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Japanese author Akira Kitade recounts for Winnipeg audience role of foreign diplomats in saving Jewish lives in WWII
By MYRON LOVE One of the lesser known histories of the Holocaust was the role of various diplomats who saved thousands of Jewish lives through issuing visas to endangered Jews desperate to escape Nazi-occupied Europe. The best known of those diplomats was Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish special envoy in Budapest in 1944 who issued Swedish passports to thousands of Hungarian Jews and – with the financial support of American Jewish organizations – hid them in numerous safe houses throughout Budapest.
Sadly, he himself met a tragic fate. When the Soviets liberated Budapest in late 1944, the courageous Swede was arrested, shipped back to Russia – and never seen again.
Lesser known diplomats also pitched in to save Jewish lives. One of these Holocaust heroes was Chiune Sempo Sugihara. Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania, who provided thousands of Japanese transit visas to Jewish refugees who had fled from Poland and elsewhere in Europe to the Baltic capital city in a desperate effort to escape the clutches of the Nazis.
On Sunday, March 23, about 100 individuals, largely from the Jewish and Japanese communities, were in attendance at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights for a special presentation by Japanese author Akira Kitade describing Sugihara’s exploits.
The story is a central element in Kitade’s most recent book, “Emerging Heroes: World War II Era Diplomats, Jewish Refugees and escape to Japan”, which was a sequel to his previous book, “Visas of Life and the Epic Journey:How the Sugihara Survivors Reached Japan.”
The program, a joint venture between the CHHR and the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada, began with remarks by Takehiko Wajima, the Japanese Consul General in Calgary. (Local immigration lawyer Ken Zaifman, Japan’s honorary consul in Winnipeg, was also in attendance.)
Belle Jarniewski, the Jewish Heritage Centre’s executive director, then set the table, so to speak, for the guest speaker. She pointed out that “the medal awarded to those recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem, Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority features the inscription – from the Mishnah (Sanhedrin 4:5), “Whosoever saves a single life, saves an entire universe.” Yad Vashem explains further that the quote is particularly appropriate when we think of the survivors and their many descendants and their many contributions to society. Chiune Sugihara did not save a single life – he saved thousands”.
She recounted that when the Nazis attacked Poland, some 15,000 Jews fled eastward, including to the then still independent Lithuania, which had been a centre for Jewish life since the 14th century. Caught between the Nazis and the Soviets, the Jews desperately sought ways to emigrate. After the annexation of Lithuania by the Soviets in the summer of 1940, all foreign diplomats were ordered to leave by August 9.
By then, the Jews were in very dire straits and could find no safe haven. Jan Zwartendijk, a Dutch consul in Kaunas at the time, agreed to stamp thousands of Jewish passports to visa-free Dutch Curacao, a Dutch colony in the Caribbean. The visas were, of course, bogus. With Europe engulfed in war, the only plausible means of escape was across the Soviet Union. For this, the refugees required transit visas showing Japan as their final destination.
As Sugihara and his family were packing their belongings, a delegation of Jews came to him with a desperate request for transit visas. They were led by Zerach Warhaftig – a Jewish refugee who, years later, was to become a minister in the government of the State of Israel. Seeing the desperation of the refugees, Sugihara began issuing the transit visas despite objections from Tokyo. Overall, he issued approximately 2140 transit visas—some of them for entire families.
The refugees rode the TransSiberian railroad across Russia to the Pacific port of Vladivostok. From there, they were transferred by boat, the Hikawa Maru, to Kobe in Japan. Many of the refugees were able to move on from Kobe to the United States and other places. The remainder – about 1,000 – were eventually relocated to the foreign quarter in Japanese-occupied Shanghai, where there was an existing community of German-Jewish refugees and a small number of prosperous Jewish merchant families from India.
Akira Kitade’s interest in Sugihara and the Jewish refugees, he noted, was sparked almost 30 years ago when he heard the firsthand account from Tatsuo Osaka, his boss at the Japanese Tourist Bureau, – who captained the Hikawa Maru carrying Jewish refugees from Vladivostok to Kobe. The retired diplomat recalled that, during a visit in the late 1990s, Osaka showed him an album with photos of eight of the refugees – one man and seven women – along with words of gratitude in various languages representing the many different European countries from which they were fleeing. After Osaka’s passing on 1993, his daughter gave Kitade the album.
His initial goal, the author recalled, was to find out what became of the individuals in the album. Over the next 10 years or so, he accomplished this mission. He shared with his audience at the CMHR what he learned about each of the survivors. All of them eventually reached America ,where they enjoyed successful careers and lives. Most married and had children.
