Vladas Niunka
Vladas Niunka | |
|---|---|
| Born | 17 August 1907 |
| Died | 26 December 1983 (aged 76) |
| Burial place | Antakalnis Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Vytautas Magnus University |
| Occupations | Newspaper editor, communist propagandist and politician, university professor |
| Political party | Communist Party of Lithuania |
| Awards | Order of Lenin Order of the October Revolution Order of the Red Banner of Labour Order of the Patriotic War Order of the Badge of Honour |
Vladas Niunka (17 August 1907 – 26 December 1983) was a Lithuanian communist politician and publicist. He joined then-illegal Communist Party of Lithuania (CPL) in 1928. For his communist activities, he was arrested seven times by the Lithuanian police and spent about five years in prisons. He edited and published several communist newspapers, including Tiesa, Propagandistas, Komunistas. He was a long-term member of the Central Committee of CPL (1938–1983) as well as deputy (1947–1983) and chairman (1955–1963) of the Supreme Soviet of the Lithuanian SSR. During World War II and in 1948–1961, Niunka was secretary of the Propaganda and Agitation Department of CPL. He dedicated the last two decades of his life to academic work researching anti-communist policies and activities of the Catholic Church. He became a member of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences and a Candidate of Sciences.