2010 

 

 

Your Excellency Madam President,
President Valdas Adamkus,
Members of the Seimas,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

This is the sitting convened to pay our last tribute to Algirdas Brazauskas, the first President of the Republic of Lithuania after the restoration of Independence, who passed away several days ago.

We distinctively recall the shared moments of meetings, interaction, and work with the late Brazauskas. As we cherish our personal memories of the events that have now become history, let us remember the deceased as the Signatory to the Act of Independence, President, Speaker, Prime Minister, and the Individual. Let us observe a minute of silence in memory of Algirdas Brazauskas.

Thank you.

It is hard to find the right words for the occasions like this one, the words to truly and faithfully encapsulate the ideas and feelings we would like to impart.

What we all share is a universal feeling that this event represents a turning point in the public life of our state and that an entire stage of Lithuania’s existence has gone into history. This ends the period marked by the icon of Algirdas Brazauskas.

 

Years have passed erasing from our memory the fact that alongside with other respectable and responsible positions, Algirdas Brazauskas once held the post of Speaker of the Seimas too. Today it is really difficult to even realise what holding of this post meant in Lithuania of 1992.    

 

The deceased President did not only firmly hold the steering wheel of his yacht, but also was successful in finding his way among diverse undercurrents of great politics. He was forced to sale both downwind and upstream; he experienced the ups and downs and faced a number of storms, showers, and impediments.

 

This is a complicated historical reality in which Algirdas Brazauskas took an active and prominent part. We can’t help admiring the stamina of the late President in overcoming historical challenges and making timely decisions, significant for the history of our state. His judgement and his position were critical and often affected one or another choice made by the state. His name and his activities brought about the changes in the perception of the state, politics, public thinking, and attitude towards the state and government. Algirdas Brazauskas made Lithuania change.

 

He remains in my memory an outstanding politician and, first and foremost, a human person. He was the individual who had the ability and gift to communicate with everyone in a simple language understandable to all.