IN THE ISSUE

Solemn commemoration of Independence of Lithuania

The Programme for the Spring Session of the Seimas adopted

Chairman of the Committee on National Security and Defence: “Lithuanian energy projects are under the sway of grave external influences”

Speaker of the Seimas: “Without the Chronicle of the Catholic Church in Lithuania, the values it praised, and the circle of people it mobilised, the national revival would have been different” 

SOLEMN COMMEMORATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF LITHUANIA

Annually, as the year begins, Lithuania marks the events that have determined the fate and development of its history: the Day of the Defenders of Freedom on 13 January, Day of Re-establishment of the State of Lithuania on 16 February, and the Day of the Restoration of Independence on 11 March. On Sunday, 11 March 2012, the 22nd anniversary of the Restoration of Independence of Lithuania was solemnly marked. The agenda included many traditional and new events, exhibitions, conferences, and concerts.

SPEECHES

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS: ENERGY PROJECTS ARE THE KEY TASKS FOR THE SPRING SESSION

The Members of the Seimas assembled to the regular 8th (spring) session of the Seimas on 10 March 2012. On this occasion, they were welcomed by the Speaker of the Seimas Mrs Irena Degutienė. The Speaker of the Seimas predicted that this session would be a complicated one: “Although it is still quite chilly outside, we already feel that this session will be full of hot debates like never before due to, first of all, the upcoming parliamentary election and a rather aggressive pre-election campaign which unfortunately has started earlier than ever, and secondly, crucial energy projects which could determine the development of our country in the long-run and consolidate our independence.”

THE PROGRAMME FOR THE SPRING SESSION OF THE SEIMAS ADOPTED

In the first sitting of the 8th (spring) session of the Seimas, the Speaker of the Seimas Mrs Irena Degutienė and Prime Minister Mr Andrius Kubilius presented the Draft Resolution No XIP-4164 on the Programme for the 8th (Spring) Session of the Seimas. The Head of the Parliament observed that there had already been over 1000 draft legal acts included in the programme for the spring session of the Seimas, including secondary legal acts.

HEAD OF THE LSDP PARLIAMENTARY GROUP ALGIRDAS BUTKEVIČIUS BECOMES LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION

In the first sitting of the 8th session of the Seimas, Deputy Speaker Erikas Tamašauskas announced a joint statement of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party Political Group, Labour Party Political Group, and Order and Justice Political Group whereby the Head of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party Political Group Mr Algirdas Butkevičius was declared Leader of the Seimas Opposition.

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS: CO-OPERATION BETWEEN THE NORDIC AND BALTIC STATES – ONE OF THE KEY LITHUANIAN FOREIGN POLICY PRIORITIES

Active regional co-operation between the Baltic States and Nordic countries is one of Lithuanian foreign policy priorities. Speaker of the Seimas, Mrs Irena Degutienė, highlighted it during her meeting with the Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, Mr Per Westerberg and the Riksdag Committee on Foreign Affairs, during her visit to the Kingdom of Sweden on 1-2 March 2012.

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS FOCUSED ON SUPPORT TO HUNGARY IN THE MEETINGS WITH THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE SWEDISH GOVERNMENT

During her visit in Sweden, the Speaker of the Seimas Mrs Irena Degutienė met with Ms Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation, and Mr Oscar Wåglund Söderström, State Secretary to the Minister for EU Affairs. The decision of the Hungarian Parliament to change the Constitution of the country and the Draft Resolution on the Sovereignty and Free Self-Determination of Hungary, registered at the Lithuanian Seimas, were among the topics discussed in the meetings. The Speaker of the Seimas observed that the Resolution had not been adopted yet and that it had been drafted and registered by 25 Members of Parliament belonging to the ruling Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrat Political Group.

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS RECEIVED AMBASSADORS OF NETHERLANDS, GREECE, CHINA AND JAPAN

Speaker of the Seimas, Irena Degutienė, received (on 5 March) the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Lithuania, H.E. Mr Kornelis Willem Spaans, and the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic to Lithuania, H.E. Mr Michael- Eftstratios C. Daratzikis, who have recently started their work in Lithuania.

Mrs Irena Degutienė, Speaker of the Seimas, received (on 7 March) the newly appointed Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China Mr Zengwen Liu and Ambassador of Japan Ms Kazuko Shiraishi.

VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT ASKED FOR SUPPORT IN BUILDING CLOSER TIES WITH EUROPE

On 6 March the Speaker of the Seimas Mrs Irena Degutienė received the Vice-President of the National Assembly of Armenia Mr Eduard Sharmazanov. Representatives of the Parliament of Armenia congratulated the Speaker of the Seimas and the people of Lithuania on the forthcoming Day of Restoration of Lithuania’s Independence and recalled that Lithuania was the first country to recognise the independence of the Republic of Armenia in 1991.

CHAIRMAN OF THE SEIMAS COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS CALLED FOR GRANTING A STATUS OF PERMANENT NATO MISSION TO THE BALTIC AIR-POLICING MISSION

On 11–12 March, during discussions with Anders Fogh Rasmussen at the Conference of EU Foreign Affairs Committee Chairs in Copenhagen (Kingdom of Denmark), Mr Emanuelis Zingeris, Chairman of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs, called on the members of the forthcoming NATO Summit in Chicago (USA) to make final decisions aimed at granting permanent mission status to the Baltic air-policing mission in Šiauliai (Lithuania).

Statement of the Seimas Committee on Human Rights on the Situation of Human Rights in Tibet

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE SEIMAS COMMITTEE ON BUDGET AND FINANCE: MARKET SHARE OF SMUGGLED TOBACCO HAS DECREASED

A study on the tendencies in the non-taxable tobacco market and their influence on the national budget was presented in the Seimas Committee on Budget and Finance on 29 February 2012. According to the data of the National Association of Tobacco Manufacturers, the market share of non-taxable tobacco products decreased from 43 % to 31 % or from 1.72 billion to 1.2 billion cigarette units in 2011. Based on the estimates of the Association, the national budget received extra LTL 145 million in revenue from tobacco excise duty and the VAT following a decrease in the sales of illegal tobacco in 2011.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL ON ENSURING HUMAN RIGHTS IN LITHUANIA WERE PRESENTED IN THE SEIMAS COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS

The conclusions and recommendations of the United Nations (hereinafter referred to as UN) Human Rights Council on ensuring human rights in Lithuania, as well as the follow-up to the recommendations, were presented at the meeting of the Seimas Committee on Human Rights on 14 March 2012.

CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND DEFENCE: “LITHUANIAN ENERGY PROJECTS ARE UNDER THE SWAY OF GRAVE EXTERNAL INFLUENCES”

At the sitting on 21 March 2012, the Committee on National Security and Defence was briefed by the National Security Department on the annual assessment of threats to national security.

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS: “WITHOUT THE CHRONICLE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN LITHUANIA, THE VALUES IT PRAISED, AND THE CIRCLE OF PEOPLE IT MOBILISED, THE NATIONAL REVIVAL WOULD HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT”

Mrs Irena Degutienė, Speaker of the Seimas, welcomed the commemorative conference dedicated to the 40th anniversary of the publication of the Chronicle of the Catholic Church in Lithuania and its participants who contributed to the publishing and distribution of the Chronicle and supported it in every way.