Wojnicz: “There Is No Point in Experimenting or Tampering with National Minority Schools”

As we reported earlier, Lithuania’s conservatives are proposing a gradual increase in the amount of instruction conducted in Lithuanian in national minority schools. Under the draft proposal, from 2028, subjects related to social education would be taught in Lithuanian, and from 2030, all subjects except the mother tongue would be taught in Lithuanian. We examine how the proposed changes could affect national minority schools in practice.

The Council of National Minorities on the Proposed Changes

We asked Władysław Wojnicz of the Council of National Minorities for his comments on the issue.

“At this point, I cannot say what position the Council will take, because we would have to meet and discuss the matter. However, this would certainly be a difficult issue for some members of the Council.

“Generally speaking, these schools would in fact change their profile — they would no longer be national minority schools, but rather schools offering optional subjects or individual subjects taught in a national minority language. That is not the purpose of such schools, and this is the first problem with such a proposal.

“The second issue — and here I will express my personal opinion — is that there is no point in experimenting with or tampering with national minority schools. I believe that they are a guarantee of preserving knowledge of one’s own language and culture. Such drastic changes would certainly not benefit these minorities, so I do not know whether this is a good solution.

“There are also key issues related to refugees. On the one hand, I understand the intentions of the authors of the proposal: they believe that immigrants arriving in Lithuania should adapt to the existing standards and use the state language — and I agree with that. However, it is worth bearing in mind that for many migrants from Ukraine, choosing a national minority school is much easier because of their knowledge of the language. Adapting to another culture and language that is completely different from their native language is a major challenge. A child who enters not the first grade but a higher grade will have to learn the language at the same time as studying, simply in order to understand what is being taught.

The draft also provides for an expansion of instruction in Lithuanian in national minority schools by 2030. Although we, the Polish community in Lithuania, are protected by bilateral agreements, there is always a certain risk that an exception could be modified or abolished on the grounds that the aim is to establish equal standards for all citizens. In my view, the issue of national minority education in Lithuania is highly sensitive, and we need to think very carefully about whether such drastic changes are worth introducing.”

As Wojnicz emphasizes, in his view, young people from the Polish community in Lithuania have a good command of Lithuanian, and therefore he sees no need for such changes.

We also asked him whether the proposal is compatible with the laws currently in force in Lithuania and whether it could theoretically be implemented.

“Generally speaking, nobody is saying that national minority schools should be closed — that would be contrary to the law. What is being discussed is a change in the education model, which could also conflict with the Law on National Minorities, the Law on Education, or the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

“This is especially important because in many cases we are talking about schools with Belarusian or Russian as the language of instruction. We need to show greater sensitivity to the geopolitical situation and respect the laws that guarantee the possibility of studying in one’s mother tongue. The Framework Convention — to put it very simply — contains one very straightforward principle: the situation of national minorities should improve, not deteriorate. In this situation, it is difficult to say that the situation will improve if we are trying to limit or reduce something.

The proposed changes are justified, among other things, by the claim that around 20% of members of national minorities fail the Lithuanian language exam. Among Lithuanians, the figure is reportedly around 5–6%. These figures are frequently cited in the debate. We asked Władysław Wojnicz whether they could be seen as an attempt to persuade the public to support the proposed changes.

“I believe that when it comes to statistics, this can sometimes be manipulation, because exam results can actually be interpreted in different ways. Of course, Lithuanian linguists, as well as officials at the Ministry of Education, try to point out that national minorities in Lithuania nevertheless have a relatively weak command of Lithuanian. Such statistics can sometimes be misleading because they present a seemingly straightforward picture. Of course, older generations living in smaller towns may have a poorer command of the language or experience difficulties with it, but the younger generation certainly knows it. A modern national minority school is capable of providing a good standard of Lithuanian-language education.

“Another important aspect of this debate is the scope of the curriculum. I believe that the curriculum, its scope, and the requirements should be different for Lithuanians for whom Lithuanian is their mother tongue than for people belonging to other nationalities, for whom Lithuanian is not their native language. I believe that young people from national minorities have a good command of Lithuanian, and that their knowledge of the language does not prevent them from participating in society, pursuing careers, finding their professional path, or taking part in social and political life. I do not know whether the goal of such a change should be to make all members of the nationalities living in Lithuania experts in the Lithuanian language, but this is a highly debatable issue. What certainly cannot be the case, however, is for the curriculum and methodology used to teach the language to be the same for people for whom it is their mother tongue and those for whom it is the state language. This debate has been taking place in Lithuania for several decades, and we still have not found a final compromise.”

Potential Consequences of the Reforms: A Threat to Society

Any change, particularly one concerning national minorities, can lead to negative attitudes toward those in power. We asked the Council representative about the potential risks.

“When we talk about national minorities, we must remember that all issues concerning these people’s lives should primarily stem from the fact that, as citizens, they have their rights and obligations.

