It will be negotiated

Parents Forum Polish Schools in Lithuania, an independent social movement and organizer of Friday’s protest meeting at the Presidential Palace in Vilnius, the community is willing to talk and hopes that there will be dialogue with the Lithuanian authorities. All also are counting on the mediation of Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who arrives on Sunday with a one-day visit to Lithuania. Before noon in Palanga Polish Prime Minister met with Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius, PM Donald Tusk has come to Vilna. In the words of Minister for European Affairs Mikołaj Dowgielewicz First Program of Polish Radio, the decision was taken in view of the situation of the Polish minority in Lithuania. During his visit to Vilnius Donald Tusk at 1 p.m. will participate in the Mass in the church. Teresa, and then probably meet with the Polish minority.

Still no final decision was made on the strikes in Polish schools in Lithuania. The organizer of Friday’s rally at the Presidential Palace was the Polish School Parents forum in Lithuania, while strikes were organized by the various strike committees. It was set up in all Polish schools in Lithuania. There was, however, strike coordination center, but according to unofficial sources of “Wilnoteka” (newspaper), such a center is formed. It will take a decision on further action. Probably the strikes will be suspended for a few or several days in anticipation of the movement of the Lithuanian authorities, however, if you run out of such a movement, strikes will be resumed immediately.

“Please develop a dialogue and amendments to the education bill in close cooperation with minority communities” – such was the message of yesterday’s protest rally outside the Presidential Palace.

In 17^th of September marks six months since the adoption of the Act and may initiate amendments to the Act – such expectations of the Lithuanian Ministry of Education and Science of Polish environmental report.

Authorities did not subside. Yesterday at a meeting with representatives of the picketing Semaška Darius, the chief foreign policy advisor in the Office of the President of Lithuania, he made ​​it clear that the changes should not expect, and the community must be reconciled with the current state of affairs. The Minister of Education and Science Gintaras Steponavičius often insinuated in the media that the picketers are part of society by a handful of manipulative local Polish politicians. Even in a letter sent by post to 26 000 representatives of the Polish, Russian and Belarusian Minister of Education argues that the law is good and conceived for the benefit of children.

So yesterday showed an increasing willingness among local Poles. The biggest frustration of Poles causes underestimation of the problem by the authorities and cynical comments and Lithuanian media.

There is no accurate data, but according to the calculations on strike yesterday, approximately 70 of the 120 Polish schools in Lithuania, the schools did not come close to 90 percent of the students. Among the 10 percent of students who come to school, the majority were students of classes early.

According to unofficial sources of “Wilnoteka” shows that, for example in the Secondary School of Władysław Syrokomla, the  930 students came to school just 30, in the School of Józef Ignacy Kraszewski, in Nowa Wilejka the 508 students came to 61, in the Secondary School for 201 pupils in Łazdinaj city school benches sat 5th.

http://www.wilnoteka.lt/pl/artykul/gotowi-do-dialogu-tylko-z-kim  

Tłumaczenie Michał Sadowski w ramach praktyk w Europejskiej Fundacji Praw Człowieka, www.efhr.eu Translated by Michał Sadowski within the framework of a traineeship programme of the European Foundation of Human Rights, www.efhr.eu

Korekta Agata Woźnicka w ramach praktyk w Europejskiej Fundacji Praw Człowieka, www.efhr.eu