LITUANUS
LITHUANIAN QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
 
Volume 19, No.1 - Spring 1973
Editors of this issue: Antanas Klimas, Thomas Remeikis
Copyright © 1973 LITUANUS Foundation, Inc.
Lituanus

THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED LITHUANIA: ADMINISTRATION, INDOCTRINATION AND RUSSIANIZATION

JONAS PUZINAS, Ph. D.

It is impossible to survey in one article, in a detailed fashion, all the questions pertaining to all areas of life in occupied Lithuania. Even several articles would not suffice. Therefore, I will discuss the things most important in the life of a Lithuanian in his country which is occupied by the Soviet Union. These things also affect the survival of Lithuanian culture.

The Soviet Union

The Soviet Union is the continuation of a considerably expanded czarist Russian empire, organized according to communist principles in political, cultural, and economic life, a colonial empire that has subjugated approximately 150 nations and smaller ethnic groups in Europe and Asia. It is composed of 15 "Soviet republics," 20 "autonomous republics," 8 "autonomous regions," and 10 "ethnic areas." The largest of all the republics is the "Russian Federated Soviet Socialist Republic," which contains 13 "autonomous republics" (Tartar, Bashkirian, Dagestan, Buryat-Mongol, Kabardine, Komy, Mari, Mordvinian, Northern Ossetic, Udmurtian, Chuvashian, Yakut, and Karelian), six autonomous regions, and the region of Karaliaučius (Königsberg, now Kaliningrad).

During the census taken on January 15, 1970, it was found that the Soviet Union had 241,477,000 inhabitants. Although Russians comprise only about one half of all the inhabitants of the Soviet Union, these (ethnic) Russians, with the aid of the Red Army, the ever-vigilant secret police, and quislings found in subjugated nations, now control all these so-called Soviet republics, autonomous republics, autonomous regions, and ethnic areas. Although the constitution states that the Soviet Union is a "socialist state of workers and peasants," in fact, it is an imperialist state, dictatorially controlled by the Communist party.

The Soviet Regime

The Soviet Russians, who on June 15, 1940, occupied Lithuania by military force and annexed the country on August 3, 1941, introduced the Soviet regime right away. All the land, banks, industry, and commerce were expropriated, the school system was completely changed by eliminating the teaching of religion, introduction of the Russian language, as well as the history of the Communist party and Marxism-Leninism. Lithuania was proclaimed to be "a sovereign unitary state of workers and peasants, being at the same time a state in the union, based on the principles of self-determination and equality with all the other Soviet republics." However, the absolute control of this "sovereignty" belongs to the Communist party of the Soviet Union. The Lithuanian Communist party is not a separate organization — it is only a subdivision of the Soviet Communist party. The Lithuanian Communist party must obey all directions given in Moscow. In occupied Lithuania, new members are accepted not into the Lithuanian Communist party, but directly into the Communist party of the Soviet Union.

On January 1, 1968, there were 105,418 members and candidates in the Lithuanian Communist party. There were, at that time, 69,811 Lithuanians (66.3%) and 35,607 Russians, Ukrainians, Poles, etc. (33.7%). Thus, more than one third of the members were non-Lithuanians. The educational level of the party members was rather low: 28.3% had only a primary education, 51.9% had various levels of secondary education, and only 19.8% had attended an institution of higher learning (Mažoji Tarybinė Enciklopedija (The Small Soviet [Lithuanian] Encyclopedia), Vol. II, Vilnius, 1968, p. 386).

