[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 75 (Wednesday, June 15, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 15, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                           BALTIC FREEDOM DAY

 Mr. RIEGLE. Mr. President, the date of June 14 holds special 
meaning for the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. On that day 
in 1941, Soviet troops began in earnest their illegal occupation of 
their countries by deporting tens of thousands of Baltic citizens to 
forced labor and concentration camps in Sibera. For the people of the 
Baltic States, June 14, 1941 ushered in one of the darkest periods in 
their history--a period which finally ended half a century later with 
the collapse of the Soviet Union.
  During the difficult years of Soviet occupation, the Baltic people 
were brutalized and their land violated. Baltic-Americans, and others 
who cared about the fate of Lithuanians, Latvians, and Estonians, used 
the anniversary of the June 14th deportations to focus the world's 
attention on the Baltic peoples' tragic fate and to reaffirm United 
States support in their struggle for freedom.
  In 1982, with the help of the Baltic-American community, I introduce 
one of the first Senate resolutions officially designating June 14 as 
``Baltic Freedom Day.'' Unanimous adoption of that resolution, which 
symbolized America's enduring solidarity with the Baltic peoples' 
struggle for freedom, was repeated each succeeding year, until Baltic 
independence was restored. Their success set in motion the independence 
fervor which quickly spread through the republics of the former Soviet 
Union.
  Today, the anniversary of this infamous date provides an opportunity 
both to honor the Baltic men, women, and children who were victimized 
by their Soviet oppressors, and to recommit ourselves to supporting the 
Baltic peoples' arduous task of rebuilding their nations and their 
spirits.
  Mr. President, the task facing the Baltic people today is an 
overwhelming one. The urgency of achieving the withdrawal of the 
remaining Russian troops from their soil and cleaning up their 
environment, ruined by decades of Soviet abuse, are only two of the 
most glaring matters to be resolved. In addition, the hardships imposed 
by the difficult transition to free market economies, coupled with the 
continuing tensions between Balts and ethnic Russians living within 
their borders, present special challenges to the citizens of these new 
independent nations.
  The resilience of the Baltic people, evidenced by their peaceful and 
disciplined 50-year struggle against their Soviet occupiers, is nothing 
less than remarkable. They deserve our deepest admiration and respect. 
And so, I urge my colleagues to continue to be vigilant with respect to 
the Baltic nations, and to continue to lend them the critical support 
they need as they move toward becoming fully sovereign and prosperous 
once again.

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