Lithuania marks Day of Sorrow and Hope for Soviet deportation victims

Across Lithuania, official ceremonies commemorated the Day of Sorrow and Hope, remembering political prisoners and deportees of the Soviet era. In the Seimas hall a ceremony awarded honors to organisations such as the Union of Political Prisoners and Exiles, the Laptev Sea Exiles Brotherhood and the Kolyma Prisoners Association.

A minute of silence preceded flag‑raising at Vilnius’s Independence Square, followed by a procession to Aukų Street. Similar tributes—including floral offerings, name‑reading actions, concerts, mass bike rides and religious services—took place in Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys. Concerts featured local musicians and performers, and a documentary film was screened in Panevėžys.

The events highlighted historical figures: during the first Soviet occupation, roughly 23,000 Lithuanians were killed, about 130,000 were deported to Siberia, and another 156,000 were imprisoned between 1941 and 1953, according to the Lithuanian Centre for Genocide and Resistance Studies.