ALMANTAS SAMALAVICIUS
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authorities themselves. State officials and civil servants seem to have
inherited nearly all the ill-habits of the much-despised Soviet bureaucracy.
Repetitive political scandals, cases of bribery and corruption are a con–
stant reality. However, although the media has reported accurately on
the state of affairs, its influence is negligible. Constantly accused by the
establishment of creating a "wrong image" for this society, the media
alone is not capable of destroying corrupt politicians. What is even more
striking is that people arc more apathetic and distrustful about every–
thing. It is a dangerous situation.
These developments inevitably suggest questions that are hardly en–
couraging. What has happened
to
this society which just a few years ago
said a firm farewell to the totalitarian system? Why did it step back? And
how long will the past endure? Attempts at replying might be an intel–
lectual puzzle for an outsider, merely an exercise of the mind, but the
insider's position is much more dramatic. To some Lithuanians, these
problems become existential.
We seem to have made our way into another question - that of the
intellectual's role in society. This is rather a precarious question, since we
have to define the operability of the term itself Do we have intellectuals
- in the Western sense of the word - in those states making their transit
from closed to market societies? Provided with the examples of Havel
and the like, we could, perhaps, give a positive answer. But does the rule
apply to all of the East European domain? I would be tempted to doubt
it. Many Lithuanian academics and intellectuals, writers and cultural fig–
ures who contributed to the spiritual resistance of the nation during ear–
lier periods, arc completely at a loss, encountering the current situation.
Many of them have fallen prey to ruling opinion, prejudices, and beliefs,
indicating more a confusion of the mind than an ability to analyze social
and political realities. Worshipping myths created in the past, once so
important in sustaining national feelings, these intellectuals have thrown
themselves into a delirium of visions, retreating from realities. Attempts
have been made to restore the pre-Soviet past. It is no coincidence that
as soon as the popular national movement won the first free elections, a
ritual act restituting the Constitution of 1938 was passed. Many subse–
quent political actions were based on such rituals , for some time hypno–
tizing the masses. Writers and many of the leading cultural figures wel–
comed the semi-heathen glorifications of new political leaders and con–
tributed to the image-making themselves. In the general upheaval of na–
tional emotion and euphoria, critical voices were discouraged and often
suspected of "serving" the enemy.
Discussing the intellectual climate of Lithuania over the past few
years, one should bear in mind that during the Soviet era the tradition
of dissident writing was not strong. There were few underground publi-
