Presidential pension for Landsbergis rejected

The Lithuanian Parliament has thrown out amendments put forward by President Valdas Adamkus that would have granted the privileges of a former president to Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuania's independence leader and de facto head of state in the early 1990s.

The amendments would have provided Landsbergis, who currently leads the Conservative Party, with a villa, an office, a monthly pension of 6,000 litas ($1,500), a car with chauffeur and a security guard until his death.

Landsbergis was chairman of the Parliament until 1993 and carried out all the duties associated with the role of president.

He left Lithuania on a visit to the United States on the eve of the vote - to discuss Lithuania's NATO membership plans at the Senate - in which 47 MPs from the ruling center-left Social Democrat/Social Liberal coalition and Christian Democrat leader Kazys Bobelis opposed the proposals.

There were 15 abstentions among Social Liberals and Social Democrats while 26 MPs from the Conservative, Liberal and Modern Christian Democrats parties voted in favor.

After the vote Adamkus' adviser Darius Kuolys said there would be no more attempts to grant Landsbergis such privileges.

But following a meeting with Adamkus on March 14, Parliament Chairman Arturas Paulauskas, who voted against the amendments, said other ways might be found to help Landsbergis.

"It would not be right to describe Landsbergis as an ex-president. But maybe we can consider a special law about privileges for this former parliamentary chairman - or indeed for all former parliamentary chairmen," said Paulauskas.

Landsbergis played an extremely positive role in the re-establishment of Lithuanian independence and deserves respect despite his later mistakes, said political observer Arturas Racas in his weekly analysis spot on Lithuanian Radio.

But, concluded Racas, "He simply wasn't a president."

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Landsbergis began to see enemies in everybody who did not agree with him and made suggestions they could be serving Moscow's interests. Such behavior destroyed much of the respect he had among Lithuanians.

MPs in the ruling coalition speculate that Adamkus' move was an attempt to win the support of Landsbergis' remaining right-wing supporters during presidential elections in December. Landsbergis himself is unlikely to stand.

Surveys show that less than 10 percent of voters have been supporting Landsbergis' political activities in recent years.

By contrast, in a poll by the social research company Baltijos Tyrimai in August 1991, 81 percent of Lithuanians gave him a positive assessment.

But Lithuanians still appear to be grateful for Landsbergis' role in the independence struggle. In a telephone poll conducted by Lithuania's national TV last week, 2,071 people voted for giving him the status of a former president, while 1,453 voted against.