The Communist party in Lithuania has its own network of party institutions for indoctrination. Party indoctrination is organized on three levels: elementary, secondary, and advanced. During the 1968-69 school year, there were 29,413 enrollees in the 1,583 elementary level party indoctrination schools and other instructional units. On the secondary level, in the 2,702 instructional units, there were 55,775 enrollees in the basics of Marxism-Leninism. Finally, in the 1,058 upper level units — in the so-called Marxism-Leninism universities and in the various higher level party seminars — there were 31,921 enrollees. In these party schools, the duration of instruction is about two to four years (Small Lith. Soviet Encyclopedia, II, 1968, p. 385). The main "factory" for producing the higher party cadres is the Advanced Party School in Vilnius which, in 1962, was reorganized into an interrepublic type of school. It produces the party cadres for the party apparatus, for the government bureaucracy, for the Komsomol, and for the press — not only for Lithuania, but also for Latvia and Estonia. Attached to the party school, there are shorter courses for party and government bureaucracies, and also an area school to prepare the Komsomol cadres for the three Baltic republics and for the area of Karaliaučius (Königsberg, Kaliningrad) and even for the "Russian Federated Soviet Socialist Republic" (Sovietskaja Litva, 28 Oct. 1968). Many members of the Lithuanian Communist party also attend special training courses at other party schools somewhere in the Soviet Union. Between 1944 and 1967, 668 higher party

functionaries from Lithuania completed a course at the Advanced Party School in Moscow, 26 in Leningrad, and 39 in Minsk (Small Lith. Soviet Encyclopedia, II, 1968, p. 385). These selected persons work as propagandists, occupy the various upper level positions in all walks of public life, and carry out orders from Moscow.

The following is the structure of the ruling apparatus of the Lithuanian Communist party:

1. The Central Committee of the Lithuanian Communist party: 131 members; among them 35 (ethnic) Russians (1966).

2. The Secretariat of the Central Committee: five members. Antanas Sniečkus is the First Secretary; the Second Secretary is Vasilij Charazov, a guardian appointed by Moscow.

3. The (Polit) Bureau of the Lithuanian Communist party, composed of nine members and four candidates.

4. Various bureaus of the party arranged somewhat like ministries: organizational party work, propaganda and agitation, science and culture, industry and transportation, construction and urban affairs, food and light industry, agriculture, commerce and public utilities, party apparatus, etc.

The manager of each of these bureaus has several assistant managers. There are also various instructors, inspectors, and other party functionaries who supervise the party work in the cities and the provincial areas. Several of the party bureau managers are Russians, and the majority of their assistant managers are Russians, sent to supervise and check the party work. The Lithuanian Communist party network encompasses the entire country. The main city and district committees of the party are located in the seven principal cities and 44 administrative districts. At their head, stand the first secretaries, aided by two deputy secretaries, one of whom is usually a Russian. Finally, in all offices, organizations, and enterprises, there are primary party cells, of which there were 5,132 in 1968. A special group in these cells select the people to be hired for work.

An active supporter and supplier of younger leaders to the party is the Komsomol, officially called "The Lenin Communist Youth Association of Lithuania." At the XVth Congress of the Lithuanian Komsomol which took place on Feb. 28-29, 1968, in Vilnius, the central committee of 111 members was elected (among them, 26 non-Lithuanians). The Komsomol also has a central committee secretariat of five members. The first secretary of the Komsomol is Vaclovas Morkūnas, but his deputy is a Russian, Jurij Betev. Youth from 14 years of age belong to the Komsomol. At the beginning of 1968, the Komsomol in Lithuania had 253,501 members. The committees of the Komsomol which are directed by a first secretary, a deputy secretary, other secretaries, instructors, and managers of the various sections and branches are based in the cities and administrative districts. In addition to that, Komsomol cells exist in the higher, special, and secondary schools, in offices and industrial plants, in the collective and state farms. All told, there were 6,442 party units in Lithuania in 1968.

The Komsomol receives new members from the "Young Oktyabrists" and from the Pioneers. Already in the first grade, children are organized into the "Oktyabrists," the so-called grandchildren of Lenin. The "Oktyabrists" are led by a member of the Pioneer organization, usually a youngster from the seventh grade. In 1967, there were 120,000 members in the "Oktyabrists." When these children turn ten, usually in the third grade, they become Pioneers — "Lenin's children." In 1968, there were 182,000 Pioneers in Lithuania.

