Leonardas Vilkas: Lithuania could not manage to break the stereotypes

„It marvels me that Lithuanians know nothing and wouldn’t like to know about such writers as Sergiusz Piasecki or Józef Mackiewicz” said Leonardas Vilkas, who translated into lithuanian J. Mackiewicz’s book „The Road to Nowhere”. He is also a proponent of polish-lithuanian rapprochment, a participant of many events, i. a. polish-lithuanian Forum named after Jerzy Giedroyc

zw.lt: What do you think about the spectacle „Notes of a Red Army officer”?

Leonardas Vilkas: It was very interesting. Maybe it was not very close to the Piasecki’s book, but the scenario for sure was interesting…

Are  writers who have lived in Lithuania and wrote about it , such as Sergiusz Piasecki or Józef Mackiewicz, important for lithuanian culture?

They are very important for lithuanian culture. I find it strange, that so many Lithuanians don’t know about it – and even don’t want to know.

Why?

I don’t even know. Mackiewicz’s book „The Road to Nowhere” was released. There was a presentation, but it caught not enough attention. Maybe it was due to lack of advertising. Anyway it marvels me, because it’s our history, a chronicle of soviet occupation. Everything that’s bad in Lithuania nowadays it’s an effect of long time of soviet occupation. If we reminesce occupation, we do it rather to emphasize our suffering and its martyrology aspect. It was exactly Mackiewicz and Piasecki, who had shown the real face of the soviets, and that image was terryfying.

Why have you decided to translate „The Road to Nowhere”?
The main reason was that it’s a chronicle of sovietization. Also, it was one of the first Mackiewicz’s books that I had read. Before that I’ve read only „Victory of Provocation”.

You said that Mackiewicz’s works are not widely known, how have you discovered them?

My friend Piotr Hlebowicz from the East Division of Fighting Solidarity gave me „Victory of Provocation”. It made a great impression on me. Mackiewicz was a consequent anticommunist and antinationalist and majority of people who claim to be anticommunist, are actually nationalists. Later there was a chance to translate and publish „The Road to Nowhere”.

As far as I know, you’ve learned polish in mature age?

I come from Marijampolė. We could watch polish television here. Polish was heard, but I learned the language when I made friends with polish people and started to read more in polish. Initially it was clandestine literature. I got to know Mackiewicz in the 90s, when his works wasn’t longer forbidden and automatically I tried to translate it. It’s hard to say how it turned out.

You have said, that Mackiewicz is a rare example, because he was anticommunist and antinationalist at the same time. Is there anyone like that in Lithuania?

I have to pounder about it. For Sure Tomas Venclova. Addmiteddly, his anticommunism isn’t strictly consequent, because as far as I know, he doesn’t see reformatory communists as enemies. But are there more people like that? To be honest, I didn’t met many in Lithuania.  But for example, Antanas Terleckas (leader of the Freedom League) is not a nationalist I suppose. He always said, that we should build a friendship with Poland. He never approved radical actions of Sąjūdis, to say nothing of Vilnija.

What do you think, why our polish-lithuanian relations got worse recently? What has caused this? Initially, our relations were promising…

Our relations soured, because current polish government had changed its political direction. Worsening itself isn’t as bad as the fact, that it happened so fast. It could be avoided if overdued affairs had been settled. I mean such things as spelling of the surnames and bilingual names of places and streets. To be honest, rather trivial questions. When Lech Kaczyński was a president, the pressure wasn’t strong. He tried to do everything tactfully. He always acccentuated, that solving these problems is in the interest of both countries. It’s very sad, that we couldn’t manage to compromise. Few words ruined everything.

Why Lithuania can’t solve these questions?

Because Lithuania couldn’t freed itself from stereotypes.  For me it’s very strange, how great attempt on society nationalists (tautininkai) have. In elections they have at the utmost several percents. The fact, that these questions hadn’t been solved is wrong. I don’t like it.

You’re involved in normalization polish-lithuanian relations. Recently, Lithuanians answered to offensive prank of polish football fans with an action called „Lithuania loves Poland”. Does this and similar actions make sense? Do the intellectualists have any impact on society?  

For sure they have some impact. Especially this last action. Now it’s impossible to say, that all Lithuanians hate Poles or that all Poles think badly of Lithuanians. Everyone understands, that particular statement of a polithic or prank of supporters doesn’t show the opinion of commonalty. 

Source: http://zw.lt/opinie/leonardas-vilkas-litwa-nie-potrafila-wyzwolic-sie-ze-stereotypow/

Tłumaczenie by Aleksandra Szcześniak w ramach praktyk w Europejskiej Fundacji Praw Człowieka, www.efhr.eu. Translated by Aleksandra Szcześniak within the framework of a traineeship programme of the European Foundation of Human Rights, www.efhr.eu.