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Sąjūdis

April 17, 2023

Sąjūdis (Lithuanian: [ˈsâːjuːdʲɪs], "Movement"), initially known as the Reform Movement of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Persitvarkymo Sąjūdis), is a political organisation which led the struggle for Lithuanian independence in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was established on 3 June 1988 as the first opposition party in Soviet Lithuania, and was led by Vytautas Landsbergis. Its goal was to seek the return of independent status for Lithuania.

Reform Movement of Lithuania
Lietuvos Persitvarkymo Sąjūdis
AbbreviationLPS (Sąjūdis)
LeaderVytautas Landsbergis (1988-1990)
Founded23 October 1988; 34 years ago (1988-10-23)
HeadquartersVilnius, Lithuania
IdeologyLithuanian nationalism
Anti-communism
Anti-Sovietism
Political positionBig tent
SloganFor Lithuania
Sąjūdžio veliaveles Vytis 1989

Historical background

Main article: Singing Revolution

In the mid-1980s, Lithuania's Communist Party leadership hesitated to embrace Gorbachev's perestroika and glasnost. The death of Petras Griškevičius, first secretary of the Communist Party of Lithuania, in 1987 was merely followed by the appointment of another rigid communist, Ringaudas Songaila. However, encouraged by the rhetoric of Mikhail Gorbachev, noting the strengthening position of Solidarity in Poland and encouraged by the Pope and the U.S. Government, Baltic independence activists began to hold public demonstrations in Riga, Tallinn, and Vilnius.

Formation

At a meeting at the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences on 3 June 1988, communist and non-communist intellectuals formed Sąjūdis Initiative Group (Lithuanian: Sąjūdžio iniciatyvinė grupė) to organise a movement to support Gorbachev's program of glasnost, democratisation, and perestroika. The group composed of 35 members, mostly artists. 17 of the group members were also communist party members. Its goal was to organise the Sąjūdis Reform Movement, which became known subsequently simply as Sąjūdis.

On 21 June 1988, the first massive gathering organised by Sąjūdis took place at Soviet Square near Soviet Palace. Three days later gathering took place in Gediminas' Square. There delegates to the 19th All-Union Conference of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union were instructed about Sąjūdis goals.

About 100,000 people in Vingis Park greeted the delegates when they came back in July. Another massive event took place on 23 August 1988, when about 250,000 people gathered to protest against the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact and its secret protocol.

On 19 June 1988, the first issue of samizdat newspaper "Sąjūdis News" (Lithuanian: Sąjūdžio žinios) was published. In September Sąjūdis published a legal newspaper, "Atgimimas" (English: rebirth). In total about 150 different newspapers were printed supporting Sąjūdis.

As stated in the first issues “Atgimimas”, Sąjūdis was perceived as the reformist initiative by the intellectual authorities with a goal to start the national awakening.[1]

In October 1988, Sąjūdis held its founding conference in Vilnius. It elected 35-member council. Most its members were members of the initiative group. Vytautas Landsbergis, a professor of musicology, who was not a member of the communist party, became the council's chairman.[2]

 
Sajudis plaque at old headquarters of the movement, now Ireland's embassy. Vilnius, 1 Šventaragio g.

Activities

The movement supported Gorbachev's policies, but at the same time promoted Lithuanian national issues such as restoration of the Lithuanian language as the official language. Its demands included the revelation of truth about the Stalinist years, protection of the environment, the halt to construction on a third nuclear reactor at the Ignalina nuclear power plant, and disclosure of the secret protocols of the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact, signed in 1939.

Sąjūdis used mass meetings to advance its goals. At first, Communist Party leaders shunned these meetings, but by mid-1988 their participation became a political necessity. A Sąjūdis rally on 24 June 1988, was attended by Algirdas Brazauskas, then party secretary for industrial affairs. In October 1988, Brazauskas was appointed first secretary of the communist party to replace Songaila. Communist leaders threatened to crack down on Sąjūdis, but backed down in the face of mass protests. Sąjūdis candidates fared well in elections to the Congress of People's Deputies, the newly created Soviet legislative body. Their candidates won in 36 of the 40 districts in which they ran.

