Unrest in Eišiškės

**Unrest in Eišiškės** - was a short unrest that escalated as a result of a march by a group of Lithuanian nationalist volunteers that took place from October 5 to October 10, 1990 to the area densely populated by the Poles in eastern Lithuania in order to curb the autonomist and separatist tendencies during the creation of the Polish Autonomy.

## Causes and course of events

In March 1990, after the government of Lithuania proclaimed a course to re-establish its own statehood and independence and oust the Russian language from all spheres of public life. In the Vilnius Region, populated mainly by Poles, Lithuanians, Russians and Belarusians, a proclamation of local autonomy was announced during the 1st congress of deputies of the district councils of the Vilnius region on May 1989. A Coordination Council was set up by autonomy activists of the eastern Lithuanian districts of Šalčininkai and Vilnius.

On October 5, 1990 the then Prime Minister of Lithuania, Romualdas Ozolas, ordered to send buses of Lithuanian volunteers accompanied by police detachments to the town of Eišiškės, which is situated 30 kilometres west of Šalčininkai, to disrupt the continuation of the 2nd congress of the Vilnius region which was supposed to take place on October 6 (first part of the congress took place on June 1, 1990).

Mobilization of locals began in eastern Lithuania. The inhabitants of the Polish villages, especially those in Šalčininkai district, armed with metal fittings and other improvised means, went out to *"defend"* their settlements. The communist leadership of the neighbouring Belarusian SSR quickly reacted to these developments and expressed support for the Poles, and on October 6-7, Soviet Army, together with the Belarusian volunteer squads were sent in a convoy to help the population. Such an attitude of the pro-Soviet Belarusian government was nothing new. On March 29, 1990 the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of Belarus made a statement on territorial issues with Lithuania. The statement said - If the Lithuanian SSR leaves the USSR, the August 3, 1940 territorial agreement on the transfer of the territory of the Švenčionys district and part of the Vydžiai, Adutiškis, Astravas, Varanavas and Rodūnė districts of the Belarusian SSR to the Lithuanian SSR will cease to be valid.

Under the supervision of the Soviet Army, the October 6 continuation of the congress still managed to take place. 209 delegates from Vilnius, Šalčininkai, Širvintos, Trakai, Švenčionys districts and Naujoji Vilnia district of the Vilnius capital city gathered. A proposal of Jan Kuncevič, a member of the Communist Party of Lithuania Šalčininkai district branch, to create a separate autonomous region *"with the status of a republic within the USSR"* was accepted by a large majority of delegate votes. The congress adopted the *"Declaration on the creation of the Republic of Eastern Poland within the USSR"*. Autonomists accepted the help which was offered by the Soviet military officers who were attending the congress. In point 2 of the resolution on the creation of the Republic of Eastern Poland, its borders were defined. It included the districts of Šalčininkai and Vilnius, the town of Pabradė as well as the surroundings of Magūnai of Švenčionys district, the surroundings of Kariotiškės, Paluknys, Trakai, Senieji Trakai of Trakai district and Jauniūnai of Širvintai district. The planned autonomous unit was supposed to unite the areas where the majority of the population was Polish. Even before the congress, the Lithuanian authorities once again resolutely rejected the postulates of the autonomy of the Vilnius region, accusing the Polish autonomists of being inspired by *"conservative political groups of the USSR"*.

## Results

The threat of armed interethnic clashes quickly arose over Lithuania, culminating the events of December 17, when the very first intense armed fighting broke out. As a result of Soviet intervention on the side of the rebellious Poles and mediation of the conflict, on the night of October 9-10, part of the Belarusian volunteer groups returned home in exchange for the withdrawal of some of the Lithuanian volunteer groups.