On January 13, the historic Seimas Hall of the March 11 Act commemorated the tragic events of January 13 and Freedom Defenders’ Day. As every year, current and former leaders of the country, signatories, and foreign ambassadors gathered in parliament, Agnė Černiauskaitė and Agnė Liubertaitė notes in lrytas.
President Gitanas Nausėda was the first to address the gathering, and his speech contained a message for those in power.
“At the beginning of each year, we meet to remember and reflect on the origins of Lithuania’s freedom. January 13 draws our attention to what is most important. By telling Lithuania and the world about our defenders of freedom, their boundless determination and sacrifice, it reveals how deeply rooted our desire for freedom is and how powerful it can be.
Today, the idea of freedom ceases to be a convenient abstraction, often used in domestic political struggles, and speaks clearly to anyone willing to listen,” said Nausėda.
According to him, today, freedom is embodied by all the people of Lithuania who gather around memorial bonfires with songs and prayers, light candles for the fallen, and, with their steadfast solemnity, merge into a single body that is not afraid of any dangers.
“It is hardly possible to truly belong to this civic community, the Lithuanian nation, and remain indifferent to the message spread by Freedom Defenders’ Day. Accompanying us for four decades now, it remains as alive and precious as it was at the dawn of independence.
On January 13, we not only remember the painful trials we have endured, but also call on each other to continue the fight for Lithuania’s independence and the freedom of us all,” said the president.
Emphasising that freedom is inseparable from responsibility, the country’s leader mentioned the dangers of hastily made decisions.
“Freedom is the daily choices that accompany us, constantly demanding our attention. Freedom is the opportunity to disagree with another person’s opinion and engage in respectful dialogue without fear of state coercion or mob justice.
Freedom does not exist where lies and manipulation reign supreme. Freedom recedes when the most crucial goal becomes trampling and disparaging those who think differently. And we ourselves turn away from freedom when fundamental decisions of national importance are made hastily, recklessly, and irresponsibly.
Recently, I had to publicly express my surprise that in these turbulent times, we, the people of independent Lithuania, are so eager to create new political crises, looking for enemies among our own people and inevitably finding them,” emphasised Nausėda.
He said he had always believed that freedom was not given to us to satisfy our “instinct for domination.”
“Belief in one’s own righteousness, which is so prevalent across the political spectrum today, is a powerful force, but it should not become a wedge that divides the nation. And here we must all feel our personal responsibility.
After all, we were not strongest when we were looking for the speck in each other’s eyes, but when we devoted all our strength to establishing and defending our freedom, just as we did on March 11, January 13, and also on July 31 – the day of the Medininkai tragedy, which not only shook us but also united us all.
And it seems to me that at the right time, the highly respected defender of our freedom, priest Tomas Šernas, is joining the ranks of the honourable Freedom Prize laureates. This man has sacrificed a great deal for the Lithuanian state and deserves its future.
Year after year, Tomas Šernas’ example supports us and guides us in the right direction. To stand firm in the face of all trials, not to give in to hatred, to take responsibility, to look to the future with hope and love for life – only such freedom, such courage, such commitment can strengthen Lithuania – all of us.
And we will find the strength to free ourselves from unnecessary conflict, that each of us will find that immortal seed of freedom within ourselves, nurture it, grow it, and pass it on to future generations.
May our joint journey continue as an example to the nations of the world. Let everyone know that Lithuania is a country of free, courageous, and dignified people who can unite for a common goal,” the president concluded.
Olekas recalled that fateful night
Speaker of the Seimas Juozas Olekas emphasised that in January 1991, people from all over Lithuania, young and old, became defenders of freedom.
“Standing here today, I feel a sense of duty, respect, and gratitude: pride and responsibility. Thirty-five years have passed since that night when an attempt was made to break Lithuania by force, but Lithuania chose not to surrender, telling the whole world that freedom is more precious to us than life itself.