Kitade’s research into the lives of the eight survivors in the album brought into contact with many more Sugihara transit visa holders and their descendants. He noted that while there are estimates that as many as 6,000 refugees – individual and family members, were saved by the Japanese consul’s actions, his view is that the real number is about 3,000. Their descendants, he suggested, are around 50,000.
The author also spoke about three European diplomats who aided Sugihara in facilitating the further movement of the transit visa holders. The problem for the refugees once they landed in Kobe was that the visas were only good for 14 days. Jan Zwartendijk, a Dutch businessman and diplomat, who was director of the Phillips factories in Lithuania and part-time acting consul of the Dutch Government in exile, provided 2,345 visas for Jewish refugees for the Dutch colony of Curacao, an island in the Caribbean.
Nicolaas Arie Johannes (Niek) de Voogd was the Dutch consul in Kobe at that time, and he also provided visas for Jewish refugees for Curacao. De Voogd returned to Japan as the Dutch ambassador in the early 1960s.
Tadeusz Romer was the Polish ambassador in Japan until the Polish embassy in Japan closed in July 1941. From August 1940 to November 1941, he otained transit visas in Japan, arranged asylum visas to Canada and other countries, immigration certificates to Palestine, and immigrant visas to the United States and some Latin American countries for 2,000 Polish-Lithuanian Jewish refugees who had arrived in Kobe. He created a ‘Polish Committee to Aid the Victims of War’ and appointed his wife, Zofia, to be president of the committee. They worked to financially support Jewish communities in Yokohama and Kobe by campaigning in Far Eastern countries for funding.
Belle Jarniewski completed the Sugihara narrative. The diplomat himself was posted to a number of different places, but in 1944 he was arrested by the Soviets along with a number of other diplomats. He was ultimately released, went to work for the Japanese Foreign Service in 1947, and held a variety of other jobs after that. Shortly before his death, Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority in Israel, declared Sugihara “Righteous Among the Nations” for his aid to the refugees in Lithuania during World War II. Yad Vashem conferred the title in 1984, honoring the former Japanese consul with a ceremony in Jerusalem in January 1985.
“The number of people recognized as Righteous Among the Nations – is staggeringly small when you consider the six million Jewish men, women, and children who were murdered,” Jarniewski pointed out.. “However, the impact of the Righteous – those who mustered extraordinary courage and who acted with conscience and caring is immeasurable. Today, the global Jewish community finds itself facing a sustained resurgence of antisemitism unprecedented since the end of the Holocaust. The silence of far too many we had considered as friends and allies has been shocking. We need to see the kind of courage of conscience that Chiune Sugihara so inspiringly displayed.”
One final note. Towards the end of the program, it was noted that in the audience was Winnipegger Rochelle Zucker, whose father, Meyer, was one of the Sugihara survivors. In answer to a question as to how the Jewish refugees in Shanghai survived, she spoke of her own father’s story. As with most of the refugees, they found work. Meyer Zucker was a printer by trade and was hired by a British-owned printing company. After the war, he, like most of the others, applied to go wherever he could. He had a cousin in Calgary who was able to bring him to Calgary to work in the printing industry. In Calgary, he met his wife, Miriam Pearlman, and, in 1948, they moved to Winnipeg where Meyer and Miriam both had family. In Winnipeg, Zucker worked as a printer for the Israelite Press/Yiddishe Vort until just a couple of years before his passing n 1977.
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UNVEILING for the headstone of Dr. Velimir Kon (Sept. 18, 1950-June 27, 2025)
A true mensch and person of many talents and profoundness, Dr. Velimir (Shlomo) Kon is deeply missed and loved by his family and friends.
Known for his warmth, kindness, integrity and love of learning and teaching, Velimir continues to inspire all who knew him and his memory warms our hearts and souls. Velimir is deeply missed.
You are invited to helps us remember and honour our beloved husband and father who passed away almost a year ago.
We, Branka, Deborah and Lea Kon, wish to inform our relatives and friends of the unveiling of a headstone dedicated to his loving memory on FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2026 at 11:00am at the HEBREW SICK CEMETERY (2605 McPhillips Street) followed by lunch at the Chabad Lubavitch of Winnipeg – Jewish Learning Centre (1845 Mathers Avenue). Please come say a l’chaim in his honour.
In Memoriam
1st Yahrzeit
In loving memory of Dr. Velimir (Shlomo) Kon who passed away June 27, 2025, 12 Days in Tammuz.
⁃ Forever and deeply loved and missed by his wife of over 50 years, Branka, and daughters Deborah and Lea Kon. Velimir brought joy to our lives with his boundless kindness and gentleness, irrepressible humour, great intellect and love of people, tikun olam and Judaism.
