Dirva = Field. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1915-current, 1946-11-29

use only. The Germans insisted in
taking them away for "guard duty.
Realizing the situation, Gen. Pie
havicius and his staff called upon
the Lithuanians to join the "volun-
tary" units and issued an order to
that effect Secretly he sent ennis
saries to every leader in every com
munity advising them to disregard
the order and to avoid joing such
units. The result was that no bat
talions were formed. Purpose was
to avoid aiding the Nazis and re-
retain the good will of Western
Democracies.
Germans upon realizing what had
taken place, arrested the entire
Lithuanian Military Staff. Many
resisted and were shot in open re-
slstence. Those who were arrested
were taken to Dachau and only few
survived. Nevertheless Lithua n a
never provided any voluntary aid
to the Nazis. Those who were not
apprehended took to the woods and
joined the underground movement.
Thus Lithuania and the other
Baltic States having tasted both of
| the brands of ''liberation", the So
Wet and the Nazi, could not distin-
guish between them. The only diff
ference was that of degree, the
methods and results were the same.
But at this time they learned what
happened to the Polish officers who
agreed to join the Soviets and they
also saw how the Communist ter
rorlzed and liquidated their own in
Llthuania. AS the tide of war was
turning, they fled to whatever part
of the world that was open rather
than to submit to another "libera-
ton" by the Soviets. Their only
hope was liberation by the Western
Powers and the fall of Nazi Ger
many. This is the reason why so
many fled to Germany, notwithstand-
ing the labor camps, privations,
bombing, and German hatred that
was awaiting them.
These DPS cannot return to their
countries, for they would be con-
sidered "enemies of the people" and
either liquidated or sent to prison
camps to die a slow death, where
thousands of their relatives and
friends are dying today. The Ger
mans hate them for having failed
to join them against the allies -
the llberators persecute them by
denying them the use of their own
language to communicate with their
friends in America and compelling
them to use among other languages
German or enemy language, or Rus
sian, the dreaded Communist Ian
one q Thnu lnpinI fnnaIo,o,
are persistently searched and also
screened not by duly selected eff
ficient courts of justice, but by mil
itary personnel with no recourse to
appeal, no jury and no representa-
ton.
In view of the above described
conditions and status of the Baltic
Countries and their peoples, it ap-
pears that the only method for
just, humane and proper solution of
the Baltic problem and of all the
oppressed nations is the following:
THE BALTIC NATIONS MUST
BE FREED, their countries reestab-
lished and all foreign armies and
agencies removed from their terri
tories so that these people be given
means and facilities to return to
their respective countries from all
DIP camps, prison camps of Soviet
Russia and all other parts of the
world to a FREE, INDEPENDENT,
SOVEREIGN COUNTRY.
Unless this solution is applied to
the Baltic Nations and other sup
pressed peoples comprising DPS the
world will be inclined to mistrust
the United Nations and to accuse
it of being the paw of large i'm
perialistic powers. 1t will be ac-
cused of lacking good will, courage
to face facts and to stand up for