Mr. Hans-Gert Pöttering, President of the European Parliament met with students of European Humanities University on Thursday as part of an official visit to Lithuania at the invitation of the Chair of the Lithuanian Parliament, Mr. Česlovas Juršėnas.
Greeting more than 150 students as “Europeans of Belarus”, Mr. Pöttering pledged the full support of the European Parliament to continue studies in exile.
“I am sure that one day, which I hope will come soon, your country will enjoy freedom and democracy, just the same as Lithuania, a member of the European Union,” Mr. Pöttering said. “For now it is only a dream, but in the future it will become reality”.
The European Parliament President urged Belarusian authorities to free imprisoned dissidents, abolish capital punishment, ensure free media and judicial independence, enable people to freely elect representatives in accordance with international standards, and respect democracy and human rights.
“Only implementation of these crucial conditions of the democracy will allow the European Union to renew relations with Belarus,” Mr. Pöttering added.
In answering questions from EHU students, Mr. Pöttering supported a proposal for reducing student visa fees. He called on students to send other proposals to the European Parliament, where he assured they would be carefully considered. One student proposed to address European Parliament members directly to express concerns and aspirations. Mr. Pöttering invited EHU to select a group to visit him in Brussels for this purpose.
The Chairman of Lithuanian Parliament, Česlovas Juršėnas, accompanied the European Parliament President to the campus. In remarks to students, he noted his pride in the fact that EHU continues its activities in Vilnius for the third year. He expressed hope that EHU students will receive an education in humanities based on European values – and remain friends of Lithuania when they return to Belarus.
Photos: by Pavel Tsygankov (BA program "Theory and Practices of Contemporary Art")