All these figures show how intensely the communization of Lithuania is pursued, how the entire country is constantly indoctrinated.

The Government Structure of the "Lithuanian SSR"

In order to create the impression that occupied Lithuania participates in the governing system of the Soviet Union as an equal partner, the "Lithuanian SSR" has 32 representatives in the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

Among these 42 representatives of the "Lithuanian SSR" ten are Russians: nine in the Council of Nationalities and one in the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

The highest constitutional institution in occupied Lithuania is the "Supreme Soviet of the Lithuanian SSR." On March 19, 1967, 290 representatives were "elected" to this institution, among them were 66 Russians. This Supreme Council, or Soviet, is supposed to be the parliament, the legislative branch of the government, but, in reality, it makes only minor changes in the laws already accepted by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR (in Moscow), which are valid for all the "republics." The Chairman of the Supreme Soviet (of the "Lithuanian SSR," in Vilnius) is Antanas Barkauskas, and the Chairman of its Presidium is Motiejus Šumauskas who is also, ex officio, a deputy chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

The highest executive organ in occupied Lithuania is the "Council of Ministers." There are as many as 26 ministries of two types: 21 are the union-republic ministries that receive and carry out the decisions of the respective ministries of the USSR; further, there are five republic ministries for purely local matters. The following are the union-republic ministries: 1. The Ministry of Higher and Special Secondary Education; 2. Furniture Manufacturing and Lumber Industry; 3. Finance; 4. Defense; 5. Rural Construction; 6. Culture; 7. Light Industry; 8. Food Industry; 9. Drainage and Water Economy; 10. Meat and Milk Industry; 11. Forestry and Timber Industry; 12. Resource Preparations (since December 1969); 13. Commerce; 14. Communications; 15. Construction Materials Industry; 16. Building (construction); 17. Health Protection; 18. Education; 19. Foreign Affairs; 20. Interior Affairs; and 21. Agriculture. The republic ministries are as follows: 1. Auto Transport and Highways; 2. Public Utilities; 3. Communal Economy; 4. Social Services; and 5. Local Industry. These latter five ministries are considerably less important. In addition to the 21 ministries, the directors of the following administrative units are members of the "Council of Ministers": Planning Commission;

National (Folk) Control Committee; State Committee on Professional - Technical Education; State Committee on Film Industry; State Committee on Radio and TV; State Committee on the Press; State Security Committee; and Republic Association "Lithuanian Agricultural Technology." The following chief managers of the administrative units are also members of the "Cabinet": Central Bureau of Statistics, attached to the Council of Ministers; Central Administration of Electrification and Energy, attached to the Council of Ministers; Chief Administration of Material - Technological Supplies, attached to the Council of Ministers.

The Chairman of the Council of Ministers is Juozas (Josif) Maniušis who was born and educated in Byelorussia. He turned up in Lithuania only after World War II. Ex officio, he is also a member of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. There are Russians among the deputy ministers, directors of various services, and among the deputy chairmen of various administration branches.

The Soviets, in order to present a picture of would-be Lithuanian sovereignty to the outside world, in this all-union state, maintain also the "Ministry of Foreign Affairs," headed by Leokadija Diržinskaitė-Piliušenko since February 1966. She was trained in Moscow. When delegations from the Communist parties of other countries or the representatives from various Soviet friendship societies arrive in Vilnius, Mrs. Piliušenko usually greets them. Otherwise it is her deputy, Vytautas Zenkevičius (formerly a secretary in the Russian embassy in Washington, B.C.).

In Moscow, too, there is a permanent representative of the Lithuanian Council of Ministers attached to the Council of Ministers of USSR. He is a civil engineer, Stanislovas Jaruševičius. His deputy is M. Stankevičius, and their chief councilor is a Russian woman, Yelena Eduardovna Drublianec. This "representative" sometimes gives receptions for the foreign diplomats in Moscow and for the Soviet and foreign press.

