The less Poles are allowed, the more they are expected to do

The end of the world did not happen. And I do not mean the apocalypse foretold by the Mayans. The Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania [Polish: Akcja Wyborcza Polaków na Litwie; AWPL] crossed the election threshold and became a member of the governing coalition. The new governmental policy includes a separate section devoted to the demands of national minorities. The winning party emphasizes the necessity for a new opening of the Polish-Lithuanian relationship and importance of fulfilling promises given to Poles. In spite of this, the Lithuanian country still exists.-

However, the spiritual and political guide of the conservatives, Vytautas Landsbergis, insists on the future downfall of the country. He tries to frighten the citizens because he is not satisfied with the results of the recent elections that resulted in the current governing coalition. Not only has the coalition been formed by the perennial rival, the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania [Polish: Litewska Partia Socjaldemokratyczna], but it also includes “Order and Justice” [Polish: Porządek i Sprawiedliwość], the Labour Party [Polish: Partia Pracy; PP] and AWPL. The two first monsters pose only a hypothetical threat but the third one constitutes a concrete danger. Let’s look closely at Prof. Landsbergis’s nightmare: the leader of “Order and Justice”, Rolandas Paksas, is exposed to Russian influences, the leader of PP, Wiktor Uspaskich, is even worse because he is the source of this negative influence, but the scariest of them all is the leader of AWPL, Waldemar Tomaszewski. The party led by him has been “occupying Vilnius Region” for several decades. Moreover, he has an appetite for the rest of the independent Lithuania and tries to make an attempt on the Lithuanian alphabet and Constitution (the case of the original spelling of surnames and bilingual street signs). If someone still has doubts, then they should think why AWPL was so determined to cross the election threshold as well as other boundaries. I think that our authorities would rather use every possible stratagem to make the camel pass through the eye of the needle than let AWPL be elected to the Seimas. However, the ex-Prime Minister, Andrius Kubilius, claims that the conservatives missed such a stratagem somewhere. Last month he said, “AWPL took advantage of a loophole in the law that enabled them to enter the Seimas”. It is hard to believe that the defenders of Lithuania against the storm of AWPL failed to use any potential trap and block “the eye of the needle”. If they really missed it then I feel sorry for them. Every person can have their individual end of the world. The electoral success of AWPL can be treated as such as well.

However, as far as the Lithuanian society, political analysts and journalists are concerned, they do not seem to be afraid of the government formed by the Social Democratic Party, “Order and Justice”, PP and AWPL. Any serious person does not try to demonise the current government and its policy, in spite of the fact the document includes concessions to the national minorities. The members of Butkevičius’s Cabinet (as well as vice-ministers and a vice-speaker of the Seimas who is a member of AWPL) do not cause any emotions or controversy… Maybe except for the Minister of Energy appointed by AWPL, Jarosław Niewierowicz, who has such a good opinion in the press that if I were him, I would be afraid. In my opinion, AWPL, which is not associated with any scandal and has never disappointed its voters, will face a new task, namely the test of the nationwide government. I have a feeling that the representatives of AWPL will be examined very carefully. They have to think about their voters and cannot resort to any unclear tricks. “The less Poles are allowed (as far as private issues are concerned), the more they are expected to do” – it is a rule that AWPL should keep in mind after they passed “the eye of the needle”.

Lucyna Schiller

Source: http://www.tygodnik.lt/201253/

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