On Feb. 23, approximately 500 members of the Lithuanian Workers Union gathered in front of the government building in Savivaldybes Square to protest the government's economic policies, which they claim are responsible for the increasing impoverishment of Lithuania's population.
The union leaders centered their attack on Prime Minister Kubilius, but also included various government ministers and large international organizations operating in Lithuania as well in a barrage of strong verbiage.
"The government of Andrius Kubilius keeps fulfilling the requirements of large-scale companies such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Lietuvos Telekomas or Williams, who merely seek to plunder us," Aldona Balsiene, president of the Worker's Union, told the crowd. "The current developments in Lithuania do not show signs of market economy but black capitalism."
She blamed the government for "toadying to the World Bank" and other foreign interests.
"There are fewer and fewer social guarantees, social benefits, fewer and fewer working places, and people very often are employed only for short-term agreements," she said.
The worker's union issued a list of demands that included a request not to have a current draft law on labor disputes regulation submitted to the Parliament, which the union claims doesn't allow the trade unions to participate in the disputes. The law would also lessen fines for employers paying late wages. The workers union insisted on several other planks: free-of-charge transportation services and other discounts for eyesight invalids, and a moratorium on the raising of prices for public utilities, telecom costs, and electrical energy services without a prior increase in wages.
The workers union's list censured the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare and the Ministry of Education, urging them to make education more affordable and not to cut various social programs for families in need.
"Before New Year there was a decision to reduce the salaries of our secondary school teachers," said Balsiene. "They now receive approximately 100 litas less. It was an illegal decision, violating our laws. According to our constitution we have free-of-charge education, but now there is a lack of finances. It was decided that children would have to buy books and other things themselves and parents are paying."
The worker's union trumpeted the demands of farmers, metal workers, and bus drivers. A group of Lithuanian farmers held their own protest also on Feb. 23, blocking the highway near Panevezys for a few hours. They demanded that the state pay for their debts, settle accounts for sugar beet-roots sold in 1999, compensate them for increased expenses for diesel fuel and electricity, and not pay salaries for employees in the Ministry of Economy and its divisions until the farmers' accounts are settled. "Even farmers who were prospering are now in bankruptcy," Balsiene said.
The Motor Transport Workers' Federation, which is planning an all-day strike March 16, got a plug from Balsiene, who wants the bus and trolley bus companies to raise wages and not to lessen the number of transport jobs.
When asked about the severity of an all-day bus drivers' strike, Balsiene was unsympathetic to the thousands of Lithuanian commuters sure to be inconvenienced. "What can be done? This question arose maybe five years ago," she responded.
The workers union also called for increased social allowances for single mothers and for children left without a family bread-winner.
So far, the government has reacted bitterly to the workers union's demands. "It is impossible to talk with this government in the language of ultimatums," said Audrius Baciulis, spokesman for the prime minister. "Almost every demonstration and meeting by trade unions and greens, they want money, money, money. Let the government give us money. The government can give what it has and nothing more."
Balsiene doesn't believe the "no money" response. "This is not the truth," she said. "Because as far as we know there will be some structural funds and other programs from the European Union. We know there will be a not very little amount of money. And that begs the question of how we will use the EC money. Will it be used only at the top level for use by our officials or only for political elitists?"
Baciulis added that, ultimately, the only way Lithuania can improve living conditions of its citizens is to increase foreign investment. "Jobs are more plentiful in Vilnius and Klaipeda, places where foreign investment is the highest," he said. "Maybe people who are protesting against investors cannot understand that they are protesting against their jobs."
He pointed to recent demonstrations by pensioners in Kaunas, who were staging a protest outside a meeting about the setting up of a free economic zone attended by government officials and students at Kaunas University. "Young people are for investments because they want jobs, pensioners are against this," said Baciulis. "I think it's a problem of nearing elections."
Indeed, much of the public protest action has been called election time propaganda by opponents. There is some credence to this: Eight members of the workers union will be running in the March 19 municipal elections on the miniscule Economy Party ticket. Balsiene, it should be noted, is not running for office.
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