A beautiful day in Vilnius, sunny and unusually warm for the season. A special day. On March 11 this year, the Baltic country marks the 35th anniversary of the restoration of independence in 1990. A freedom achieved thanks to a partisan struggle and subsequent unarmed resistance after fifty years of Soviet occupation.
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Streets are full of people. Each with a cockade, a small or large flag with the three colors of the national flag: yellow, green and red.
The meeting point is in front of the Parliament, where the official event will take place: the raising of the flags of the three Baltic states and official speeches. Guests in Vilnius for the anniversary are the presidents of the Parliaments of Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Iceland, Poland and Ukraine. Iceland was the first country to recognize Lithuanian independence in 1990.
A long applause is dedicated to the first leader of independent Lithuania, Vytautas Landsbergis, to former presidents Valdas Adamkus and Dalia Grybauskaitė, and to the current president Gitanas Nausėda.
But the real protagonists of this day are people: women, men, boys, children, elderly people. Smiling, they listen to the official speeches, wave flags, sing the anthem and participate in the march from the parliament to the Cathedral Square where the concert of the military bands of the three Baltic states is scheduled.
A long parade winds along Gedimino Prospektas. The first ones arrive at the Cathedral, while the last ones are still in front of the Parliament. A long Lithuanian flag, followed by the Ukrainian one, winds along the entire parade.
Today more than ever, for Lithuanians, it is necessary to protect and defend the freedom they have achieved. Russia’s war against Ukraine confirms how the uncomfortable neighbor, the Russian Federation, can still be a danger to the independence of the entire region.
Thirty-five years have passed, but Lithuanians know perfectly well that freedom is not something acquired. It must be protected. Day by day.
WE ARE NOT AFRAID
We talk with some people (interviews in the video). What does this anniversary mean to them? Are they more worried than three years ago when Russia unleashed a full-scale war against Ukraine? “We are not afraid”, they answer. Worried but aware of how necessary it is to be vigilant. How important support for Ukraine, the country under attack, is for them and for the whole of Europe. Some are moved as they speak, recalling the dark times of the occupation. Others say that they donate every month to the Blue/Yellow association that collects money to support the struggle of the Ukrainians.
“Lithuania belongs to Lithuanians!”; “In 1990 Ukrainians people were here, they helped us. We do not forget and today we are by their side”.
Strength, pride and determination allowed Lithuania to be free. And even today they are ready to defend their independence. “Never again under Russia, never again under their influence”.
The memories of the Soviet occupation are still alive. Most families had relatives and friends deported to Siberia. Many never returned.
Throughout the day in Vilnius, but the same happens in Kaunas and other cities of Lithuania, people are celebrating. It is also a moment of pride. Families, friends, acquaintances meet.
Children are the happiest. They run under the big flags, play, have fun. They did not live under the occupation. But days like this are also a way to make them understand what their grandparents and parents felt. Events, workshops, quizzes have been organized at the Parliament Visitors’ Center and in the Parliament itself, to remember what happened. Many are dedicated to children, so that they can learn, also through play, how difficult it was to gain freedom.
As the sun sets, the crowd gathers again in the Cathedral Square. It is time for the final concert. Singers and musicians take turns on stage. People wave flags and sing along to the songs. At the end of the concert, darkness has now enveloped the square. But not the strength and pride of a people.
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