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Frank Passic

Ohio crypt holds remains of first Lithuanian President, yet he has been forgotten here in a Mausoleum tucked away in a Catholic Cemetery east of Cleveland, USA.

There are no flowers at his crypt, although the Mausoleum is filled with them on the vaults of others nearby. He was the President, yet you would not know that by reading the simple inscription found upon his nameplate. His image was on a coin, a banknote, various stamps and medals. Yet he has been forgotten here in a Mausoleum tucked away in a Catholic Cemetery east of Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

Frank Passic
Albion, Michigan

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Below: Comments to the article

You were to negative. It may have been the family's wishes to keep his body here in Cleveland, since they are still here. However, we do not ever see any of the members of the Smetona family at any Lithuanian functions.

Lith Klubas,
Cleveland, Ohio

 
Andris Jonas Dunduras

Firstly- Everyone needs to understand the facts about why things are the way they are with the crypt before making baseless statements. Here are the basics:

#1 The crypt remains the property of the Smetona family, and they are very conservative. The decision to repatriate the remains of President Smetona and Sofija Smetoniene are theirs, and nobody else's. From what I've heard, they have declined all offers of such a transfer, and probably aren't even open to dialogue about it. Read on for the reasons..

#2 We must understand that the Smetona regime was a nationalistic (Lithuania first) one, which would be VEHEMENTLY opposed to: A) All elements of communism still present in the Lithuanian government today. These people would have been public enemy #1 during Smetona's rule. B) Lithuania's membership of the European Union is completely contrary to the ideals of Smetona's movement also. C) This is just the tip of the iceberg... we also have terrible poverty, graft, corruption, racketeering by the soviet style nomenclature that still exist in all levels of government (even if in name only), mass exodus and brain-drain by those whose dreams have been shattered by those bloodsuckers, the list goes on... Until the last one of these traitors are gone from power, I think there is ZERO chance the remains will be repatriated, nor would it be appropriate. Take this as a quiet sign that Lithuania still has a long way to go until it achieves the same level of independence and self-determination it had under Smetona.

#3 The crypt is indeed very much visited. You see no flowers on the wall because the family always wanted to avoid it becoming a pilgrimage site, however those wishing to pay quiet respects and a moment of reflection on Lithuania are encouraged to do so. It is that way for a reason. My grandparents and thousands of others who died in exile are buried nearby. No visit is complete without stopping at the mausoleum afterward- I do it, and so do many others.

Most of us in Cleveland's Lithuanian community are aware of these matters relating to the Smetona family crypt, and now you are too. If somebody doesn't know the facts, they should ask, or do a little research instead of proceeding to post meaningless blatherings on their blog.

Thanks for reading, and share with others!

Andris Jonas Dunduras
Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Text: Aage Myhre, Editor-in-Chief

When I came to Lithuania for the first time from my native Norway, more than 20 years ago, this country's political leadership was in the process of drafting the new law book that would be the legal framework for the modern democracy this country was supposed to become after all the years of Soviet occupation. Our small delegation from Norway suggested that one simply could translate our Norwegian legislation, of a free and functioning democracy, but Lithuania's politicians chose not to follow our advice, and used instead many years to develop their own laws. This country's leaders have, for better or worse, an extensive belief in their excellence and ability to reinvent the wheel even when it would have been so much easier to seek advice and help from good neighbours. 

Many Norwegian delegations have appeared over the 20 years that have elapsed since that time. They have come and gone without seeing the relationship between Norway and Lithuania thus has become particularly warm or close. In several instances, I know that the Norwegians have travelled back home, headshaking. 

Fortunately, has there in 2010 and 2011 been opened new doors, and I feel now much more optimistic regarding bilateral cooperation between my two home countries.

It's for Lithuania now time more than ever to seek closer cooperation with Norway, in many areas, and I encourage President Dalia Grybauskaite and Prime Minister Kubilius to follow up the successes of the latest two years.

Norway is one of the world's richest countries, and also a neighbouring country that in many fields can both understand and help to find solutions to the many challenges still facing Lithuania. I sincerely hope that Lithuania now seizes the opportunity to develop a systematic structure for a very close cooperation with my home country.

The time of emergency measures connected to the crisis and depression are over. Now we need pragmatic, bilateral action.

A good and close cooperation must naturally involve benefits to both parties, and I can imagine many areas where that may be possible. Let me mention a few: 

ENERGY
Norway is an energy nation of world format; in oil, hydropower, wind power, solar energy and energy efficiency. Lithuania is in the process of developing their own systems and structures, but could move infinitely faster forward by collaborating with Norwegian companies and institutions. 

INDUSTRY
I see it as likely that many Norwegian companies could outsource much of their production to Lithuania. What we need is a skilled professional, who knows Lithuania’s opportunities in manufacturing, who can travel around Norway to discuss possible cooperation projects with Lithuanian companies.

SHIPPING / OFFSHORE
Norwegian companies are increasingly active in Klaipeda port. New ships are being built, others restored, every day, very often with Norwegian principals. An area that can been expanded to a considerable extent and scope.

