‘Hope for Freedom’

The release of Anatoly Shcharansky from a Soviet prison camp and the tremendous media response brings some hope to the relatives of another political prisoner in a Soviet prison camp, but also a feeling of desperation and quiet indignation.

The name of Balys Gajauskas, a Lithuanian relative of Bernice and Raymond Gajauskas of Santa Monica, should ring as loudly in the minds of Americans as Shcharansky, but it does not.

Like Shcharansky, Gajauskas was convicted of anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda, but Gajauskas has been in a Soviet prison camp for 36 years. Like Shcharansky, Gajauskas has constantly fought for human rights, is a champion of the Helsinki Accords and refused to cooperate with the Soviet authorities in asking for clemency for a reduced sentence because he did not want it construed as an admission of guilt.

Like Shcharansky, Gajauskas is a hero within the dissident community in and out of the Soviet prison camps. Gajauskas has learned numerous languages while incarcerated, teaches other prisoners in the camp and has been an inspiration for those with less courage or fortitude to withstand the brutality and degradation of these camps.

Like Shcharansky, Gajauskas’ relative, Bernice, has fought a courageous battle to gain his release. She persuaded the Carter Administration, 35 senators, more than 100 members of the House of Representatives, Mayor Tom Bradley and numerous other political and religious leaders and organizations to demand his release.

Unlike Shcharansky, however, the news media in the United States have virtually ignored Balys Gajauskas, and he remains today a Soviet prisoner. Like Shcharansky during his incarceration, Gajauskas is seriously ill and will certainly be dead in a few years. Bernice is also seriously ill, and she can no longer travel around the state and country to lobby for support.

She needs the help of the news media and Reagan Administration to keep the torch burning for Balys Gajauskas and perhaps gain his release and immigration to the United States, for a few years of freedom before he dies. It is the least we can do for a man who has truly devoted his life to furthering human rights, human dignity and freedom for all.

RICHARD C. HERZOG

Santa Monica