More than 30 human rights organisations wrote to the leaders of Lithuania's incoming coalition parties urging them not to reappoint the current justice minister, Rita Tamašunienė, when the new government is formed.
The open letter, backed by 33 organisations, was addressed to Mindaugas Sinkevičius, leader of the Social Democratic Party, Aurelijus Veryga, chairman of the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union, and Virginijus Sinkevičius, chairman of the Democrats 'for Lithuania' union, which has been invited to join coalition talks.
The letter accuses Tamašunienė of failing to implement final court rulings ordering the Justice Ministry to register civil partnerships, and alleges that the ministry has been lodging appeals against those decisions as a delaying tactic. The organisations said this raised serious doubts about the ministry's commitment to the rule of law.
"The actions of the ministry's political team set a dangerous precedent where the Ministry of Justice, whose primary mission should be to strengthen the rule of law, becomes one of the main obstacles to implementing court decisions and constitutional principles," the letter states.
The groups called for the ministry to be led by someone with a clear commitment to respecting judicial decisions, and demanded immediate steps to implement the relevant rulings in full.
The dispute stems from a ruling by Lithuania's Constitutional Court last year, which found that the Civil Code's definition of partnerships, limited to unions between a man and a woman, was unconstitutional, as it failed to recognise same-sex partnerships.
The ruling opened the way for partnerships to be registered through the courts while parliament works on more detailed legislation. The Vilnius City District Court registered the first same-sex partnership last August, with several further decisions following.
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