In February 1989 Sąjūdis declared that Lithuania had been forcibly annexed by the Soviet Union and that the group's ultimate goal was the restoration of Lithuanian independence. Lithuanian sovereignty was proclaimed in May 1989, and Lithuania's incorporation into the Soviet Union was declared illegal.

On 23 August 1989, the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Nazi–Soviet Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, a 600-kilometre, two-million-strong human chain reaching from Tallinn to Vilnius focused international attention on the aspirations of the Baltic nations. This demonstration and the coordinated efforts of the three nations became known as the Baltic Way. Days after the rally, the federal Supreme Soviet soon made public its admission of the forced accession of the Baltic republics.

In December the Communist Party of Lithuania seceded from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and agreed to give up its monopoly on power. In February 1990 Sąjūdis representatives (or candidates that were supported by the movement) won an absolute majority (101 seats out of 141) in the Supreme Council of the Lithuanian SSR. Vytautas Landsbergis was elected chairman of the Supreme Council. This led to the declaration of the restoration of independence on 11 March 1990, with Landsbergis becoming the first President of a restored Lithuania.

After independence

 
Headquarters of Sąjūdis in Vilnius

Today, Sąjūdis is still active in Lithuania, but it has lost almost all its influence.

With independence gained, reform communists and Vilnius liberal intellectuals left Sąjūdis about a month later. One of the reasons of this event, was a growing nationalist rhetoric. Some members formed the new Independence Party while liberal-leaning members helped to found the Liberal Union of Lithuania. As a result, the movement, still led by its founder V. Landsbergis, mostly included members from the Kaunas faction, who were inclined to ‘differentiate the local population into two clear groups, “patriots” and “communists”’.[3] The popularity of Sąjūdis waned as it failed to maintain unity among people with different political beliefs and was ineffective in handling the economic crisis.

Moreover, Sąjūdis lost major support from the rural regions of Lithuania as they proposed agricultural and land reforms without the input and against the interests of most kolkhoz employees and workers.[4] Sąjūdis retained support in Kaunas and Panevėžys.[5]

In late summer of 1992, Sąjūdis and several minor parties and movements formed electoral coalition "For democratic Lithuania". The Democratic Labour Party (DLP; the former Communist Party of Lithuania) was victorious in the Seimas elections of 1992.

Many of the group, including Landsbergis, formed the core of the Homeland Union, now the largest centre-right party in Lithuania.

Members of Sąjūdis Initiative Group

See also

References

  1. ^ Agarin, Timofey. A Cat’s Lick : Democratisation and Minority Communities in the Post-Soviet Baltic. Brill | Rodopi, 2010.
  2. ^ Lithuania: The Move Toward Independence, 1987-91, Country Study. http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-8286.html
  3. ^ Agarin, Timofey. A Cat’s Lick : Democratisation and Minority Communities in the Post-Soviet Baltic. Brill | Rodopi, 2010.
  4. ^ Arunas Juska*, Arunas Poviliunas, Ruta Ziliukaite and Vilma Geguziene. Rural Intelligentsia and Path Dependency in Post-socialist Civic Organising: The Case of Lithuania. European Society for Rural Sociology. 2008.
  5. ^ https://vrk.maps.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?layers=44656569b7c1496ba59b623d3f626df1
  • Lithuania: The Move Toward Independence, 1987-91, Country Study.
  • , Estonica, Estonian Institute.
  • Česlovas Laurinavičius, Vladas Sirutavičius. Lietuvos istorija. XII t. Id. Sąjūdis: nuo "Persitvarkymo" iki Kovo 11-osios.2008, ISBN 978-9955-23-164-6

External links

  • LIETUVOS PERSITVARKYMO SĄJŪDŽIO STEIGIAMAJAM SUVAŽIAVIMUI – 30 (in Lithuanian)

