Signatories to the Act of Independence of Lithuania, Members of the Supreme Council Reconstituent Seimas, Your Excellency President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė, Valdas Adamkus, Rolandas Paksas, Your Excellency Speaker of the Eduskunta of the Republic of Finland Eero Heinäluoma, Deputy Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland Eugeniusz Tomasz, fellow Parliamentarians, Members of the Government, honourable guests,
Our road to independence was difficult and long. Lithuania survived several occupations. It was ruthlessly lashed by wars and experienced a horrible hell of exile, humiliation and violence, the pain of loss, the fire of the post-war anti-resistance movement. Nevertheless, our desire to live in an independent and free Lithuania and our wish to deal with the matters of our country independently was not defeated by either of them.
23 years ago, on 11th of March, besieged by the repressive occupational structures, the representatives of the nation signed the Act of Re-establishment of Independence and brought Lithuania back to the global community of equal nations and offered new avenues to the future, as well as provided new opportunities.
The Day of Restoration of Independence of Lithuania stands for the independence and freedom of our state the restored by the spirit, determination and unity of the Lithuanian nation. It is because of our unity that we can enjoy freedom. This day is the festival of freedom.
May I congratulate you all on the 23rd anniversary of the restored independence and revival of our state.
Unfortunately, a few dozens of Signatories to the Act of Independence and many defenders of Lithuanias freedom are no longer with us. They will never again celebrate achievements of the re-established country or this happy day with us.
Now let us remember all the defenders of Independence and creators of Lithuania, who have already passed away.
Let us pay tribute to their memory by a minute of silence.
Thank you.
When we commemorate the 11th of March, the day so special for us all, we always cast our minds back to the beginning of the reform movement Sąjūdis, which aimed at reforming the political, economic and cultural life of the soviet Lithuania and expressed Lithuanias aspirations to independence. The Sąjūdis together with the National Fronts of Estonia and Latvia organised the Baltic Human Chain the Baltic Way to mark the 50th anniversary of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact that deprived the Baltic States of their independence.
It was then, that the chain of hundreds of thousands people from the Gediminas Castle in Vilnius to the Tower of Pikk Herman in Tallinn stood hand in hand against the red flood as an irresistible united barrage of hands and hearts towards a peaceful way of the Baltic States to independence.
Many of us stood in the historic Baltic Way and today we can be proud of ourselves for having participated in the event of such great importance. The Baltic Way united and took us forward. It gave us hope and made us believe in our strength and in the future of our country. The actual history of Lithuania was made public.
I cannot but mention the sports community of that time and the aspirations of prominent sportsmen to become full-fledged members of the international sport family. They knew for sure what it meat to represent the alien country. They were not frightened by threats and were the first, who re-established the Lithuanian Olympic Committee in December of 1988. It was them who refused to play in Soviet teams and won the highest Olympic prizes in the first year of Lithuanias independence.
Raised by national revival, the candidates supported by the reform movement Sąjūdis won overwhelmingly the elections to the Supreme Council. Today, we are proud of their votes that determined the adoption of the Act of Re-establishment of the State of Lithuania on 11 March 1990.
We had to grudge no effort for the consolidation of our independence. The spring of 1990 was extremely difficult and responsible for Lithuania. The Soviet system could not bear with the idea that the empire was collapsing and that some mere 3 million Lithuanians, which accounted for approximately only one seventieth of the population of the Soviet Union, were like a hitch in the mechanism of the empire. Consequently, the restored Lithuania had to face the blockade imposed by the Soviet Russia, the massacre at the Medininkai border control post and finally the murderous January of 1991, when 14 people were killed, but our recently gained freedom was protected. We buried our sons and daughter who died for the future of Lithuania; we swore to protect our independence and to defend democracy.
And indeed, 23 years ago, when Lithuania took such an important step, it did not hesitate or delay. Nor was it scared by threats and provocations or by the attempts to strangle a new state. Lithuania was the first to break free from the iron heel of the Soviet Union thus accelerating the fall of the communism empire and the liberation of Eastern and Central Europe.
When we look back to the history of fights for freedom, however, we should not forget what made the restored state stronger and what gave us strength to make our country ever more beautiful and what took us to the global community of democratic countries. We must not forget how important it was for the restored state to join the European Union and NATO, as well as to integrate into international organisations.
Lithuania is a young country, but its achievements are numerous. However, we tend to talk about them too little. We have not learnt yet to boast about hard-working and talented people who love their homeland and about their achievements. Admittedly, merits and activities of prominent people working in the fields of art, science, culture and sport are cast into the shade by shoddy matters and trivial problems. Achievements of Lithuanian scientists are taken for granted. But could anyone anytime imagine that Lithuania will design and produce components and equipment for the global space industry? Or that Lithuanian-made lasers will be well known to the entire world?
I am reminding you of this not to deny the prevailing problems, such as unemployment, social exclusion, emigration, spiritual and moral decline or shoddy cultural phenomenon.
Ladies and gentlemen,
When commemorating the 23rd anniversary of the restoration of independence of Lithuania, we celebrate and at the same time we contemplate what we have succeeded in doing. Have we lived the way we wanted and aspired to? Have we met the expectations of our freedom? Have we been honest in exercising our duties? Do we live like Europeans, like the entire democratic world? How much understanding and kindness have we shared with others? How many words of gratitude have we said? Have we thanked everyone who was right beside us and who patiently shared everything they had without asking for anything in return? Are we tolerant to each other? And, are we ignorant of deprivation and misery of others?
The Act of Independence is not merely a document to be put under the glass in a museum and dusted before solemn commemorations. It is a commitment for us to act patiently, sparing no effort or time for the welfare of our homeland and its people.
Now, as never before, Lithuania must be united. It is highly important not to shatter the unity, which blossomed with the reform movement Sąjūdis.
We will have to do great and responsible work in the future: consolidation of membership of the European Union and NATO and the Presidency of the Council of the EU. We should never forget that we must keep our promises we gave during the parliamentary elections and be honest in implementing our duties.
Let us be united and work hand in hand. Let us prove that we deserve our glorious history.
I am sincerely grateful to everyone, who strengthens the spirit. Let us all respect and preserve the 11th of March as this is the decision of the nation!
I congratulate Lithuania and each citizen with our holiday the Day of Restoration of Independence!
