'Grey zone' in the system of repatriation and filtration of the population of Lithuania in 1944-1952
| Autor: | Regina Laukaitytė |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | litevština |
| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | Lietuvos istorijos metraštis [Yearbook of Lithuanian History]. 2021, 2021/1, p. 133-155. |
| ISSN: | 0202-3342 2538-6549 |
| Popis: | Straipsnyje tiriamas SSRS veikusios repatriantų grąžinimo iš buvusio Trečiojo reicho teritorijos bei jų politinio patikimumo patikrinimo (filtracijos) sistemos funkcionavimas Lietuvos SSR 1944–1952 m. Siekiama išsiaiškinti, kaip žmonėms pavykdavo sugrįžti išvengiant repatriacijos institucijų ir privalomos filtracijos procedūrų, kiek tokių savarankiškai grįžusiųjų galėjo būti ir kaip jie prisitaikė, kaip šią gyventojų grupę traktavo režimas – vidaus reikalų ir saugumo organai. In 1945–1953, there were subdivisions of Soviet institutions in the Lithuanian SSR tasked with the repatriation of citizens from the Third Reich, their settlement, and verification of their political credibility (filtration). However, in the summer of 1944, the scale of repatriation posed many challenges to Soviet government structures, which had just been established in the country, and they found it difficult to handle the assigned tasks (to compile a register of repatriates, and to thoroughly inspect and monitor them). The search for and inspection of repatriates continued even after the direct coordination structure of their flows from abroad was disbanded: home affairs and security boards continued the search for those who had avoided filtration, with networks of inspection and filtration committees and the agency operating in all areas. However, it would be reasonable to assume that most of those who returned from abroad were scattered around the country and were never traced. The only ones who were not afraid to apply to repatriation institutions for support (and thus subject themselves to filtration interviews) were people who had been taken to Germany for forced labour, as those who left voluntarily for the Third Reich in the summer and autumn of 1944 and were soon forced to return deliberately avoided them. The statistical data suggests that, according to the information from Soviet repatriation agencies, by March 1946, some 48,780 people (including 12,342 children) were repatriated to Lithuania. However, the government of the Lithuanian SSR had information only on 36,989 repatriates (including 10,442 children) who had returned to Lithuania by March 1949. In total, there were only about 18,000 repatriate filtration files, which allows the assumption that most of those who returned remained in a ‘grey zone’ and eluded filtration. The situation in Lithuania was affected by the Soviet Union’s efforts to recover at least some former citizens of the Baltic States who were unwilling to return. For some time, this had an impact on the social policies in the country, and on the situation of those who came back. The regime’s efforts to recover more than 65,000 Lithuanians slowed down the country’s sovietisation for some time (there was a delay in the formation of kolkhozes, the liquidation of Church structures, etc). For the more effective role of repatriates in propaganda aimed at encouraging others to come back, the government offered substantial financial aid, and did not allow employment or housing-related discrimination. This policy continued until 1949, when the mass migration to the West of residents of Displaced Persons camps made the propaganda campaign irrelevant. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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