Baltic memorial hall opens in Brussels

RIGA - The ‘Baltic Way Alley’ opened with a ceremony at the European Parliament building in Brussels the evening on June 26. This is a corridor in the parliament building, now named after the Baltic Way event, and decorated with a commemorative sign by sculptor Aigars Bikse: ‘Baltic Destinies Written in Stars,’ reports LETA. 350 to 400 people attended the opening ceremony, which is an unprecedented number for such an event, say participants.

The idea of naming one of the European Parliament corridors after the Baltic Way was originally proposed by Latvian MEP Sandra Kalniete. She said that achieving this had been quite complicated - several bureaucratic obstacles had to be overcome and agreement had to be reached with the other Baltic MEPs.

Also, a photography exhibition dedicated to the Baltic Way was opened June 26 in the European Parliament building, at the initiative of Latvian MEP Karlis Sadurskis.

European Parliament President Martin Schulz, Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite and European Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas of Estonia participated in the opening ceremony. European Parliament members, employees, diplomats and Baltic residents living in Belgium also participated in the ceremony.

The idea of renaming the corridor after the Baltic Way is to commemorate those Latvians, Estonians and Lithuanians who on Aug. 23, 1989 joined hands to create a human chain over 600 kilometers long that crossed the three Baltic countries, demonstrating their resolve to re-establish their freedom.