Tomaszewski in the defence of minority schools

Today, about 11 p.m. Member of the European Parliament, Waldemar Tomaszewski, spoke during parliamentary speeches in the series „important political matters”. In his speech [Tomaszewski] publicized the problems of national minorities concerning education in Lithuania in the light of the recent protests and attempts to intimidate the parents and the pupils. Waldemar Tomaszewski said inter alia:

„In the face of new problems concerning emigrants we shouldn’t forget about the indigenous rights of national minorities in Europe. Poland belongs to this group as members of the Polish minority have been living in Lithuania for 700 years. Unfortunately, the rights of the autochtonic Polish minority, as well as other national miorities are regularly limited. In the year 2010, the National Minorities Act was annulled. And today the rights of national minorities’ schools are limited by closing those schools. On 2nd Sptember the parents and pupils organised general strike in which participated 90% of the Polish schools. Unfortunately, instead of having an open discusson, the representatives of the Government indimidate the strikers by threatening to give them 500 Euro fines (each). In the European Union it is unacceptable to use communistic methods and make threats to the striking citizens. I bid the European Parliament to defent the parents and pupils of minority schools in my homeland.”