Medininkai massacre victims honored as leaders urge remembrance of freedom’s cost

Lithuanian leaders gathered to honor the victims of the Medininkai massacre, urging the nation not to forget the price of freedom, as reported by LRT.

The 1991 events remain a solemn reminder of the duty to protect the state, officials said during a ceremony marking 35 years since the attack. President Gitanas Nausėda, speaking at the site where seven customs, police, and border officers were killed, called their sacrifice a promise to continue the work of defending the country.

“The unconditional decision to be free here, in this place of heroism, sounds like a vow and a reminder to continue the work begun by the defenders of the state,” Nausėda said.

Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas emphasized that the Medininkai tragedy is one of the greatest examples of the cost of freedom. “This is a moral obligation for every generation to protect their state, strengthen its democracy, and never allow the boundaries of humanity to be crossed,” he stated.

Leaders also highlighted the ongoing threat posed by Russia’s war in Ukraine, warning that the Kremlin’s actions endanger European security. Nausėda stressed the need to safeguard the homeland, saying, “We must be vigilant, strong, and united in our daily efforts to strengthen its resilience.”

Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius added that Russia’s war demonstrates that dictators beyond Lithuania’s borders “despise freedom of speech, democratic principles, and humanity, using open aggression as a tool of policy.” He called for readiness to defend the country’s borders and people.

Vytautas Landsbergis, former head of state and chairman of the Supreme Council-Reconstituent Seimas, urged the preservation of the sacred memory of the struggle and the resolve to always remain guardians of Lithuania. “We must not only guard the borders but also arm them,” he said.

On July 31, 1991, Soviet OMON forces attacked the Medininkai border post, killing Mindaugas Balavakas, Algimantas Juozakas, Juozas Janonis, Algirdas Kazlauskas, Antanas Musteikis, Stanislovas Orlavičius, and Ričardas Rabavičius. Tomo Šernas, a customs officer, was the sole survivor, severely wounded.

Konstantinas Michailovas, a former OMON officer, was convicted and is serving a life sentence for the massacre. Three other OMON members—Andrejus Laktionovas, Česlavas Mlynikas, and Aleksandras Ryžovas—were also sentenced in absentia, as Russia refuses to extradite them.