Lithuanian broadcaster accuses government of media clampdown
Last week, Parliament approved the first reading of a bill proposed by Remigijus Zemaitaitis, leader of the populist Dawn of Nemunas party, which would lower the threshold for firing LRT’s director general from a two-thirds majority to a simple majority. Zemaitaitis later suggested a compromise requiring at least seven of the council’s twelve votes, but the LRT Council insists that the existing requirement of eight votes should remain.
In a statement Monday, LRT journalists and staff urged the government to withdraw the draft, arguing it was being rushed without consultation with media organizations or legal experts. They warned the proposal contradicts the European Media Freedom Act and could conflict with Lithuania’s Constitutional Court doctrine, potentially allowing each new government to appoint a loyal director.
“Our concern is not about any specific individuals – we are protesting against efforts to dismantle the safeguards that protect LRT’s independence,” the statement read.
The dispute comes amid a planned “political neutrality” audit of LRT and a parliamentary decision to freeze its funding for 2026–2028. Employees have announced a week-long protest, including brief on-air silences, and have called on the public to join a rally outside Parliament on December 9.
In November, Dawn of Nemunas accused Lithuanian media of abandoning public-service principles, labeling outlets as “tools not of conveying information, but of concealment, open propaganda, and sowing discord.” The move is part of a broader struggle over control of Lithuania’s information space, a particularly sensitive issue as Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia maintain one of the EU’s toughest stances toward Moscow following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.
Moscow has dismissed Western concerns as “nonsense” and condemned what it calls the West’s “reckless militarization.”
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