That night, Lithuania had no tanks, no weapons, but it had something that tanks, weapons, and aggressors are powerless against—it had unity, courage, and a desire for freedom,” said the speaker of the Seimas.
Olekas shared his memories of what he was doing and where he was on that fateful night.
“Thirty-five years ago, when I was also 35, I was serving as minister of health. At the beginning of the night, I was still the second minister of health, but by dawn, I was already the third. I saw the wounded and the bodies of the dead being brought to hospitals.
I saw doctors working without rest. I saw their anger at the occupiers who had killed and injured so brutally. But even more, I felt the determination of the doctors to save people, to preserve their health and their lives,” recalled the speaker of the Seimas.
According to Olekas, today we can say with certainty that the people of Lithuania defended not buildings and walls, but their right to decide their own destiny, to speak their own language, and to live without fear.
“The right to be free people in their own free land. And most importantly, the right to be responsible for their own state and the opportunity to pass on freedom to their children,” said the head of parliament.
Olekas noted that January 13 reminds us that freedom is never a given—it requires vigilance and responsibility, the courage to stand up against injustice, even when the side of injustice has enormous military power.
The speaker of the Seimas also emphasised that today our duty is not only to remember, but also to act, which is why it is essential to support Ukraine until its freedom is defended and a just peace is restored.
The son of a fallen freedom fighter still has reason to regret today
From the historic March 11 Hall, Robertas Povilaitis, son of the fallen freedom fighter Apolinaras Juozas Povilaitis, soon addressed the public and politicians.
“January 13 reminds us of an obvious choice – that night, it was not buildings that were being defended. It was the right to speak freely, to think, to hear and to know what was happening. It was no coincidence that one of the primary targets of the attack was the radio and television.
A simple truth was understood – if free speech is silenced, it becomes easier to silence society. That is why people stood up to defend the institutions that disseminated information and did not allow lies to become the only truth,” said Povilaitis.
According to him, Lithuania has achieved a lot in 35 years.
“I am proud of a free Lithuania, I am proud that today we clearly and unequivocally support Ukraine, which has been attacked by an aggressor – a regime that denies nations the freedom to live freely,” said the son of the freedom fighter who died on January 13.
However, he added that we must also recognise that not all struggles for freedom are over.
“It seems that 35 years is enough time to say goodbye to the Soviet legacy, but it is still alive. Sometimes, so obviously that a straightforward but uncomfortable question arises: why, 35 years after January 13, are there still streets in Lithuania named after Soviet Air Force Colonel Yuri Gagarin? Streets commemorating this high-ranking Soviet officer, military aviation pilot, fighter pilot, and instructor can still be found in the Vilnius and Pasvalys districts,” explained Povilaitis.
According to him, when discussing January 13, we must also address justice – how Lithuania has assessed the crimes committed by the Soviets. And here, continued Povilaitis, there is both cause for celebration and cause for regret.
“I would like to thank the prosecutors of the Prosecutor General’s Office, who, after long and complex work, transferred the January 13 criminal case to the court and the courts that examined it. This was a necessary and historically important step.
However, not everything went smoothly in this process. When I began to delve into the criminal case and raise the question of Gorbachev’s responsibility, I received a letter from the Prosecutor General’s Office, the last page of which was devoted not to the arguments I had presented, but to a detailed explanation of the doctrine of prosecutorial independence, citing specific legal provisions and the possible legal liability for influencing prosecutors.
For me, as the victim, this was a clear signal: don’t go any further, don’t interfere, don’t ask questions. Although no formal charges were brought against me, the content and tone of this letter were clearly intended to deter me from further investigating the January 13 case,” said Povilaitis.
According to the freedom fighter’s son, we are also facing enormous challenges today, contributed to by the same aggressor. He sent his message to the current government.
