The President. however. during his State of the Union Address. appalled by the Vilnius outrage. clearly spoke his conscience and unequivocably endorsed independence for the Baltic States. Sadly. the Vilnius massacre was only the latest of several tragedies to befall the people of the Baltic States under Soviet occupation. In fact. 50 years ago today. Soviet troops began the mass deportation of Baltic citizens to the forbidding terrain of the Siberian frontier. In their places. hundreds of Russian colonists were settled through Stalins policy of "Russification." Yet today. the margin of support for independence. expressed in the recent national referendums. was overwhelming. despite the heavy Russian population. The simple fact remains that the people of Latvia.
Keywords matched
deportation