PROBLEMINIAI GINKLUOTOS REZISTENCIJOS ĮAMŽINIMO ASPEKTAI
THE PROBLEMATIC ASPECTS OF THE PERPETUATION OF THE ARMED RESISTANCE

Summary/Abstract: The first attempts to remember the postwar battles in public discourse in Lithuania, showed up even before the restoration of Independence, i.e. during the time of Sąjūdis. The relatives of the deceased partisans or the comrades-in-arms who survived took the initia¬tive to search for the mass graves and solitary ones, campsites and bunkers. In the frame of the Soviet regimen, though com¬pletely falling apart, there were concerns with the commemoration of the partisans. Thought more than 20 years since the restoration of the Independence have passed, this question is still relevant. The gue¬rilla warfare in Lithuania is still considered from one extremity to the other, i.e. from being heroes to being bandits; this arouses disaccords among the society. Foremost, the commemoration is not perceived as the transmission of the remembrance for future generati¬ons, but as the exoneration in the society of those who battled back then. Paradoxically, the soldiers who are still alive are being forgotten. The relatives of the partisans and comrades-in-arms, the local district governments, LGGRTC (the research centre of the genocide and the resistance in Lithuania), and the union of the Lithuanian state prisoners and exiles are mostly concerned with the question of the commemoration. After 20 years of the Lithuanian Independence have passed, there are numerous forms of commemoration – from traditional monuments and musical CDs to atlases, photo albums and etc. Considering the variety of commemoration locations, it could be noticed, that they include the birthplaces of partisans, the places of battles, deaths, burials and re-burials. To conclude, it may be said that the tradition of putting monuments is still popular nowadays, though the alternative means are being used more frequently. However, the whole initiative depends on the LGGRTC that overlooks and regulates the commemoration processes in Lithuania.

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