AGRICULTURE
In the interwar years Denmark and Lithuania competed to be leaders in northern European agriculture. Today, agriculture in countries like Denmark and Norway at a very high level, whereas Lithuania desperately needs new investment and new technology. A collaboration with Norwegian farmers and agricultural organizations could come to mean endlessly much in this process. 

FISHERIES
A Norwegian friend of mine is the director of a fish factory in Klaipeda. The owner is the Bornholm company Espersen. 
The factory was built new in Klaipeda's Free Economic Zone a few years ago. Now an extension of the factory is underway. This is an excellent example of how Lithuanian labour can do a good job for a company that processes fish for European markets.

TOURISM, COURSES AND CONFERENCES
I am convinced that Lithuania would attract many more Norwegian tourists if they had a person or a group of professional sales people that toured throughout Norway with presentations of what Lithuania has to offer. Not least, this applies to the training and conference sector, which is incredibly large in Norway. Lithuania should clearly be able to come up with very attractive and competitive offers. 

Another example: The former Reval Hotels (now operated by Radisson BLU) in Lithuania are Norwegian-owned, and a close collaboration with the owner, the Linstow group, should be investigated further. 

SCHOOLS
The Lithuanian school system desperately needs improvement, and collaboration, school-to-school, with Norway, would undoubtedly be useful. I got an excellent example of how useful such cooperation can be when a few years ago I visited the headmaster at the Birštonas Secondary School, Alvydas Urbanavičius. This school, having 800 students, is famous throughout Lithuania for its high level of education. When I asked the headmaster about the reason for this his reply was cards and cash, "We were very lucky to be 'adopted' by a Danish school already in the early 1990s, and the Danes taught us how to run a modern school and also gave us important funding so that we could avoid many of the problems that other Lithuanian schools and the very educational system here is still fighting with." 

In terms of higher education, Norway is otherwise heavily involved in Lithuania already. The ISM Universities (University of Management and Economics) in Kaunas and Vilnius, for example, are owned by Norwegian BI (Norwegian School of Management). 

But there is much that can be further developed in many levels and learning areas. 

HEALTH CARE
A very large number of Lithuanian physicians and other health professionals are today working in Norway. Maybe there could be an idea if one instead tried to find forms of cooperation between Norwegian and Lithuanian health care so that this country would not be completely drained for health professionals for the benefit of rich Norway? Norway has a very important task to fulfil in this aspect, and it should be imposed on Norwegian health policy makers to take this issue far more seriously.

CULTURE, SOCIETY
Lithuania has a wonderful culture that should be experienced by a large number of Norwegians. An extensive cooperation between the cultural sectors of our two countries would mean microns for both parties. As an architect, there is much on my heart to find help to preserve the great Lithuanian wooden houses and other old architecture, and I hope the right institutions in Norway would be ready to help…

During my visit to Lithuania in January 1991, while the Soviet troops surrounded the Parliament and the TV tower in Vilnius, our Norwegian delegation brought with us a letter from Oslo's mayor confirming that Oslo was ready to be Vilnius' first sister city in the west. Later, many Lithuanian and Norwegian cities, municipalities and counties have established friendship agreements. But in most cases only with words, little action. 

Now is the time for action. President Grybauskaite’s state visit last year was a good step forward, and I hope PM Kubilius and his government now realise that Norway is a land of opportunity – also as Lithuania's closest friend and ally. A comprehensive and professionally planned cooperation structure on many levels should be prepared.

We have no time to lose. 

One European nation escaped the worldwide financial meltdown and recession more or less unaffected.  That was Norway, a country which saved its money - rather than spent it - through the boom years. As a result of frugal financial management, Norwegian housing prices and consumption have been on the upswing and interest rates affordable also during the deepest global crisis the latest years.  Norway’s fiscal responsibility of its income from enormous oil and gas reserves has allowed the nation to build one of the globe’s largest investment funds.

After large deposits of gas and oil were discovered in the 1970s, Norway didn’t go on a spending spree, and channelled its revenues into a state investment fund (The Government Pension Fund). As of the valuation in June 2007, it was the largest pension fund in Europe and the fourth largest in the world.   As of 31 December 2010 its total value is NOK 3,077 billion ($525 billion), holding 1 per cent of global equity markets. With 1.78 per cent of European stocks, it is said to be the largest stock owner in Europe. The government - with very few exceptions - can spend only four percent of those revenues annually.

Beyond its oil and gas revenues, strict banking regulations - tightened after a banking crisis in the early 1990s - shielded Norway from the credit crisis.  Norwegian banks made loans wisely and stayed away from exotic investments and financial products over the past decade.  “They (the United States) got all the bright guys to make all kinds of fantastic products.  Very creative.  And it turned out it was maybe not the best solution in the end,” Mr. Amund Utne, a director of Norway’s Finance Ministry, said, with typical Norwegian understatement.  “I think Norwegian banks are not as creative.  In this situation, it may be good to be somewhat boring.”

Norwegian unemployment rate remains stable, around 3,0%.

Norway has also been immune to the housing bubble.  Housing prices are up.  Consumption is up.  Banks are lending normally to the household sector and interest rates are staying low.