Not a day goes by that we do not mention Velimir and feel his presence with us. Our lives are not the same without him and we deeply miss and cherish him. We can never forget his presence that was larger than life, yet also his humility and thoughtfulness.
A gentleman to the very core, Velimir was respected as a scientist, academic, professor, researcher, and later as a teacher and mentor. He always endeavoured to make every place he worked and lived at better and was able to bridge many cultures. He was Abraham of his generation and made many personal sacrifices; giving up status, position and privilege in order for his family to have a better and peaceful future.
May his memory always be a blessing. He left us at only 74 years young and we wish we had had more time together. Indeed, to know him was to love him.
Local News
Younger Jewish talents continue to shine in their respective categories at annual Winnipeg Music Festival
By MYRON LOVE A number of younger members of our community were repeat stars at the most recent (108th annual) Winnipeg Music Festival – which takes place annually in March. Among the repeat Jewish singers and musicians in the ranks of high achievers this year were” Yale Rayburn-Vander Hout, Gregory Hyman, Alex Schaeffer, Juliet Eskin, Noah Kravetsky, and Lyla Chisick.
Vocalist Yale Rayburn-Vander Hout, the oldest of this year’s group of Jewish repeat winners, was competing in his fifth straight festival, where he continued to build on his accomplishments in previous festivals. This year, the 20-year-old son of Samantha and Peter finished first in two musical theatre categories – songs from musical theatre productions between 1965 and 1999, and shows from the past 26 years. Yale sang “I’m Allergic to Cats,” from the 2016 musical “The Theory of Relativity,” and “Suppertime,” from the 1967 musical, “You’re a Good man, Charlie Brown.”
The former Gray Academy student is currently enrolled at the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music in the Choral program. Yale says that he is hoping to get into the performance track in the fall with the goal of earning a degree in Classical Voice Performance en route to pursuing a career in musical theatre.
As reported previously, Gregory Hyman is a multi-faceted artist who can do it all. The 18-year-old son of Hartley and Rishona Hyman is a singer/songwriter/musician (guitar) who records and performs under the stage name, GMH. His versatility shone through once again in his eighth Music Festival, in which he registered first-place finishes for vocal performances in both “Popular and Contemporary Music” and “TV and Movie Music “categories.
Gregory notes that he was also recommended to compete in the provincial finals in June. The St. John’s-Ravenscourt student (and soon-to be) graduate continues to be busy on stage. In January, he headlined a sold out solo show at Sidestage on Osborne featuring some of his new material. In March, he released an album of his newest songs. Readers can check out his latest compositions on any of the music streaming platforms as well as his own social media (thegmh) on Instagram.
Gregory also continues to host his own podcast: “Talk and Rock with GMH – now in its fifth season – in which he interviews various people in the music business across Canada.
While Gregory says that a musical career is his “dream,” he reports that he is hedging his bets and considering different potential career opportunities. Come September, he will be enrolled at the University of Manitoba in a University One program, which will allow him to select from a variety of courses that can count toward a degree.
Sixteen-year-old Alex Schaeffer won first place this year in the “Musicals Prior to 1965, 16 Years and Under” category with “Try Me” from “She Loves Me,” and was runner-up in the “Musicals 1965 to 1999, 16 Years and Under” category with “On My Own,” from “Les Misérables.” For the son of Marc Schaeffer and Kae Sasaki, this was his fifth year competing in the festival.
The Grant Park High School student made his big stage debut three years ago as Kurt von Trapp in “The Sound of Music,” followed by playing Michael Hobbs in “Elf the Musical” this past winter at the Royal MTC.
Alex recently performed in Grant Park High School’s production of “Something Rotten!” This summer Schaeffer can be seen again at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, where he will be appearing in a production staged by Rem Lezar Theatre.
Rounding out the voice winners is Lyla Chisick. The daughter of Daniel and Baillee was competing in her second music festival. This year, she scored Gold performances in the “Vocal Solo,” “Manitoba Composers,” and “TV/Movie Musical, 12 and under” categories.
Lyla reports that she began taking voice lessons from Jessica Kos-Whicher three years ago. She says she regularly takes part in the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue Family Service and has sung at several community events. Lyla adds that she is already looking forward to next year’s music festival.
Nate Kravetsky and Juliet Eskin competed in the festival as musicians rather than singers. Juliet, 16, plays the viola, and is also is the violist in the Assiniboine String Quartet. In this, her fifth go-round at the festival, Juliet, the daughter of the musically talented Kelly Robinon and Josh Eskin, had first place finishes in the “Viola Solo, level 8,” “Baroque or Classical Concerto,” and “Romantic Composers” categories.
