Lietuva in brief - 2004-07-28

Parliamentary Chairman Arturas Paulauskas announced at his party's convention, the New Union-Social Liberal party, that he would seek to form a coalition of left and right parties in order to block the upstart Labor Party from taking power after this autumn's parliamentary elections.

New Union-Social Liberals are the junior coalition partner in the current government, which is headed by the Social Democratic Party.

Petras Austrevicius, who came third in last month's presidential elections, established a fund in his own name and hinted at plans to participate in parliamentary elections. Austrevicius, who incurred 702,000 litas (203,000 euros) in debt during his previous campaign, said the fund would be used to promote democracy in Lithuania.

Supporters of impeached President Rolandas Paksas submitted a petition to the Central Electoral Commission demanding a referendum to amend several articles of the constitution. Among the proposed changes are: division of the Seimas (Lithuania's parliament) into two chambers; a pension rate tied to the minimum wage; and allowing impeached officials to hold positions of power. The Constitutional Court banned Paksas from holding any of Lithuania's highest offices in May.

Yuri Borisov, one of Paksas' erstwhile chief supporters, has filed a slander suit against MEP Vytautas Landsbergis. Borisov has accused Landsbergis of calling him a "persona non grata" and a "cheat." Landsbergis was Lithuania's first postindependence executive and a former leader of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Conservatives Party.

President Valdas Adamkus appointed Ramunas Vilpisauskas (photo), an expert at the Lithuanian Free Market Institute, to the post of economic adviser, the last vacant office left in his administration. Vilpisauskas joins foreign policy adviser Edminas Bagdonas and law department Toma Birtoniene, among others, in forming Adamkus' team of advisers. Adamkus was sworn in for the second time as president on July 12.