Sugihara House
Opening Hours:
May-October
Mon-Fri: 10:00 – 17:00
Sat, Sun: 11:00 – 16:00
November-April
Mon-Fri: 11:00 – 15:00
Sat, Sun: closed
The Sugihara Foundation is a museum and a public institution, founded in 1999 by Lithuanian and Belgian intellectuals and businessmen, in order to commemorate the name of Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara. Along with Dutch consul Jan Zwartendijk and many other diplomats, Sugihara saved thousands of European Jews and showed an example of kindness and righteousness, while also reminding the young generation of the dangers looming in the human nature.
The initiators of the foundation pursue several objectives, such as raising funds for the establishment and maintenance of the Sugihara House, gathering together intellectuals for collaborative research on tolerance and hatred, and strengthening cultural relations between Japan and Lithuania.
Vytautas Magnus University is helping the foundation achieve the aforementioned objectives. The university centres for Japanese studies and civil tolerance are functioning at the Sugihara House.
Relations with various Japanese organizations are established at the Sugihara House, e.g. universities, cultural, business and administrative institutions.
The Centre for Asian Studies
The Centre for Asian Studies, located at the Sugihara House, is one of the research centres of VMU constructed on the basis of multidisciplinary regional knowledge, just like the Centre for Latvian Studies and the Centre for Slavic studies of the Faculty of Political Science and Diplomacy. The centre’s main object is Asia, mainly with the focus on the humanities and social sciences, and emphasis on the modern trends of Asian politics, economy, society and culture. Presently the centre is concentrated on the East Asian region (Japan, the Koreas, Peoples’ Republic of China and Republic of China), but there are plans to expand interests to Southwest, Central, South and Southeast Asia in the future.
Japanese club Hashi
Origins of the Japanese club Hashi can be traced to as far back as 1998. Still, the official birthday of the club – known as the Kaunas Japanese Club at the time – is 5 September 2000. The students of Japanese language are behind its inception: it was their unrelenting desire to find out more about the Land of the Rising Sun, its customs, traditions and culture, everything that was missing in the language classes. Hashi is based on the Japanese student club model and is managed solely by the students. Nevertheless, the events organized by the club are open to the general public. The location for most of the events is Sugihara House.