Finally for local affairs, there is a multitude of councils — Soviets — in the administrative districts, cities, areas and localities. In March 1967, as many as 32,888 delegates were "elected" to these Soviets (Valstiečių laikraštis, March 23, 1967).

Indoctrination

The aim of the Kremlin is to produce collaborators faithful to the Russians and the Communist party of the Soviet Union. This indoctrination is carried out through its huge propaganda apparatus. In the resolution adopted by the conference of the party activists on April 23, 1968, it states: [It is necessary] to improve the party propaganda, the political propaganda among the masses, especially through lectures; we have to advance the work in agitation, press, radio, TV, in cultural-educational institutions... The task of the party organizational units is to educate the working people of Soviet Lithuania, especially the youth, in the spirit of boundless faith to party ideals, Soviet patriotism, proletarian internationalism... It is necessary — through all the means of ideological education — to strengthen the Communist faith of every Soviet citizen, to foster the ideological firmness and the ability to resist any form of bourgeois influence" (Tiesa, April 25, 1968).

Various Soviet feasts, holidays, anniversaries, and commemorative occasions of important Soviet and Russian personalities are used for this kind of indoctrination, and there is an abundance of them. There are the annual holidays: the day dedicated to the Soviet army and navy (February 23), International Woman's Day (March 8), the day of International Solidarity of the Toiling People (May 1-2), the day of the great October revolution (November 7-8), and the day of the USSR constitution (December 5). There are also the various anniversaries of Marx and Lenin.

When the cult of Stalin collapsed, the Lenin cult replaced it. The various complimentary attributes, which were formerly ascribed to Stalin, are now transferred to Lenin. Although the anniversary of Lenin's birth was in 1971, as early as 1986 there was an intensive campaign to prepare for this occasion. There was a plethora of articles in the newspapers and journals; in schools, Lenin museums were set up, in which his youth and the years of his revolutionary activity were portrayed. Every school year, various themes were assigned based on some connection with Lenin. Ethnologists had to organize secondary school pupils to search for historical evidence of Leninism in Lithuania. Artists produced portraits of Lenin and revolutionary themes, sculptors made statues and other likenesses, architects — with the sculptors — produced various projects for monuments of Lenin. At the beginning of 1970, in the Palace of Exhibitions in Vilnius, an art exhibit was organized, the central theme of which was Lenin's anniversary. In the theaters of Lithuania, several plays written by Russian authors were shown. Even the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences had to dedicate a session to Lenin, with the basic theme "The triumph of Leninist ideas in Lithuania." Under this theme, the importance of Lenin's theories for science in Lithuania in general and their influence on industry, literature, and history of occupied Lithuania were discussed (Pergalė, No. 3, 1970, p. 172).

In the public schools, the regular instructional programs are specially adapted for communist indoctrination — classes in history, geography, literature, and languages are especially exploited. In the eighth grade, a special course has been introduced — a discussion of the Soviet society, and in the ninth grade — an introduction to the study of society. As was mentioned before, pupils are organized into the "Oktyabrists," the Pioneers, and the Komsomol. Through these organizations, youth is constantly bombarded with the ideas of "Soviet internationalism," of "eternal friendship of nations,' and of "love for the Russians." There are numerous supplementary activities: "international clubs," "festivals of brotherly nations," "special one-topic evenings," "excursions along the trails of revolutionary war." There are also common camps for the pioneers and secondary school pupils of various nations of the Soviet Union, there are social gatherings with the communist underground veterans, members of the old revolutionary groups, with the veterans in the struggle for Soviet power, etc. For international education (which at the same time, is a program of Russianization) special international student song festivals are organized, student delegations are sent to various youth and student festivals, excursions are organized — students are sent to the other "republics," to various propaganda courses, even to construction - and other projects in the Soviet Union.

