum. “Why can’t he become a unique phenomenon and have a memory for the future? Why can’t we rejoice that there are people like Sniečka who will only enrich the history of the legendary hacienda in the future,” said the resentful MP.

The municipality accuses politicians of lying

In the event of an uproar, the Kaunas District Municipality distributed a report stating that it was planning to renovate the Vilkija A. and J. Juškai Museum, assuring that no one would “throw the museum workers out on the street.”

“Recently, false information about the Vilkija Antanas and Jonas Juškai Museum of Ethnic Culture, a branch of the Kaunas District Municipal Museum, has appeared in public space: it is supposed to be ‘being destroyed’ and its creators Arūnas and Vida Sniečkus’ thrown away on the street “.

Surprisingly, this information is spreading from the lips of politicians in positions of responsibility, and this is not the first time it has been done. The public is deceived and opposes, “said the municipal report.

The old rectory building where the museum is located is claimed to be old and in need of repair. So far, about 90 thousand. euro, roof replaced, electrical installation and lighting

“In May of this year, the repair of the heating unit and the sanitary premises is scheduled. During the project execution period, the water supply units will be reorganized and the pipeline will be replaced, thus interrupting the water supply and sewerage in the building for some time. Mobile biotovatories will be built for visitors from abroad ”, reports the Municipality of the Kaunas District.

It is also mentioned that in 2019, the Šniečkai family living in this museum were offered to move into the social housing located here in Vilkija. A. Sniečkus is alleged to have refused to do so in writing and promised to move into his parents’ home within two years.

The municipality called the promises nonsense

A. Sniečkus, who has lived in the A. and J. Juškės Museum for more than three decades and appreciated it, told the Delfi portal that the Kaunas District Municipality had already tried to evict him from the historic building 5-7 times.

“2 years ago they told me in a clear and uncompromising way that I had to move. A condition has been raised: either I leave immediately or it gives me 2 years. I did not sign the agreement, but the protocol of the agreement, so I became familiar and was okay, “said A. Sniečkus.

The museum’s creator said that he had received a proposal from lawyers to litigate with the Kaunas district municipality, but neither A. Sniečkus nor his wife wanted to participate in long-term legal proceedings. He said that he had actually planned to leave the museum and move to live elsewhere, but the plans were thwarted by the quarantine.

“I told my manager that I needed more time. But now that such a wave of support has emerged, I no longer have the right to extradite these people. I can still say: leaving here amounts to spiritual death,” said A. Šniečkus, the patron of the museum.

When asked how he values ​​the statement made in the Kaunas District Municipality report that after the repair of the building, when the spouses no longer live for 31 years, the museum will be more accessible to the public, A. Sniečkus called it nonsense.

In your appraisal, then a table will appear with the museum’s published opening hours, and it couldn’t be more open than it is now. The museologist said that after making a letter to some representatives of the Kaunas district municipality, he guessed that this could have happened because he categorically opposed plans to repair the historic building in a very modern way and to pave his courtyard with blocks. . .

The legal security of the tenors of the municipality

It is not the first time that representatives of the Sniečkai family society and politicians, who have lived in the museum for more than three decades, defend the museum. More than 4.5 thousand people signed a petition prepared in 2019 for their patrons to stay at the museum. The then Minister of Culture Mindaugas Kvietkauskas visited Vilkija and discussed the situation.

The advisor to the mayor of the Kaunas district, Edmundas Mališauskas, told the Delfi portal that no one throws Sniečkai who lives in the museum onto the street and emphasized that everything must be legalized legally.

Currently, the historic building has the status of a residential house, which can become an obstacle to carry out the planned repair work, to install modern sanitary facilities. According to the adviser to the mayor of the Kaunas district, it is also necessary to organize the accounting of existing exhibitions and describe the procedures.

“There are too many emotions here, because there is no language about expulsion or dismissal. We just want to put everything in order legally. Let the Seimas legitimize the status of a living museum in which it is possible to live, or the Ministry of Culture will take it on its own power. There must be legal security, “said E. Mališauskas.

He mentioned that this had been discussed both with the president of the Seimas Culture Committee, V. Juozapaitis, and with the representatives of the Ministry of Culture.

He wants to change the law, legalize “living museums”

In 2020, amendments to the Museum Law were drafted defining the status of a living museum in the Seimas, but their consideration was not initiated. The author of these amendments, Deputy R. Šarknickas, speculated that the end of the Seimas term and the subsequent pandemic could have become an obstacle.

The amendments establish that living museums can be inhabited by their creators or maintainers. They must be provided with premises that are not part of the museum’s exhibition, and utility bills are paid in accordance with the contracts concluded between the museum’s founder and the people who live and work in it.

It is also stated that these provisions do not apply to living museums founded by individuals.

These amendments to the law have already been included in the agenda of the Seimas Culture Commission to be held on April 14. The initiator of the amendments, R. Šarknickas, hoped that the political will would be sufficient to accept them, especially since the history of the A. and J. Juškės Museum brought together politicians representing various political parties.

“It is necessary to fix the laws so that the situation that happened in the Kaunas district does not recur,” said the Seimas member.

He was surprised that renovation work on the museum began in May, but said he had not seen any public tenders or signed contracts for them. These circumstances arouse serious suspicions in the politician about whether the conduct is lawful.

R. Šarknickas mentioned that he hoped that the A. and J. Juškai Museum would succeed in granting the status of a living museum and that its patrons would be able to live in it legally. If that doesn’t happen, the politician hinted at planning a protest in mid-May, which should involve not only active public figures but also art collectives.