Juliet originally took up the violin – adding the viola a couple of years after. She also just finished performing in the Grant Park High School production of “Something Rotten!”
Nate Kravetsky is currently in Grade 5 level piano. He studies with Erica Schultz and has been taking lessons from her since age 5.
Nate competed in three categories at the Winnipeg music festival: “Baroque,” “Sonata,” and “Contemporary/own choice.”
His own choice selection was the theme from his favourite video game, “Hollow Knight.”
Nate, who is in Grade 7 at Gray Academy, is also preoccupied preparing for his upcoming bar mitzvah.
We look forward to the continued musical success off Yale, Gregory, Alex, Nate, Juliet and Lyla, and what new talent may be unveiled at next year’s Winnipeg Music festival.
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Local News
Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada’s Archivist and Curator Stan Carbone retires
By MYRON LOVE Stan Carbone, a long-time friend of our Jewish community and fixture at the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada (JHCWC) for the past 25 years, retired last week. His last day of work was May 13.
Most recently, he was the JHCWC’s Director of Programs and Exhibits.
“For the past 25 years, the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada has been an integral part of my life,” Carbone said. “I have made a lot of friends in the Jewish community, and I hope to maintain those friendships.”
Carbone’s own history reflects the immigrant experience. He arrived in Canada in 1960 as a three-year-old with his mother and sister, from San Giovanni in Fiore, Calabria in southern Italy. His father had come a few months earlier. Initially, the family settled in Fort Rouge which, at that time, had a substantial Italian community. Within a couple of years, they had relocated to East Kildonan to be closer to where his father’s two sisters and their families lived.
He earned a BA Double Honours in History and Political Studies at the University of Winnipeg, followed by an MA in History at the University of Manitoba, from where he graduated in 1981.
In 1993, he was hired at the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature (as it was then called) as Curator of Multicultural Studies.
“I always enjoyed doing research,” he said.
His first project for the JHCWC came in 2000, the year after the organization was formed through the amalgamation of the Jewish Historical Society, the Ed and Marion Vickar Jewish Museum of Western Canada and the Freeman Family Foundation Holocaust Education Centre.
Marim Zipursky had approached the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature looking for a curator to organize a JHCWC exhibit featuring Jewish music and musicians in Winnipeg,” Carbone recalled. “I didn’t know much about Jewish music and musicians, but I was familiar with the Jewish Historical Society – which preceded the JHCWC. I was really impressed by its extensive archives, and I was intrigued by the Jewish community’s history and the wide range of subject materials in the archives.”
The next year, when a position opened at the JHCWC, Carbone applied.
“I have been here ever since,” he said.
Over the past quarter century, Carbone has been involved in bringing to fruition several interesting exhibits. He mentions the synagogues display, a history of the YMHA, and the current exhibit highlighting the important role of women’s organizations. The exhibit that was closest to his heart though was “A Stitch in Time,” a look at how Jews contributed to the development of the garment trade in Winnipeg. Both of his parents worked in the garment industry.
The exhibits though are just one facet of the JHCWC’s focus, Carbone noted. He mentioned how the organization contributed to the publication of Allan Levine’s “Coming of Age: A History of the Jewish People of Manitoba.”
There have also been several compilations over the years of talks that the JHCWC has organized. These are known as the “Jewish Life and Times,” consisting to date of ten volumes.
Carbone further pointed out the organization’s commitment to Holocaust education and the numerous initiatives that have brought that subject to greater public attention.
The organization’s genealogical component, he reported, draws numerous queries from people all over the world.
One particularly interesting project that Carbone spoke about is an ongoing cooperative partnership with Gray Academy. For the past 10 years, the JHCWC has been loaning photos from the archives to the school’s art program, allowing the students to make drawings based on the photos.
“It has been a wonderful program which has given the students a better understanding of local Jewish history,” he said.
“During my time here, we have worked with numerous Jewish and non-Jewish organizations,” Carbone added. “It helps to build bridges between the Jewish and other communities.”
In retirement, Carbone is looking forward to doing more travelling with Anna, his wife of 40 years. They were scheduled to leave for southern Italy on May 16.
He will also continue to be busy in his role as Italy’s vice-consul here, helping fellow Italians and others in Winnipeg.
And he is excited about having more time to spend on his own genealogical and historical research. He has already published two books: “Italians in Winnipeg: an Illustrated History,” and “The Streets Were Not Paved With Gold: A Social History of Italians in Winnipeg”.
A future project which he is seriously considering is a study of the history of Jewish life in Calabria.
He is also working on a family tree.
“I may be retired,” he said, “but I will still be available from time to time to help out if needed.”