Flags and speeches mark Defenders of Freedom Day

VILNIUS - Lithuanians hung their flags high on Jan. 13, Defenders of Freedom Day, the anniversary of the day in 1991 when the Soviet Union tried by military might to retake control of the renegade Baltic republic, only to be foiled by massive peaceful resistance.

"The tanks were stopped by Lithuanian song, the emerging democracy in Russia and the angry voice of the world," Parliamentary Chairman Arturas Paulauskas told a special gathering of lawmakers, officials and guests at the Seimas (Lithuania's parliament).

"We witnessed the day when the words of our national anthem, 'You are a land of heroes,' came to life."

On that tragic day Lithuania stood the test of its civil maturity and passed with flying colors, he added.

Soviet troops had ruthlessly plowed through crowds of peaceful resisters to seize the Vilnius television tower and the Lithuanian Radio and Television building, killing 14 and injuring hundreds.

But they stopped short of attacking the country's Parliament building, where thousands of unarmed defenders were gathered.

President Valdas Adamkus awarded state decorations to many who had shown heroism during the historic 1991 events.

"January 13 purified our morale and faith, increased our spiritual strength," Adamkus said during the ceremony. "We cannot forget that besides their tragic aspect the events also had a noble side in unifying the nation. The world was amazed by such sacrifice and courage."

Adamkus went on to lament that the human warmth and trust of those days often seemed to be lacking today.

"Let's hope it is just fatigue, which in the long run will pass," he said.

Numerous prominent figures addressed the commemorative gathering at the Parliament. Historian Edvardas Gudavicius stressed the historical importance of the Jan. 13, 1991, events in Lithuania which brought Muscovites out into the streets in protest and contributed to the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Antanas Karoblis, one of those who signed the act declaring Lithuania once again independent of the Soviet Union on March 11, 1990, said Jan. 13, 1991, was when the whole Lithuanian nation ratified that act.

Eugenijus Bartulis, Catholic bishop of the town of Siauliai, noted freedom had been achieved at a great price and must be cherished and used responsibly.

He expressed disappointment at the current situation of "crime, sad faces and falling birth rates" in Lithuania, and called for efforts to strengthen the family, "where the foundations of love, goodness, sympathy and self-sacrifice are laid."

Youth leader Saulius Urbonavicius said the people of Lithuania need to continue fighting in unity for a brighter future, noting with concern that every year large numbers of young people leave the country to seek a better life elsewhere.

But the reminiscences were disrupted when the well-known writer Kazys Saja presented a joint statement of several Independence Act signatories condemning a radio broadcast about the historic events.

During the broadcast, Lithuania's first post-Soviet Prime Minister Kazimiera Prunskiene and several other politicians spoke critically of actions by independence leader Vytautas Landsbergis before and during the Soviet aggression.

"These colleagues gave a biased and dishonest view of some tragic and heroic events and the reasons behind them," the statement said. It called the radio program an attempt to settle old scores. "Such subjective banter debases the still live and bleeding history of the nation, degrading those who sacrificed health and life for the freedom of us all."