Lithuania
Thousands of people regularly gathered in public places across Lithuania and sang national songs and Roman Catholic hymns. The popularity of patriotic songs had risen significantly during this period. Many popular singers had followed this trend, often using the poetry of nationalist poets, such as Bernardas Brazdžionis or Justinas Marcinkevičius as the lyrics of their songs. Rock March also promoted awareness of the issue among the people.
On June 3, 1988, the Sąjūdis, a political and social movement to lead the independence and pro-democracy movement, was established.
The active nationalist opposition towards the regime culminated in the return of Vilnius Cathedral, formerly used as a museum of fine arts, to the Catholic community on 21 October 1988, followed by the gradual restoration of national symbols, which included the erection or restoration of independence monuments throughout the country. The national anthem of Lithuania and the traditional national Tricolore were legalised in Lithuania on 18 November 1988, officially replacing the flag and the anthem of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic.
Five decades after Lithuania was occupied and incorporated into the Soviet Union, Lithuania became the first republic to declare its independence from the USSR on March 11, 1990, and was later followed by Latvia and Estonia. However, almost all nations in the international community, except Iceland, hesitated to recognise independence for Lithuania until August 1991.
The Soviet military responded harshly. On January 13, 1991, fourteen non-violent protesters in Vilnius died and hundreds were injured defending the Vilnius Television Tower and the Parliament from Soviet assault troops and tanks. Lithuanians referred to the event as Bloody Sunday. The discipline and courage of its citizens - linking arms and singing in the face of tanks and armour-piercing bullets - avoided a much greater loss of life and showed the world that Lithuania's citizens were prepared to defend national independence.
The international governments recognised Lithuanian independence after the failure of the coup d'état in August 1991.
Read more about this topic: Singing Revolution