More than 10,000 people gathered outside parliament to oppose amendments backed by populist leader Remigijus Žemaitaitis that would make it easier to fire LRT’s director general, a move journalists say endangers media freedom.
More than 10,000 people rallied in Lithuania’s capital on Tuesday to protest proposed parliamentary amendments that critics say would threaten the independence of the country’s public broadcaster.
Demonstrators packed the square outside the Seimas, Lithuania’s parliament, waving flags and chanting in support of the Lithuanian National Radio and Television, known as LRT.
“Today we are broadcasting one message – let’s keep LRT independent and free, because they won’t stop there,” journalist Rita Miliūtė told the crowd from the stage.
The amendments were introduced last month by Remigijus Žemaitaitis, founder of the populist Nemunas Dawn party, who was expelled from a different political party in 2023 after making antisemitic remarks. Lawmakers quickly advanced the proposal and moved to fast-track it, triggering backlash from journalists, civil society groups and opposition legislators.
“This is an open attempt by politicians to take control of the public broadcaster, which belongs to all of you, and thus violate your right to know and receive accurate information,” the Association of Professional Journalists said in a statement. The group organized Tuesday’s protest.
Birutė Davidonytė, the association’s chair and one of the rally’s leaders, said journalists had urged lawmakers from the start to hold proper consultations on any changes to media law. “We … have been proposing from the very beginning to sit down and discuss possible amendments, as is done in all Western countries,” she said. She added that the goal of the protest was to demand the LRT amendments be rejected outright.
The proposal is currently awaiting review by a parliamentary committee, but the process has been paused after opposition lawmakers requested an expert analysis of its potential impact.
Under the bill, only a simple majority of the broadcaster’s 12-member supervisory board would be needed to dismiss the LRT director general. At present, eight votes are required. The council is composed of four members appointed by the president, four by parliament and four by civil society groups.
The parliament’s legal department has warned that the amendment could contradict the Constitutional Court’s doctrine on media independence and may conflict with the European Media Freedom Act.
Žemaitaitis on Tuesday dismissed allegations that he is seeking to influence LRT content, calling the claims “fantasy.”
More than 130,000 people have signed a petition urging parliament to reconsider the amendments as the debate over media independence continues to grow.
