The EAPL vice-chairwoman: Prime Minister should partly take responsibility, not just pat politically correct speeches

2014-01-14, 15:50

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As it was already reported, today, on the Day of the Freedom Defenders of Lithuania, members of the faction of the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania at the formal sitting of the Seimas, during the speech of Vytautas Landsbergis, have left the Seimas room of the 11th March. This was their way to express protest against the politicized decisions of courts and huge financial penalties imposed for the use of mother tongue. Through this protest members of the Seimas also recalled that 23 years ago, exactly in January 1991, just after the bloody events of that time, no one else but Vytautas Landsbergis had signed the Law on National Minorities, that was successfully operating for nearly two decades - until 2010; then it was cancelled by the conservative-liberal majority of the government.

The EAPL vice-chairwoman, deputy of the Seimas Vanda Kravčionok in an interview with our website named the comment of the Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius on leaving the Seimas room just after the start of the speech of Vytautas Landsbergis, as a misunderstanding.

As it was pointed out by the vice-chairwoman, the speech of the Prime Minister is contrary to the position that was expressed by him a few days ago. It is a shame that it lasts so long to take the decision on the Law on National Minorities. V. Kravčionok reminded that this issue is drawn into both the program of the Social Democratic Party, chairman of which is A. Butkevičius, as well as to the government program; however, as EAPL vice-chairwoman stressed, 'nothing is done towards achieving these program objectives '. As an example the deputy quoted the fact that the draft of the Law on National Minorities was prepared long time ago, the decision of the political council of the ruling coalition on the review of the project by the Government's Strategic Committee was taken already on 9th of September 2013, but, according to the EAPL vice-chairwoman, 'it is regrettable that the Prime Minister does not want to implement the decisions of the coalition council, as the draft law of the Government's Strategic Committee is not yet discussed'.

According to V. Kravčionok, the chosen by the EAPL faction form of the protest is normal and it is practised when other ways of expressing dissatisfaction about an emerged situation do not bring results.

'For example, 10 years ago during a solemn meeting in the Seimas on the Day of the Freedom Defenders of Lithuania, even without a meaningful reason, conservatives had left the room of the Seimas, when former President of Lithuania Rolandas Paksas entered the tribune,' vice-chairwoman commented for the L24.lt on the expression of the protest of Polish politicians during the speech of Vytautas Landsbergis.

'Either the Prime Minister A. Butkevičius does not remember this, or it is a misunderstanding,' V. Kravčionok assessed the comment of the Prime Minister.

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