April 17, 2023
sąjūdis, this, article, uses, bare, urls, which, uninformative, vulnerable, link, please, consider, converting, them, full, citations, ensure, article, remains, verifiable, maintains, consistent, citation, style, several, templates, tools, available, assist, f. This article uses bare URLs which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting such as Reflinks documentation reFill documentation and Citation bot documentation September 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations April 2009 Learn how and when to remove this template message Sajudis Lithuanian ˈsaːjuːdʲɪs Movement initially known as the Reform Movement of Lithuania Lithuanian Lietuvos Persitvarkymo Sajudis is a political organisation which led the struggle for Lithuanian independence in the late 1980s and early 1990s It was established on 3 June 1988 as the first opposition party in Soviet Lithuania and was led by Vytautas Landsbergis Its goal was to seek the return of independent status for Lithuania Reform Movement of Lithuania Lietuvos Persitvarkymo SajudisAbbreviationLPS Sajudis LeaderVytautas Landsbergis 1988 1990 Founded23 October 1988 34 years ago 1988 10 23 HeadquartersVilnius LithuaniaIdeologyLithuanian nationalismAnti communismAnti SovietismPolitical positionBig tentSloganFor LithuaniaPolitics of LithuaniaPolitical partiesElections Sajudzio veliaveles Vytis 1989 Contents 1 Historical background 2 Formation 3 Activities 4 After independence 5 Members of Sajudis Initiative Group 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistorical background EditMain article Singing Revolution In the mid 1980s Lithuania s Communist Party leadership hesitated to embrace Gorbachev s perestroika and glasnost The death of Petras Griskevicius first secretary of the Communist Party of Lithuania in 1987 was merely followed by the appointment of another rigid communist Ringaudas Songaila However encouraged by the rhetoric of Mikhail Gorbachev noting the strengthening position of Solidarity in Poland and encouraged by the Pope and the U S Government Baltic independence activists began to hold public demonstrations in Riga Tallinn and Vilnius Formation EditAt a meeting at the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences on 3 June 1988 communist and non communist intellectuals formed Sajudis Initiative Group Lithuanian Sajudzio iniciatyvine grupe to organise a movement to support Gorbachev s program of glasnost democratisation and perestroika The group composed of 35 members mostly artists 17 of the group members were also communist party members Its goal was to organise the Sajudis Reform Movement which became known subsequently simply as Sajudis On 21 June 1988 the first massive gathering organised by Sajudis took place at Soviet Square near Soviet Palace Three days later gathering took place in Gediminas Square There delegates to the 19th All Union Conference of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union were instructed about Sajudis goals About 100 000 people in Vingis Park greeted the delegates when they came back in July Another massive event took place on 23 August 1988 when about 250 000 people gathered to protest against the Molotov Ribbentrop pact and its secret protocol On 19 June 1988 the first issue of samizdat newspaper Sajudis News Lithuanian Sajudzio zinios was published In September Sajudis published a legal newspaper Atgimimas English rebirth In total about 150 different newspapers were printed supporting Sajudis As stated in the first issues Atgimimas Sajudis was perceived as the reformist initiative by the intellectual authorities with a goal to start the national awakening 1 In October 1988 Sajudis held its founding conference in Vilnius It elected 35 member council Most its members were members of the initiative group Vytautas Landsbergis a professor of musicology who was not a member of the communist party became the council s chairman 2 Sajudis plaque at old headquarters of the movement now Ireland s embassy Vilnius 1 Sventaragio g Activities EditThe movement supported Gorbachev s policies but at the same time promoted Lithuanian national issues such as restoration of the Lithuanian language as the official language Its demands included the revelation of truth about the Stalinist years protection of the environment the halt to construction on a third nuclear reactor at the Ignalina nuclear power plant and disclosure of the secret protocols of the Nazi Soviet Non aggression Pact signed in 1939 Sajudis used mass meetings to advance its goals At first Communist Party leaders shunned these meetings but by mid 1988 their participation became a political necessity A Sajudis rally on 24 June 1988 was attended by Algirdas Brazauskas then party secretary for industrial affairs In October 1988 Brazauskas was appointed first secretary of the communist party to replace Songaila Communist leaders threatened to crack down on Sajudis but backed down in the face of mass protests Sajudis