Romas Kalanta
Lithuanian Soviet dissident / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Romas Kalanta (22 February 1953 – 14 May 1972) was a 19-year-old Lithuanian high school student who killed himself by self-immolation in an act of protest against the Soviet regime in Lithuania. His death provoked the largest post-war riots in Lithuania[1] and inspired similar self-immolations. In 1972, 13 more people committed suicide by self-immolation.[2]
Quick Facts Born, Died ...
Romas Kalanta | |
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![]() Kalanta on a 2022 stamp of Lithuania | |
Born | (1953-02-22)22 February 1953 |
Died | 14 May 1972(1972-05-14) (aged 19) Kaunas, Lithuanian SSR |
Cause of death | Self-immolation |
Monuments | Memorial in Kaunas |
Occupation | Factory worker |
Era | Second Soviet occupation of Lithuania |
Known for | 1972 self-immolation |
Movement | Anti-communism |
Awards | Order of the Cross of Vytis |
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Kalanta became a symbol of the Lithuanian resistance throughout the 1970s and 1980s.[3] In 2000, he was posthumously awarded the Order of the Cross of Vytis.