The academic year began a long time ago, but I was only late informed about how it started in Vilnius. fewer people in Poland know that there is simply a Polish university in this city, or, in fact, its branch – a branch of the University of Białystok.
Not since yesterday, since 2007. The importance of this is demonstrated by the fact that it is the first abroad branch of the university in Lithuania and besides the first abroad branch of the Polish university in general. In this way, representatives of over 200 1000 Poles in Lithuania no longer gotta leave their fatherhood to receive higher education in Polish and within the Polish higher education system, beginning career gates in 2 countries at the same time.
Currently, the branch offers studies in economics, European studies and computer discipline (first and second) and, for the first time in this academic year, besides in pre-school and early school pedagogy. This last decision is very accurate – half a 100 simple and mediate schools teaching our fellow Members in Vilnius in their native language request teachers. I number on further evolution in this direction and entering the Faculty of UwB in Vilnius into the function of a wider forge of teaching staff for Polish education in Lithuania. All the more so, given the situation of Polish studies, Lithuanian universities are making it more and more little involved.
Apart from the apparent educational and socio-economic dimension, this is to improve educational opportunities of graduates of schools with Polish language of teaching, and so their chances of the labour market, chances of improving their material position and there is another aspect. The branch is instrumental in restoring Polish elites in Vilnius. After post-war expatriations, after the russian period, erstwhile the Polish community in Vilnius was deprived of a crucial majority of the intellectual elite. In this regard, the UwB branch offers a large deal: over 800 young people have already obtained their diplomas, and only this year did 175 students begin their academic studies.
The branch is not only science, the branch is simply the presence of Polish youth on another, crucial for adult life, the phase of youth. It is simply a socialization in the Polish environment which is already more mature, but at the phase of continuous improvement and beginning of further options. It is founded by students Vilnius Student Club taking social, cultural and amusement initiatives. It is simply creating the plane of Polish academic life. 1 of my close associates had the chance to participate in a youth task organized by the representatives of the Club, so he could see how the select, national-conscious and socially ambitious youth he was gathering.
The UwB branch functions in rented premises for now, but the construction of its office is already advanced. And it's not just any place at 22 Makowa/Aguon It is in the very centre of Vilnius, on the outskirts of the old town, which I believe will additionally build a prestigious facility.
The importance of Philia is demonstrated by the fact that the president of the Lithuanian Sejm was present at the inauguration ceremony of the next academic year. Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen. She talked a lot about partnership and relationship between Poland and Lithuania, which would enable specified initiatives to exist. Lithuanian politician was rapidly confronted by the president of the Polish Election Action in Lithuania-Union of Christian Families Waldemar TomaszewskiČmilytė-Nielsen, who recalled that it was Čmilytė-Nielsen who pushed through in 2011, in spite of the mass protests of the Polish community, the amendment of the educational law importantly impairing the conditions of teaching in Polish in Lithuania. It was for co-governments of her organization that the level of backing of the alleged "student basket" in number schools was reduced by 5%. It was for her co-governments from 2008 to 2012 that the law on national minorities from russian times was waiting to expire, without extending it, or accepting a fresh one.
Interestingly, likewise critical of the inauguration of the Polish Ambassador to Lithuania Konstanty Radziwił. Our diplomatic typical spoke of affirmative changes in relations between Poland and Lithuania, but besides pointed out that the circular anniversary of the signing of the Polish-Lithuanian treaty on friendly relations and good neighbourly cooperation of 1994 is coming soon, and that it should be reviewed by both parties, and that matters should be resolved to date. Good idea. For my part, I can add an assessment to it that the Treaty has not been sufficiently implemented by the Lithuanian side for 3 decades.
Article 13 of the Treaty states that national minorities are entitled to ‘free usage of the language of the national number in private and public life’, ‘learning the language of their national number and learning in that language’, ‘using their names and surnames in the language of the national minority’. Article 14 clarifies the means of implementing these rights: a means of "using the languages of national minorities before its offices, especially in those administrative and territorial units where a large proportion of the population is simply a national minority". It states that the authorities will "take the essential measures to defend the identity of the national number after appropriate consultation, including contacts with number organisations or associations" and will "take account of the past and culture of [minority] groups in connection with the teaching of past and culture in educational institutions".
Meanwhile, the Act of 2011 limited the scope of the Polish language in schools serving minorities, introducing the teaching of any of the subjects in Lithuanian, in the curriculums of past there is no additional content of the past of Poland and the Polish people, apart from those resulting from the general Lithuanian historiography, in which the position of Poland and Poles is mainly occupiers, colonists and assimilars in Vilnius. Lithuania could take an example from Romania, where in schools dedicated to the Polish number there is simply a separate subject devoted to Polish past and culture.
Poles in Lithuania inactive cannot usage their names in papers of letters characteristic of the Polish language, i.e. diacritic characters, or usage Polish as a formal language in any case – besides interior documentation of Polish social organizations or schools with Polish language of teaching must be conducted in Lithuanian. The proceedings of the State Language Inspection of Lithuania against authorities inhabited in the mediate by Poles of the Vilnius region are taking place for the fact that in 2 towns there appeared signs with double names – in Polish and Lithuanian.
Ambassador Radziwill's appeal was so in place. He clearly distinguished himself positively from the diplomatic practice of his predecessor as the Polish Ambassador to Vilnius Ursula Doroszewskia, which during its four-year word dealt mainly with attacks on the AWPL-ZCHR and attempts to manually control the second most crucial organization of our compatriots in Vilnius – the Union of Poles in Lithuania. I do not recall, on the another hand, a single strong message of her in defence of their interests towards the Lithuanian authorities, for which she found only flattering words, repeatedly declaring the communes of "partnership". As I know from Vilnius, it is assessed there by many Polish activists as the worst ambassador of Poland since the infamous Jan Widacki, which in 1992-1996 dealt mainly with attacks on the Polish number under hand with Lithuanian politicians.
Mr. Radziwiłł became an ambassador this year. He starts his mission well, considering besides his intervention gathering with the anti-Polish head of the aforementioned Language Inspection Audrius Valoteka performed in an assertive tone. The question is why it took 2 terms for the self-defined camp to "good change" to effort to change its policy towards Lithuania, so that it did not take place until the year of power.
I started with the Faculty of the University of Białystok in Lithuania and will finish there, as 1 of the very fewer major successes of the 3rd Republic in protecting the rights and interests of our fellow countrymen in Lithuania. The branch was an effort to break the opposition of the Lithuanians, who for the 1990s blocked the initiatives of local Polish activists, scientists and intellectuals regarding the establishment of a Polish-speaking university in Vilnius, as compensation for the demolition of Stefan Bator University by the Soviets, and then the propriety of its material inheritance by the Lithuanian institutions already.
The subject of Poles in Vilnius I have been curious in since 2004, erstwhile I was at St John Paul II advanced School in Vilnius. From unofficial information we know that the then government (2005-2006) exerted force on Lithuania by tying the question of the establishment of a branch of the Polish university in Vilnius with the issue of Orlen taking over the refinery in Modajki, which the Russians had longed for, which the Lithuanian political elite was very unflavoured. In 2006, Orlen took over the plant, a year later in Vilnius started to operate the UwB Branch. This is most likely the only example known to me of this kind of common sense, transactional policy of Poland towards Lithuania. It should not be the exception, but the norm.
Krystian Kamiński
for: fb
The author was a Confederate associate of the Polish Parliament of the 9th term
