Yesterday, on 2nd October, the representative of the Government for the Vilnius district Audrius Skaistys has informed BNS agency that there are no more bilingual signs in Šalčininkai district. What is more, local authorities submitted relevant evidence (signs with street names that appeared recently in Eišiškės and Pabarė) to the District Court of Druskininkai. The signs are mainly road signs with street names in the state language set on sidewalks. There were 16 photos depicting the data of the signs submitted by the government to the court as an evidence of the execution of the judgment.
Given the fact that the evidence has been submitted, the court no longer has any basis for the persecution of the local government. According to the law, local governments have a warrant for labeling streets in the state language by placing traffic signs, what the local government of Šalčininkai district did.
But local authorities are not empowered to interfere with private properties. Therefore, according to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National minorities, which entitles residents to place signs in the accepted by them language on their private estates, bilingual signs can be set on private homes.
Josif Rybak said, that he is not going to remove the signs from private estates, as he has no right to do it. But he will do what he has to do as a director of the local government - he will place road signs with street names in the state language.
Under current law, sign on a sidewalk is more important than the one hanging on a house. Therefore, the court ruling has been accomplished and the case of fine imposition on the director of Šalčininkai district should be withdrawn.