candidates fared well in elections to the Congress of People s Deputies the newly created Soviet legislative body Their candidates won in 36 of the 40 districts in which they ran In February 1989 Sajudis declared that Lithuania had been forcibly annexed by the Soviet Union and that the group s ultimate goal was the restoration of Lithuanian independence Lithuanian sovereignty was proclaimed in May 1989 and Lithuania s incorporation into the Soviet Union was declared illegal On 23 August 1989 the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Nazi Soviet Molotov Ribbentrop Pact a 600 kilometre two million strong human chain reaching from Tallinn to Vilnius focused international attention on the aspirations of the Baltic nations This demonstration and the coordinated efforts of the three nations became known as the Baltic Way Days after the rally the federal Supreme Soviet soon made public its admission of the forced accession of the Baltic republics In December the Communist Party of Lithuania seceded from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and agreed to give up its monopoly on power In February 1990 Sajudis representatives or candidates that were supported by the movement won an absolute majority 101 seats out of 141 in the Supreme Council of the Lithuanian SSR Vytautas Landsbergis was elected chairman of the Supreme Council This led to the declaration of the restoration of independence on 11 March 1990 with Landsbergis becoming the first President of a restored Lithuania After independence Edit Headquarters of Sajudis in Vilnius Today Sajudis is still active in Lithuania but it has lost almost all its influence With independence gained reform communists and Vilnius liberal intellectuals left Sajudis about a month later One of the reasons of this event was a growing nationalist rhetoric Some members formed the new Independence Party while liberal leaning members helped to found the Liberal Union of Lithuania As a result the movement still led by its founder V Landsbergis mostly included members from the Kaunas faction who were inclined to differentiate the local population into two clear groups patriots and communists 3 The popularity of Sajudis waned as it failed to maintain unity among people with different political beliefs and was ineffective in handling the economic crisis Moreover Sajudis lost major support from the rural regions of Lithuania as they proposed agricultural and land reforms without the input and against the interests of most kolkhoz employees and workers 4 Sajudis retained support in Kaunas and Panevezys 5 In late summer of 1992 Sajudis and several minor parties and movements formed electoral coalition For democratic Lithuania The Democratic Labour Party DLP the former Communist Party of Lithuania was victorious in the Seimas elections of 1992 Many of the group including Landsbergis formed the core of the Homeland Union now the largest centre right party in Lithuania Members of Sajudis Initiative Group EditAloyzas Sakalas Regimantas Adomaitis Vytautas Bubnys Juozas Bulavas Antanas Buracas Algimantas Cekuolis Virgilijus Cepaitis Vaclovas Daunoras Sigitas Geda Bronius Genzelis Arvydas Juozaitis Julius Juzeliunas Algirdas Kauspedas Ceslovas Kudaba Bronius Kuzmickas Vytautas Landsbergis Bronius Leonavicius Meile Luksiene Alfonsas Maldonis Justinas Marcinkevicius Alvydas Medalinskas Jokubas Minkevicius Algimantas Nasvytis Romualdas Ozolas Romas Pakalnis Saulius Peciulis Vytautas Petkevicius Kazimira Prunskiene Vytautas Radzvilas Raimundas Rajeckas Arturas Skucas Gintaras Songaila Arvydas Saltenis Vitas Tomkus Zigmas Vaisvila Arunas ZebriunasSee also EditLatvian National Independence Movement Popular Front of Estonia Popular Front of Latvia Singing Revolution Belarusian Popular FrontReferences Edit Agarin Timofey A Cat s Lick Democratisation and Minority Communities in the Post Soviet Baltic Brill Rodopi 2010 Lithuania The Move Toward Independence 1987 91 Country Study http www country data com cgi bin query r 8286 html Agarin Timofey A Cat s Lick Democratisation and Minority Communities in the Post Soviet Baltic Brill Rodopi 2010 Arunas Juska Arunas Poviliunas Ruta Ziliukaite and Vilma Geguziene Rural Intelligentsia and Path Dependency in Post socialist Civic Organising The Case of Lithuania European Society for Rural Sociology 2008 https vrk maps arcgis com home webmap viewer html layers 44656569b7c1496ba59b623d3f626df1 Lithuania The Move Toward Independence 1987 91 Country Study 1940 1992 Soviet era and the restoration of independence Estonica Estonian Institute Ceslovas Laurinavicius Vladas Sirutavicius Lietuvos istorija XII t Id Sajudis nuo Persitvarkymo iki Kovo 11 osios 2008 ISBN 978 9955 23 164 6External links EditLIETUVOS PERSITVARKYMO SAJuDZIO STEIGIAMAJAM SUVAZIAVIMUI 30 in Lithuanian Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sajudis amp oldid 1144884428, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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