The KGB Museum in Vilnius is one of its kind in the European Union  by John Watson

If you ever decide to visit Vilnius, the KGB museum is definitely not to be missed out.

Even though I knew quite a lot about the KGB through history, only after visiting the museum did I come closer to realising what the people went through under the Soviet rule. Its hard to believe, especially after seeing the daunting basement prison, how the Soviet authorities brutally tortured and killed innocent people whose only fault was fighting for their country's freedom.

Set up in the former KGB headquarters, the museum is the only one of its kind in the European Union. For Lithuanians, this building symbolises the 50-year-long Soviet occupation. During World War II it was the site of Gestapo headquarters and of the KGB later. Between 1940 and 1991 people who resisted the soviet occupants were arrested, killed or deported to Siberia. You will see a lot of the names of anti-Soviet resistance fighters carved into the stone walls of the building.

 The very first thing that struck me as I was approaching the museum was that the former KGB prison stands in the very heart of Vilnius.  In the past many people would pass the building yet they never heard the cries and desperation of the freedom fighters, locked in the basement prison.

When you enter the building you feel more like whispering instead of talking as the gruesome reality of the past exhibited over a few floors is often too hard to handle.

The building of the museum is intact as it was after the KGB left the premises in 1991. Amongst many other exhibited items you will see the authentically furnished rooms and KGB equipment that was used for the secret listening of private conversations and many more. 

On the ground floor of the museum the authentic photographs of the partisans, original documents, personal belongings are displayed. The photographs depict the life of partisans, who were struggling to re-establish Lithuania's independence. It was sad to look at the immortalised faces, as many of them looked so young, barely 18 years old. The courage, sacrifice and love for their country of those young people is truly moving.

I learned that Lithuanians, even though a small nation, were gallant and dignified people

The exposition on the first floor displays dramatic black and white photographs depicting awful working and living conditions of the people sent to the hard labour camps. The scenes look so grim with wiry fences and armed guards. Among the prisoners there was a great number of priests and women, arrested for publishing underground anti-Soviet papers. I couldn't believe it when I saw that many of them had to wear signs on them that read: 'Extremely dangerous criminal.' Clothes and footwear of the prisoners and some personal items like hand made books are on display.

The basement prison is the most sobering part of the building. Here a lot of prisoners were brutally killed in the execution chamber for participation in the anti-Soviet resistance.

When you enter the prison, there are two about 1.6-square-metre dark cells called boxes, where prisoners were kept while the duty officer processed their documents. It's sickening how small the cells were where you can hardly sit or stand. Among other cells you can see solitary confinement rooms which were used to break down the prisoners and make them confess. Prisoners had to stand in the ice-cold water or to balance on a small platform. Every time they got tired they fell down into the water. 

The horrific padded cell sends chills down your spine. The walls are padded and soundproofed, made to absorb the cries and shouts for help. The straitjacket on the back wall was used for those who resisted or were demented with torture. 

The execution chamber is the grimmest place in the museum. On display there is material, which shows the procedures of sentencing people to death and the inhuman treatment of dead bodies. Under a glass floor some personal belongings of the victims are displayed: shoes, buttons, glasses and engagement rings.

In a way I was relieved to leave the museum and all the pain behind, shivering at the thought that many prisoners never left the premises alive, however, the museum leaves a deep impact and is truly worth visiting while in Vilnius.
 

About the Author:

John Watson is the publisher of a website called  Welcome-to Lithuania.
If you would like to find out more about the museum, or other places of interest in Lithuania please visit my website link. http://www.welcome-to-lithuania.com/kgb-museum-vilnius.html

Keywords : KGB Museum, Museum of Genocide Victims, Vilnius.