“Constitutionally, they have the right to receive education in their mother tongue. This is especially true because they attend state schools that follow the national curriculum, and they have every right to use such institutions.

“I believe that this proposal also involves a certain selective treatment of some national groups in Lithuania, which could lead to a needless increase in resentment toward the Lithuanian state. In my opinion, such a change would not serve good relations between the state and its citizens, because the state would be taking away certain rights that already exist. In a sense, it could also radicalize some groups — in my view, young people in particular. I think we are creating a very dangerous situation here.”

Władysław Wojnicz also mentions the upcoming elections.

“I am convinced that moves of this kind mark the beginning of an election campaign. Such issues can score political points and mobilize certain extremist groups. Local elections will take place soon, so politicians are beginning to prepare for them. Playing the national minority card is a very risky and harmful strategy.”

Are We Completely Powerless in the Face of These Changes?

Not entirely. It is worth remembering that for now, this is only a proposal, and any potential changes will be monitored, among others, by the Department of National Minorities.

“We will certainly discuss this issue. As I mentioned, it is a very sensitive and delicate matter, so we certainly cannot simply leave it unaddressed.

“I cannot predict the Council’s position because it consists of different people with different views and different needs. Expectations also vary depending on the size of the communities living in Lithuania. However, I think that all Council members agree on one point: whenever any decision related to national minority policy is made, we need to think very carefully about whether it could harm or undermine the interests of the particular minority.

“The second important issue to consider is whether a law or decision adopted could produce the opposite effect from what was intended. Could it be that instead of integrating these people more fully and encouraging them to learn about Lithuanian culture and life, we provoke the opposite reaction, making people more discouraged, radicalized, and negative or hostile toward their own country?

“This is a sensitive issue. We will certainly do everything we can to prevent situations that could be harmful to the local community. Such tensions can later also spill over into the streets and affect relations between people. We need to be careful about what politicians do, because above all, it involves enormous responsibility,” Władysław Wojnicz told our editorial team.

We also asked Adam Błaszkiewicz, principal of the John Paul II Gymnasium in Vilnius, for his comment.

“Such a decision is, of course, associated with a certain danger. For now, there is a statement that it does not apply to schools protected by international agreements, but such agreements can always be terminated if something unfortunate happens. The school community is unlikely to support opening Lithuanian-language classes unless there is a demographic need for them. If there were not enough students, such classes might begin to appear, but this should primarily be a decision made by the schools and their communities.

“The principal points out that opening Lithuanian-language classes would be financed from schools’ own budgets and therefore, in his view, this would not be a change requiring no additional financial resources, as representatives of the Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats claim.

The principal also draws attention to the wording of the proposal, which he finds concerning:

“If it were stated that schools with Russian as the language of instruction should no longer exist in Lithuania, everything would be clear. When the proposal is formulated in such a way that it is supposed to apply to national minority schools, it is difficult to be surprised that concerns arise — after all, we are also a national minority.”

Conservatives: The Proposal Does Not Apply to Polish Schools

Daiva Ulbinaitė, a representative of the party and member of parliament, also commented to TVP Wilno, assuring that the proposed changes would not apply to schools with Polish as the language of instruction.

“I really want to reassure the Polish community right away that the amendments to the law presented by my colleague Kasčiūnas do not concern the Polish community in any way. These amendments, modeled on Latvia and Estonia, are aimed at Russian schools. They are proposed to come into force gradually by 2030, but such changes would apply only to Russian schools.

“In the case of those national minorities whose countries have bilateral or multilateral agreements with us within the European Union, none of these requirements are being proposed. However, when it comes to Russian schools, we can see what the situation looks like by following the examples of Estonia and Latvia. When Russian-speaking people do not learn the state language to a sufficiently high standard, they cannot integrate properly. In such cases, people, even at a very young age, remain without knowledge of the state language and, as a result, remain within the Russian-language information space.

“We know how large the waves of disinformation are that flow through the channels these people most often use, as they cannot watch Polish or Lithuanian channels because they do not know these languages.

“So the goal is one thing: not to leave Russian-speaking people in such information isolation and to help them learn Lithuanian well so that they can participate in our society and build their future successfully. Without knowledge of the state language, they cannot continue their education at higher-education institutions or pursue their goals.

Schools with Polish as the language of instruction truly have no reason to be concerned, because all the necessary safeguards will be taken into account and my colleague’s proposal definitely does not apply to them.”

We also asked the administrations of the largest Russian- and Belarusian-language schools in Vilnius for comment. So far, they have not responded, explaining that they were concerned about the lengthy procedure required to authorize responses through the Vilnius City Municipality. The press spokesperson for the Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats and Laurynas Kasčiūnas, the party representative who presented the proposal at a press conference, also did not respond.

We will continue to monitor the situation and update the article with further information.