Thus, the country’s leader spoke in Ariogala in a greeting dedicated to the participants of the Lithuanian political prisoners and deportees gathering “With Lithuania in the Heart” held on Saturday.
According to G. Nausėda, this gathering expresses respect for those who, even in the hardest days of occupation and exile, preserved love for the homeland, faith in freedom, and human dignity.
“Your life stories speak of an indomitable spirit. Exile, prisons, and camps were supposed to break the person and the nation, but it is impossible to break what the cruel and dehumanized occupier does not understand,” said the president.
“Even in the most remote corners of Siberia, the Lithuanian language was preserved, traditions were passed on, and hope to return to a free homeland was nurtured. It is this loyalty to Lithuania that became a solid foundation for restoring the freedom of our state,” noted G. Nausėda.
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According to him, when brutal aggression and attempts to forcibly deny nations the right to decide their own fate are again seen in Europe, the experience of former political prisoners and deportees gains even deeper meaning, reminding that freedom is not a given.
“Therefore, Ariogala annually becomes a place where different generations meet. Here, not only historical memory is passed on, but also the values by which a strong state lives – love for Lithuania, respect for people, responsibility for one’s land, and faith in the power of freedom,” the president was quoted as saying.
BNS wrote that during the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1952, more than 130 thousand people were deported from Lithuania, and thousands also died in camps.
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