For the purpose of indoctrination of the masses, a complete system of party work training and propaganda apparatus has been established. To it belong the various branches of the party central committee (especially those dealing with organizational party work, propaganda and agitation, science and culture), the institute of party history attached to the central committee of the party, the "Žinija" (Knowledge, Science) association and others. In the first six months of 1968, "125,000 people were improving their ideological-political level in the party system, among them 70% were communists and members of the Komsomol" (Tiesa, 1968, No. 162, p. 2). The district party committees organize all kinds of trips and seminar type excursions to Vilnius, where the visiting groups must tour the Revolution museum, the atheism museum, and the building in which the first conference of the Communist party of Lithuania was held.

A big role is assigned to the "Žinija" association which is nothing but a branch of the Soviet Russian organization "Znaniye." In 1967, this "Žinija" association had about 25,000 members and 2,325 chapters. In that year, 142,000 lectures were given, with an attendance of about eight million people.

Another very important means of indoctrination are the so-called folk universities. In 1967 - 1968, they had an attendance of about 113,000.

Amateur artistic efforts are also used for indoctrination. The press in occupied Lithuania admits: "No one could find a choir or a folk dance ensemble in Lithuania today that would not have works from other Soviet nations in its repertoire... And thus, next to the most beautiful Lithuanian folksongs and songs by Lithuanian composers, an honorable place in the concert and festival programs is assigned to the artistic creations of other Soviet nations" ("Kultūros barai, No. 4, 1966, p. 11). Even the well-known State Folksong and Dance Ensemble Lietuva is gradually losing its Lithuanian folkloristic character: its costumes are already uniform-stylized, having lost their original Lithuanian character, in its repertoire, they show "Life in Soviet Lithuania," patriotism (i.e., love of the USSR, not Lithuania), and "the great friendship of nations" is stressed (Literatūra ir menas, No. 34, 1968, p. 2). To propagate the idea of the "friendship of nations," various festivals of the other "republics" (Armenia, Turkmenia, Kirghizia, Tadjikistan, Moldavia, etc.) are held in occupied Lithuania. Various Lithuanian performing groups are sent to other "republics" with their programs.

In 1968, from March 12 through 22, a ten-day ("decade") art and literature festival of the Russian Federation (Russian Federated Soviet Socialist Republic: "the Big Brother") was held in Lithuania. In the cities of Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Marijampolė, Panevėžys, Alytus, and Druskininkai, there were Russian concerts, literary evenings, art exhibits, book exhibits, exhibits of photographs of Russian historic and architectural monuments, etc. A. Sniečkus put it quite clearly in a speech at the opening of this ten-day Russian art and literature festival in Lithuania. According to him, this festival was "a clear political demonstration of the eternal brotherhood and of the unimpairable friendship of the Russian and Lithuanian nations." He further stated that "the Lithuanian nation will forever be thankful to its liberators — the soldiers of the great Soviet army" (Tiesa, No. 6, p .1).

The tourist from Lithuania is also directed towards the Russian - Communist shrines, historic - revolutionary places. Every year, about 15,000 people from occupied Lithuania tour in the Soviet Union (Kultūros barai, No. 10, 1968, pp. 53-54).

Wherever one turns in Lithuania nowadays, one runs constantly into un-Lithuanian things. Quite a number of Lithuanian schools were given names of various communists. The University of Vilnius, the oldest university in East-Central Europe (established 1579), has been named after Vincas Kapsukas, although this Lithuanian communist had nothing whatever to do with science or education. Many villages that had ancient names for centuries now have been renamed after the Russian and Lithuanian communists.