“On January 13, we defended our freedom from tanks. Today, we must once again protect our country from another army—an army of bots spreading hatred and lies. These are centrally coordinated fake social media profiles that deliberately spread false information, incite hatred, divide society, and seek to undermine trust in state institutions and democracy.
These activities are controlled by the same hostile state that is currently terrorising Ukraine and threatening the entire civilised world. When political rhetoric seeks enemies rather than solutions, when hatred and social discord are normalised, it is no longer a matter of diversity of opinion—it is a threat to democracy.
When those who spread and incite hatred come to power, the state begins to be destroyed from within,” emphasised Povilaitis.
According to him, today there is a desire to make the public broadcaster convenient, one that does not raise uncomfortable questions.
“However, the moment a public broadcaster becomes convenient for politicians, it ceases to be public. I want to thank LRT employees and journalists for their professionalism, courage, and responsibility,” said Povilaitis.
The Freedom Prize winner recalled the legendary words of Grybauskaitė
This year’s Freedom Prize winner was Tomas Šernas, an Evangelical Reformed priest who survived the Medininkai tragedy.
“The events of January 13 and the Medininkai post are often referred to as tragedies. When we call an event a tragedy, we express our position and still naively hope that the perpetrators and their fellow citizens will understand the term. We still hope that a misfortune, a big mistake, a tragedy has occurred, and that the responsible party will join us in seeking legal, moral, and historical truth.
Until now, we have hoped for this mutual understanding. We never want to believe that this is not a mistake and that the perpetrators do not perceive these events as tragedies. Unfortunately, it is sometimes difficult for all of us to accept others’ tragedies. This is also true for us. The tragedy of the Holocaust demonstrated this, but not everyone chose to take this tragedy as their own, even though it is a mutual tragedy.
I regret that to this day we still have fellow citizens and even members of parliament who can joke about the Holocaust,” said Šernas.
According to the Freedom Prize laureate, the obstruction of criminal investigations and the attack on Ukraine show that our intentions and those of our imperial neighbours are very different. We want peace, while they see us as potential prey.
As Šernas said, 35 years ago, our determination for freedom was put to the test—perhaps, in his words, from the perspective of young people, it may seem that this happened in ancient times.
“As the words of our national anthem say: ‘From the past, your sons draw strength’. But it is not always easy to draw strength from the past. That past contained everything – resistance and collaboration, anti-Semitism and decency, murder and rescue.
So, our future is unknown, which makes it all the more hopeful. We believed that the future could be better, more just,” said the Evangelical Reformed pastor.
In his speech, Šernas thanked the people who worked for our free future and paid special tribute to women politicians.
“In our family, we say ‘about sons,’ but today I want to thank the daughters of Lithuania. And today, I congratulate all the women in the Seimas, the government and all female politicians. I thank those determined daughters of Lithuania who have had to deal with extraordinary challenges – the COVID-19 pandemic, the artificially organised flow of migrants. I also thank them for their uncompromising position on the defence budget in the face of this danger. I thank them personally,” emphasised the Freedom Prize laureate.
He also addressed the country’s leader, Dalia Grybauskaitė, who has completed her term in office.
“When President Grybauskaitė oversaw the gas terminal project from start to finish, which gave Lithuania more energy freedom, there were political sons who probably drew their strength from the past and did everything they could to hinder the project.
What political and economic challenges would the country face today if it weren’t for this daughter of Lithuania? Her phrase ‘let’s stop trembling’ is very appropriate today,” said Šernas.
His words were met with applause in the hall, and Grybauskaitė herself smiled subtly.
According to Šernas, a defender of freedom, today we have the freedom, won with blood, to say “no.”
“No one will beat us up or put us in jail for that. We can say “no” to a gas terminal, shale gas exploration, an offshore wind farm, or an important military training ground in a strategic location. We can say “no,” but our freedom is not limited to saying no—that is only half of freedom. Freedom also requires our “yes.”
We will not create a secure future for ourselves with our “no,” he emphasised.
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