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People from the Lithuanian province, small villages and steadings that have avoided the polonisation did not speak Lithuanian openly and concealed their nationality in fear of violence.
Lithuanians lived in Ignalina region, Valkininkai, Dieveniskes, Gerveciai, Pelesa, Eisiskes, to the east of Eisiskes and around Salcininkai.
Polish occupation authorities had one intention - to eradicate Lithuanians.
Demographic colonisation was conducted as well: the so-called „osadniks“, (volunteer settlers) from Poland were given the land plots here and settled down.
Looking to the civil cases of Vilnius County Courts in occupation years, there are many cases against people…
who listen to the Lithuanian Radio,
who teach their children in Lithuanian,
and who read Lithuanian publications.
The situation was worse than during the occupation of Tsarist Russian empire.
Polish government conducted such terrible genocide here,
that in fact, later once the Soviet occupation and then the German occupation began, any possibility of the deal with Poland was out of question.
Even before the occupation in 1920, Eastern Lithuania had always been a melting pot due to its geographic position.
In Western or Northern Lithuania people could speak only their native language, but in the Eastern territories, Russian, Lithuanian and Polish languages were equally widely-used.
The variety of languages surprised no one and neither did the mixed marriages.
My own family was mixed - my Mother was Polish, my Father Lithuanian. My grandfather also was Lithuanian, and my grandmother was Polish.
Me and my aunts chose Lithuanian nationality.
Inter-war ceasefire line between Lithuania and Poland was not far from here - only 3 km away.
Pabrade belonged to the Poles, there was their training ground there. We could hear Poles shooting.
We talked with our neighbours in Polish.
Our school had 40 pupils, half of them Russians, the other half Poles. I was the only Lithuanian in my school.
Lithuanian-Polish relations in Eastern Lithuania have always been tense. The situation worsened even more once the Second World War started.
In schools pupils were usually taught in Polish or Russian since at that time it was considered...
... that Lithuanian language is used only by the uneducated peasants that should be subdued and polonised.
Since the end of 1943 and the beginning of 1944, they started the campaign to destroy the Lithuanians and the Lithuanian Administration throughout the eastern Lithuania.
They were seeking to ensure that Lithuanians would not prevent them from annexing Eastern Lithuania to the Poland in case of referendum.
In delivering these objectives of the Polish Government, the crucial role was played by Armia Krajowa units that performed their tasks especially diligently.
It is testified by the so-called Bernardine archive discovered in Vilnius Bernardine monastery in 1995 during the renovation works.
It contains all the records of all responses, proclamations and threats of Armia Krajowa.
As well as the list of people disloyal to Poland.
The names of people to be annihilated.
Next to the names, addresses and other data, they used to provide an explanation why one or the other person is considered disloyal.
The death verdict may be passed for the anti-Polish propaganda, for friendship with the Lithuanians
or just for mentioning Lithuanian President Smetona’s name.
This AK list contains comments indicating that a person that had kissed the Lithuanian flag deserved punishment.
However, in reality the Lithuanian nationality indicated in the passport sufficed..
In this picture of 1944, you can see the same brother Vinclovas in the left upper corner. He is 17 years old here.
And people in the coffins are all his family.
Whereas this picture has never before been shown to Mr Vinclovas.
It was taken in the steading immediately after the execution.
This is my sister Onute and our little Levute, her brains splattered all around. She lies at the end of the table, you could see her legs.
And the other, called Zose, is lying under the table. Father's head lying on the ground, and here you can see Mother's feet.
And here they are all placed in the coffins.
Adults can be accused of something, but these little children – what is their fault?
Vinclovas survived the said pogrom of Armia Krajowa.
He and his brother fled as soon as the soldiers of Armia Krajowa approached.
They saw the gory view upon returning.
The older brother was the first to learn the news and to come back.
There were little goslings inside splashing in blood and he threw them out. We left the house as it was for the night, because we were in danger too. The AK solders could have returned any moment.
On the same day, the AK units in Moletai and Utena districts killed another 150 people.
According to witnesses, executioners checked victims passports before execution to be sure about their nationality.
When Army Krajowa soldiers were coming home, and insisted on showing prayerbook
and their behavior depends on in which language is the prayerbook: Polish or Lithuanian.
Woe to whose prayerbook is in Lithuanian.
About which kind of tolerance can we speak?
The war has been declared against Lithuanians civilians more than against someone else.
Remeika family in 1944. 24 June. was preparing to celebrate Midsummer, was preparing to congratulate aunt Janina.
My mother went to court and say - oh my, how much Army goes from the forest.
We lived near the forest. My dad at this moment was in the woods, he worked as forester.
Then ... We didn't run anywhere, leaved in the house.
Soldiers came and asked: Who are you, Lithuanians or Poles?
In what language they spoke? They spoke Polish. Well, and then they say: now we will shot you.
Says: Get In Line! Well, then my mother took me in her arms, and we stood in the line that.
And then they began to shoot. They were four men.
I kept on hand, a bullet first crossed through my mothers head, and then stuck in my chest.
Bullets had already lost some of their power and have not passed through me. Otherwise, and I would be also already dead.
When my mother and I fell down together, I touched mom hairs – they parched with blood - and then I lost consciousness.
There is a printed list of people killed by the Army Krajowa.
Throughout the eastern territory of Lithuania passes these bloody footprints.
Fate of family Macijauskai lived near the forest was also determined by Army Krajova.
About the white partisans of AK, soldiers wearing white bands, they had not heard yet.
The armed people came from the woods
and asked my father “who are you?” “Since I live in Lithuania, I am the Lithuanian”, answered my father.
They demanded for a passport.
With passport in hands they shot him, and even took a shoes. We found him dead, lying on the bed.
Because the people of Vilnius area could speak well enough in both languages, were a lot of mixed families, it was possible identify nationality only in this way.
This is reason why people are killed with passports in their hands.
By today's data, the Army Krajowa units in eastern Lithuania 1943-1944 killed about half thousand civilians, including women and small children.