Ancient place names in Lithuania are disappearing. The heavily censored press attests to this: "The face of the Lithuanian village is changing. Individual single homesteads are disappearing, the boundary lines between rural villages keep changing. With this, ancient Lithuanian place names are also lost. The collective farms have received entirely different names. The young generation does not even remember the ancient inherited place names in their region. One often hears now:

"I live in Janonis, in the third brigade." "I am on my way to Tschapayev, to the first brigade.'' "I am coming back from the second brigade of the 'Paris Commune'."

"Anyone who comes from another area cannot figure out where what is any longer.. . After all, many village names are—one way or another—-.tied in with history, with the lives of our famous people. For example, everyone knows of the famous linguist, Rygiškių Jonas [Jonas — John — from the village of Rygiškiai; Rygiškių Jonas is the most famous pen name of Professor Jonas Jablonskis] spent his childhood and his adolescent years in the village of Rygiškiai, in the district of Griškabūdis. We also know that Pranas Vaičaitis [a Lithuanian writer] was born and raised in the village of Santakai, in the district of Sintautai. Unfortunately, today the names of these villages are disappearing. The name of the village of Rygiškiai is known only to older people. At present, this place is called the second brigade of Griškabūdis collective farm... (Valstiečiu laikraštis, 1968, No. 92, p. 3).

The museums have been turned into propaganda tools. The assistant minister of culture of occupied Lithuania declared in 1966 — at the conference of museum specialists in the Baltic area — that, at that time, there were 29 museums in Lithuania, 25 of which belonged to the museum system of the ministry of culture. He added, "With their 56 branches the museums form many outlets for communist education." To carry out the tasks assigned to the museums, "a commission was established attached to the central committee of the Lithuanian Communist party, a commission that checks the work of the museums locally," Valentina Lovyagina, the deputy director of the Agitation and Propaganda branch of the central committee of the Lithuanian Communist party, has said that "the museums propagate revolutionary and work-related traditions, the friendship of nations, the ideals of the Communist party of the Soviet Union, the achievements of the communist regime.... The museums of Lithuania, with the help of the party organization of the republic, accomplished quite a lot... Much new valuable material has been collected about the revolutionary past of Lithuania, the revolutionary and socialist events of 1940-1941, about the activities of the Lithuanian Communist party, about the heroic deeds of Soviet soldiers in the Great Fatherland's War, about the partisan movement, about the huge achievements in the republic in economic and cultural sectors. Quite a bit was accomplished in perpetuating the names of those who had given their lives for the Soviet regime, for socialist order" (Muziejai ir paminklai, 1966, p. 4).

For the indoctrination of the masses, television, radio, the metropolitan and provincial press, theater, art, and literature are widely used. The Communist party requires writers to produce work on "contemporary" themes, according to the principles of "socialist realism." On May 27, 1970, the central committee of the Lithuanian Communist party issued the following directions to the Vlth convention of Lithuanian writers: "Under the conditions of sharper conflicts between socialism. and capitalism, the party and the Soviet people expect from you works that would reflect the faithfulness of the toiling people to the immortal ideas of Lenin, about a creative man who helps to shape this new and richer life in the communist society."

The party hopes that "you will instill in your readers and in youth the uplifting feelings of the friendship of Soviet nations, socialist patriotism and of proletarian internationalism; faithfulness to the party which was established by Vladimir Lenin, and to the Soviet fatherland" (Tiesa, March 28, 1970).

Recently, as soon as certain local national traits appeared in art and as soon as the young artists exhibited their leanings towards modernistic ways, J. Kuzminskis, the chairman of the Association of Artists in occupied Lithuania, censured it. He wrote: ".. .the rather frequent superficial stressing of the local-national characteristics, especially the insistence on emphasizing such characteristics as the expression of the spirit of the nation, has no background in ideology," because "this kind of art does not present what is new in the life of the nation, does not show the processes that go on in the spiritual life of the Soviet man." Finally, Kuzminskis urges the artists "not to give in to the influence of alien ideology" (Tiesa, January 10, 1970).

