Liberals for the original surnames

During the electoral debate, the Liberal Movement expressed their solidarity supporting the statutory introduction of the original spelling of surnames in official documents and bilingual street signs. 

The representatives of the Liberal Movement, as the only participants of the electoral debate, gave their support for the original spelling of Polish surnames in official documents and bilingual streets signs. “The liberals have always been for this and not only because of the Polish minority’s demands but also because the surname is a private property of every person, neither the country nor the government has the right to change it.” claimed Eligijus Masiulis, the leader of the Liberal Movement.

Andrius Kubilius, the Prime Minister, boasted that the Cabinet had prepared the draft of the law which would have solved the problem of surnames spelling and street signs. However, only one member of the Labour Party and one representative of the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania voted for the acceptance of the project. “We have to reach a consensus on this issue because we can’t forget about the decision of the Constitutional Court.” said A. Kubilius.

During the debate, Vydas Gedvilas, the representative of the Labour Party, said that the problem was exaggerated. He pointed out that in Lithuania there are Russian people as well, who could apply for similar privileges. “I don’t think that such a problem really exists, we have to live in peace because we live in Lithuania.” said V. Gedvilas during the debate.

Valentinas Mazuronis, the vice-leader of the party “Order and Justice”, thinks that if we want to solve the Polish-Lithuanian problem, we have to talk with the representatives of the national minority, not the government in Warsaw.

Based on: BNS, alfa.lt, delfi.lt

Source:  http://www.wilnoteka.lt/pl/artykul/liberalowie-za-oryginalnymi-nazwiskami

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