Antanas Kalanta speaking on the 40 year commemoration day for the death of his brother Romas

A special ceremony took place in the Lithuanian parliament on Tuesday to mark 40 years since 19-year-old dissident Romas Kalanta publicly set fire to himself in protest against Soviet rule.

On May 14, 1972, Kalanta burned himself in the garden of the Music Theater in Vilnius, shouting “Freedom to Lithuania!” He wrote in his notebook, “I blame my death on the regime alone.”
KGB agents buried Kalanta on May 18, two hours before scheduled, to avoid crowds. Then, 3,000, mostly young supporters of Kalanta who gathered near his house began moving toward the central street of the city. A subsequent two-day protest was eventually put down by Soviet police, soldiers, and militia who arrested 402 people. Of these, 33 who faced administrative punishment, and six were punished as ‘hooligans’ and ‘anti-social elements’.

In 1990, Kalanta’s tomb became legally recognized as an historical monument. He has become the subject of several books and a documentary called Children of the Fountain.

In 2000, Kalanta was posthumously awarded the Order of the Cross of Vytis. In 2002, a monument was unveiled at the site of the self-immolation. In 2005, he was given the status of a freedom fighter.