Russianization

Russianization goes hand in hand with communist indoctrination. Sometimes it is difficult to draw a line between indoctrination and Russianization. In many cases, "communist ideological indoctrination is really preparation for Russianization. Both communist indoctrination and Russianization permeate all the areas of life. There are many Russians in all state offices and in all other branches of life. In some of these, the Russians are the true chiefs and overseers; it is their duty to see to it that all directions from Moscow are carried out exactly. In other places, these Russians are the "irreplaceable" specialists in industry, in the collective farms and in the state farms. One will encounter a sizable number of Russians in the Lithuanian Communist party, on all the committees and councils of the cities and districts, in the leadership of the Communist Youth League (the Komsomol), in the Supreme Soviet of occupied Lithuania, in the administrative apparatus, in courts, in leading executive branches, in industry, in the leadership of the collective and state farms, in the educational system, the press, art, the theater, the film industry, and elsewhere. It is calculated that there are now not less than 300,000 Russian colonists in occupied Lithuania. According to the 1959 census, there were 175,000 Lithuanians living outside of Lithuania in the Soviet Union (Mažoji Lietuviškoji Tarybinė Enciklopedija, II, Vilnius, 1968, p. 365). According to the census of January 15, 1970, there are 3,215,000 inhabitants in Lithuania. If one calculates but 1% as the normal annual increase in population, at present there should be at least 4.5 million inhabitants (not counting the 300,000 Russians). Thus, Lithuania, since 1939, has lost 1,371,000 people. This is a terrible loss to such a small nation.

The Russian language is taught in the primary schools. Until the second grade, Russian is taught only orally, but in the second grade, regular classes of the Russian language are required of every pupil (Tarybinė Mokykla, 1968, No. 2, p. 4). The number of hours of Russian instruction has been steadily rising. During the school year 1966-67, 175 hours had to be devoted to the study of Russian (i.e., about 4.5 hours weekly), instead of 140 hours as hitherto (Tarybinis mokytojas, 67, 1966). Much attention is given to Russian history, literature, and music. The reading matter is also selected accordingly. Most of the text books are simply translations from Russian. The pupils are instilled with love for their "elder brother" — the Russian.

Although the Russian colonists, when they arrive and stay in occupied Lithuania, are supposed to send their children to the local Lithuanian schools, they now have a large number of Russian schools. There were 113 elementary and secondary schools with Russian as the language of instruction in 1967. There were 48,800 pupils attending these schools. In addition to that, there were 63 bilingual schools, where both Russian and Lithuanian were used as languages of instruction. In 34 schools, Russian and Polish were used as languages of instruction. There were 12,100 pupils in the latter two school groups.

Twenty-six schools were trilingual: the languages of instruction were Russian, Lithuanian, and Polish. But there were some subjects in these trilingual schools that were taught entirely in Russian. There were 4,800 pupils attending the latter group of schools. Thus, from the total number of 496,000 pupils in Lithuania, 61,700 pupils were given instruction in Russian, making it 13% of the total school population (Lietuvos TSR Ekonomika ir Kultūra, Vilnius, 1967).

In the special training secondary schools, at the poly-technical institutes, many subjects are taught only in Russian, or specialty sections are created in which only Russian is used as the language of instruction. Contingents of Lithuanian students are sent to study at various institutions of higher learning in the Soviet Union.

The proceedings and other scientific publications of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences are, in large part, published in Russian. Those areas having specially to do with Lithuanistics constitute a single exception. Series B of the Academy (chemistry, technology, and geography) are published only in Russian, usually followed only by very brief summaries in Lithuanian and in English. All articles in Series C (life sciences) are also published in Russian.

In the cities, many streets, plazas, and squares are named after the heroes of the Soviets, party functionaries, etc. For example, the following are in Vilnius: Lenin Prospect, Lenin Square, Tschernyakovsky Square, Kutuzov Square; streets: Suvorov, Jabarov, Michurin, Gorkij; Pushkin Park, the Red Army Prospect. The names of the railroad stations, names of various administrative offices, and names of the streets are written in Lithuanian and in Russian. In the museums, the explanatory notes are bilingual. In many cities, there are monuments for various Russian and Soviet functionaries.

