Azubalis on Coalition Partners’ Plans: These Are Fog and Shadow Tactics

The current situation, according to Audronius Ažubalis, who represents the largest ruling coalition party, the Union of the Fatherland – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), recalls a strange tactic of shadows and fog.

“A strange tactic is to talk about what is not presented and what has not yet been presented. This is the first time that I have faced such a political tactic. I don’t know what this will bring to the initiators.

I don’t see anything wrong with putting projects on the agenda of the Seimas session. On the other hand, there was much talk before this spring session. It was a political tactic of fog and shadows; it was said that we were doing it, but no one saw what was being done. Finding out was possible from unofficial sources. Everything is exciting and then everything looks like we have seen it today. ” Delfi.lt said A. Azubalis.

Chaos over partnership

At a Future Committee meeting on Tuesday, the Seimas opposition proposed removing the legal acts regulating the association institute from the Seimas spring session work program. Although, according to Asta Kubilienė, a member of the “peasant” faction, such a proposal was signed by 32 members of the Seimas, it was not approved in committee: 5 members of the Future Committee supported the proposal, 8 opposed it and 3 deputies abstained.

On Thursday, the Seimas did not approve the initiative of Remigijus Žemaitaitis to include the issue of ratification of the Istanbul Convention on the agenda of the spring session of the Seimas. Proposals to remove the legislation governing the association institute from the agenda were also rejected.

Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius, member of the Freedom Group, chairman of the Human Rights Committee Delfi.lt He stated that the attempt by some members of the opposition to remove the initiatives on the legalization of the association institute from the agenda of the spring session is “a pathological reluctance of some members of the Seimas to discuss this important issue.”

Meanwhile, A. Azubalis assured that it is very difficult to talk about the association bill so far, because most parliamentarians simply have not seen it. Still, he said, the coronavirus pandemic environment is certainly not the right time to consider the issue.

“We have serious doubts about vaccines, about the quantities of vaccines, about the business that makes the last dinners. Here there should be the most important things, not to mention foreign policy, European politics, where the directives do not stop, the Brussels legislature works, all this must be analyzed. They are serious things.

Knowing what time it is, let’s not rush, let’s wait. Let’s decide what really matters to citizens now and why people show interest and anxiety, ”said a representative from TS-LKD.

According to A. Azubalis, this issue is a matter of worldview and respect for the Constitution. At the moment, according to him, “trying to jump in and say more than what is written in the Constitution, all this leads to one simple thing: the so-called homogeneous family.”

“The family, in my traditional view, is a voluntary union between a man and a woman. I would think that an agreement on a common economy is rational, that it allows solving practical problems of life, but it does not pretend and say that it is a family. We know what my society is, as the results of the surveys show.

A minority is trying to rape the majority, although that majority is not aggressive. I don’t really see colleagues in my party who are intolerant of people who practice another way of life, but it has nothing to do with family, ”said a member of Seimas.

With regard to national minorities, positions that intersect

Another highly debatable initiative is the law planned on national minorities in the spring session of the Freedom Party. Although this law has not yet been registered in parliament, nor has an official version been presented, it is publicly said that the National Minorities Law provides for the introduction of bilingual tables in street names. At the same time, it is desired to allow applications to be drawn up in languages ​​other than Lithuanian in municipalities or elders.

“Since 2010. Lithuania does not have a law on national minorities. Although we have a ratified and valid Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, the regulation leaves a lot of scope for member states to decide to what extent one article or another applies.

The ratified Convention stipulates that place and street names may be written in the language of a national minority in addition to the state one. Lithuania has to decide what is “a territory traditionally inhabited by large national minorities” and what are “traditional names”. Also where the right to communicate in the mother tongue with the administrative authorities and who are involved is guaranteed.

It is no less important that this law also defines the concepts of national minority, national community, stipulates the order in which a leading person can change or enter a nationality registry, the obligation of the state in the field of education and life cultural. Delfi.lt commented one of its initiators, Justice Minister Evelina Dobrovolska.

A. Ažubalis, the former member of the Seimas, negatively evaluates this initiative of the coalition partners. In his opinion, this is a provocative bill.

“It is a provocative and divisive project that would do neither national communities nor our main nation any good. Many things have been added, mixed, grounded, not to mention that there are at least three contradictions with the Constitution.” taught A. Ažubalis his position.

See a threat to the state’s language

TS-LKD member A. Ažubalis mentioned possible contradictions of the planned bill with the Constitution. In the first place, according to him, the Constitution is ignored because it deals with national minorities.

“There are no national minorities in Lithuania or, if there are, there are several: Karaites, Tatars.” It is very clear in our Constitution that we are talking about national communities, “he said.

The second contradiction mentioned by a member of the Seimas is related to the language of the state.

“There are attempts to deny the status of the state language by giving other languages ​​of national communities the right to be used in public life. It is very clear that only the Lithuanian language can be used in public life, as far as the state is concerned. , the services provided by the state.

Likewise, the equality of people based on nationality is being violated, since an attempt is made to differentiate some schools from ethnic communities by granting them a privileged or, on the contrary, discriminatory status. I mean, the continuation of the facilitated state language test. In my opinion, this is discrimination. We say that the knowledge of representatives of ethnic communities cannot be evaluated equally, that they cannot learn the Lithuanian language. I think there is a clear discrimination here.

When we talk about regional languages, they have something similar, in terms of status, as the state language. This is a misunderstanding. This is a direct way of forcing Lithuanians, if they want to occupy certain positions and positions, to study two or even three regional languages ​​”, detailed A. Ažubalis.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Justice, E. Dobrovolska, took a different position. “The law guarantees the rights of national minorities and harmonizes them with the protection of the state language. Lithuania needs this solution for ten years. We will endeavor to ensure that this law is supported by the members of the Seimas regardless of their membership in a political party.” wrote E. Dobrovolska in their responses.