Protest and appeal to the prime minister about the situation of Poles in Lithuania.

Participants of the protest commanded bigger activity about the situation of Poles in Lithuania. Participants of the protests inter alia from the association of Memoriae Fidelis  appealed about it on Friday at the Prime minister Office.

We called you in Prime Minister to embark effective actions on situation of Poles in Lithuania. Those actions should be seen by the Lithuanian government as well as governments of other countries – this is what Mrs. AleksanderSzychtze from the association of Memoriae Fidelis with a group of twenty people with other federation of association of borderlands said.
Most important postulates of the defense  of Polish minority are recoil the act which discriminative polish education in Lithuania, give back  land  to the polish aborigine which was stolen with part of Lithuanian country and Lithuanian settler after the Lithuanian independence. and recoil the changes in electoral race for governmental seats. Changes are now discriminative for Poles.

In the appeal was tugged in the problem of those Lithuanian who were repressed in some legally administrative way and who were limited in usage polish language in public for example in the situation of giving the polish name of  the streets. In opinion of protested this kind of action made by Lithuanian government  was against polish minority  and did not have an answer from polish side. That appeal was signed by representatives of federation of association of borderlands, the association of  Memoriae Fidelis, assisoation KoLiber, right of the republic.

Protesting people who were holding a banner which said Lithuanian government was stealing the land of Poles, destroying polish education and were cropping the hate. They also reminded the promise made by prime minister of Donald Tusk from September 4^th 2011 in Vilnius under the gate of Dawn. Promise said that expectations, dreams goals also in educational aspect which were very important lately would be taken with a special care. It was accepted with an applause. Prime minister Donald Tusk regarded on the topic which made great emoting among Poles.

Protest after the appeal at the Prime minister’s office moved to embassy of Lithuania in Poland where should last till 3 p.m. On Saturday.

Last year Poles who live in Lithuania were disappointed with the new educational act which is discriminative and makes schools close.

Initiative of Polish and Lithuanian prime ministers assigned the group of experts who were supposed to solve the problem. Despite few meetings in Poland and Lithuania that group could not  solve it that polish side would be happy. Mrs.Knut Vollebaek from Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe got interested with the case in May and asked sides to talk to each other.

The bureau of polish  ministry of polish affairs  said would get to know the case and would show its position about the case.

Source: http://wyborcza.pl/1,91446,12487335,Protest_i_apel_do_premiera_ws__sytuacji_Polakow_na.html

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