The Lithuanian language is being invaded by loanwords from Russian, and by other non-Lithuanian elements. Often, one can hear in occupied Lithuania such awkward Russian-Bolshevik constructions as agitbrigada (a team for agitation), deputatas (representative), komsorgas (a local communist functionary), partorgas (local communist party committee). There are many hybrid translations patterned on Russian, alien to the Lithuanian patterns of word formation. Many awkward component-by-component direct loan translations sound irregular and non-native in Lithuanian. In addition, a rather large number of anglicisms have come into Lithuanian through Russian: e.g., dispečeris (dispatcher, from Russian dispečer), and many others. (For further explanation and a more complete account see A. Salys, "Russianization of the Lithuanian Vocabulary under the Soviets," Lituanus, No. 2, 1967, pp. 47-62.)

Foreign names are now written in Lithuanian — under the direct pressure and influence of Russian — according to their pronunciations, not the original spelling: e.g., James Joyce — Džeimsas Džoisas; Anthony Trollop — Entonis Trolopas; Antonio Belucci — Antonijus Belutis; Georges Braque — Žoržas Brakas; Andre Gide — Andre Židas; Antoine de Saint-Exupery — Antuanas de Sent-Egziuperi; Alfred Senn — Alfredas Zenas; Neue deutsche Literatur — Noje doiče literatur, etc. Often, this makes name recognition difficult, if not impossible. There are now voices raised against this non-Lithuanian practice.

The Soviet Russians, wishing to have the eastern regions of Lithuania in a kind of mixed stage, push the Poles who dwell in these regions as well as Polonized Lithuanians and Byelorussians into better paying positions. The latter are appointed to various local positions. In such linguistically mixed areas, the imported Russian colonists find it easier to establish themselves. The same method is used in the Klaipėda-Memel region.

In occupied Lithuania, one is now supposed to use the old traditional word tėvynė (fatherland) to designate the entire Soviet Union. Lithuania must referred to as tėviškė (home area, home village, home town, native area). In the Soviet Lithuanian press there are many admonishments to love "the dear Fatherland of socialism," "the dear Soviet Fatherland." There are references to the fact that "the members of the Komsomol defended the Fatherland when it was attacked by Hitlerite gangs."

Only very recently — basically in lyric poetry — has the word tėvynė (fatherland) again occasionally been used to designate Lithuania (Cf. Pergalė, No. 3, 1970, pp. 101-103).

The Russianization of occupied nations is not new to the Soviet Union: it is rooted deeply in the imperialist policies of the Tzarist Russia. This old colonial empire had developed special techniques to Russianize subjugated nations by various means: they dampened the national spirit, they forced the Russian language into public life and in all schools; conquered nations were forced to accept Russian Orthodoxy, and a cult of love for the Tzar was propagated.

After the 1863 revolution against the Russians in Lithuania (and Poland), the Lithuanian bishop, Motiejus Valančius, was forced by the Russians to issue the following appeal to his flock. During his sermon on May 8, 1866, in the Cathedral of Kaunas, he had to say: "My dear children! Putting our trust in the Almighty God and in the gracious Monarch, we cherish hopes of eradicating the remnants of the uprising. But how are we to behave in the future so that such things do not happen again? Once and for all we should renounce the idea that we will ever have a sovereign state independent from Russia.... We, who are but a part of indivisible Russia, must learn the Russian language — although not forgetting our own Lithuanian and Samogitian — we must love the Russians as our brethren" (A. Alekna, Žemaičių vyskupas Motiejus Valančius, Kaunas, 1923). Like the Tzar, the Red Russian aims to annihilate the subjugated nations.