Bilotaitė Complains About Valentinavičius Actions: Undermines Crisis Management Efforts

On Tuesday, A. Bilotaitė announced on Facebook that he had approached Augustinas Normantas, director of the Seimas Ombudsman’s Office.

“Immediately after the visit of Vytautas Valentinavičius to the Lithuanian-Belarusian border, where measures of the strict border protection regime (operations to deter illegal immigrants) are being implemented by decision of the Head of Operations, we submitted a request to the Office of the Ombudsman of the Seimas, represented by Mr. V. Valentinavičius.

We asked the head of the institution how he evaluates the behavior and comments of this official on the actions carried out by our officials in the personal account of the social network ”, wrote A. Bilotaitė.

Last week, Vytautas Valentinavičius, head of the Human Rights Office of the Seimas Ombudsman’s Office, shared a story of border service on Facebook, in which he raised questions about whether officials were not violating the principles of human rights. You can read about it here.

“It is regrettable, but it continues to undermine Lithuania’s efforts to manage the crisis of illegal immigrants, it discredits our officials, who work strictly in accordance with the requirements established by the laws and the principles of humanity.” Until now, I have had no reason to question your professionalism.

We are always ready to answer any questions that may arise both for the Seimas ombudsmen and for other institutions in our country and foreign countries that care about human rights and their protection. By concentrating and working together, we can overcome the challenges we face more quickly and easily. And public indulgence in the face of accusations and the promotion of unfounded doubts in society benefits only our enemies, ”said the Interior Minister.

A. Bilotaitė noted that he had not yet received a response from the Seimas A. Normantas ombudsman.

Čmilytė-Nielsen: I trust the professionalism of the institutions

At the time, the president of the Seimas Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen declared that in the crisis of illegal immigration, the actions of all officials are under a magnifying glass.

“We are all aware that the situation on the border is very tense. The actions of our officials are under scrutiny, first and foremost against hostile forces. The possibilities for provocations are also completely undeniable,” V. Čmilytė-Nielsen told the journalists at the Seimas on Tuesday.

The Seimas Spokesperson assured confidence in the professionalism of the institutions.

“At the same time, I believe that it is very important that human rights organizations, whether they are non-governmental organizations or representatives of institutions, closely monitor possible violations and, if they are found to be systematic, initiate investigations and collect data. The institution of the ombudsman must have all these possibilities, so I would invite, in case of systemic violations, to take the formal tools that exist in this institution, to initiate an investigation and make recommendations ”, added V. Čmilytė-Nielsen.