1.
Lithuania
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Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in Northern Europe. One of the three Baltic states, it is situated along the shore of the Baltic Sea, to the east of Sweden. It is bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, Lithuania has an estimated population of 2.9 million people as of 2015, and its capital and largest city is Vilnius. The official language, Lithuanian, along with Latvian, is one of two living languages in the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. For centuries, the shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes. In the 1230s, the Lithuanian lands were united by Mindaugas, the King of Lithuania, and the first unified Lithuanian state, with the Lublin Union of 1569, Lithuania and Poland formed a voluntary two-state union, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth lasted more than two centuries, until neighboring countries systematically dismantled it from 1772–95, with the Russian Empire annexing most of Lithuanias territory. As World War I neared its end, Lithuanias Act of Independence was signed on 16 February 1918, in the midst of the Second World War, Lithuania was first occupied by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany. As World War II neared its end and the Germans retreated, Lithuania is a member of the European Union, the Council of Europe, a full member of the Eurozone, Schengen Agreement and NATO. It is also a member of the Nordic Investment Bank, the United Nations Human Development Index lists Lithuania as a very high human development country. Lithuania has been among the fastest growing economies in the European Union and is ranked 21st in the world in the Ease of Doing Business Index, the first people settled in the territory of Lithuania after the last glacial period in the 10th millennium BC. Over a millennium, the Indo-Europeans, who arrived in the 3rd – 2nd millennium BC, mixed with the local population, the first written mention of Lithuania is found in a medieval German manuscript, the Annals of Quedlinburg, in an entry dated 9 March 1009. Initially inhabited by fragmented Baltic tribes, in the 1230s the Lithuanian lands were united by Mindaugas, after his assassination in 1263, pagan Lithuania was a target of the Christian crusades of the Teutonic Knights and the Livonian Order. Despite the devastating century-long struggle with the Orders, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania expanded rapidly, by the end of the 14th century, Lithuania was one of the largest countries in Europe and included present-day Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia. The geopolitical situation between the west and the east determined the multicultural and multi-confessional character of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the ruling elite practised religious tolerance and Chancery Slavonic language was used as an auxiliary language to the Latin for official documents. In 1385, the Grand Duke Jogaila accepted Polands offer to become its king, Jogaila embarked on gradual Christianization of Lithuania and established a personal union between Poland and Lithuania. It implied that Lithuania, the fiercely independent land, was one of the last pagan areas of Europe to adopt Christianity, after two civil wars, Vytautas the Great became the Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1392. During his reign, Lithuania reached the peak of its expansion, centralization of the state began
2.
Constitution of Lithuania
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The Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania defines the legal foundation for all laws passed in the Republic of Lithuania. It was approved in a referendum on 25 October 1992, the first attempt to codify the laws of Grand Duchy of Lithuania took the form of Statutes of Lithuania, with the First Statute in power in 1529. The document, written in Ruthenian language, fulfilled the role of the law of the land. In a belated attempt to rectify the situation, a constitution was adopted on May 3,1791 – one of the oldest codified national constitutions in the world, the new constitution abolished the liberum veto and banned the szlachtas confederations, features that had crippled decision making the state. The peasantry saw their rights increased but it fell short of abolishing serfdom, religious tolerance was preserved, although the status of the Catholic faith was recognized. The 1791 document remained in force for less than 19 months, after a war with Russia. By 1795, the Commonwealth was partitioned between Russian Empire, Kingdom of Prussia and Habsburg Austria, with most of the lands of the Grand Duchy under the Russian rule, during the closing stages of World War I, Lithuania declared independence on February 16,1918. Three separate temporary constitutions were enacted on November 2,1918, April 4,1919, on November 2,1918, the State Council adopted a constitutional act. At the time, it was constrained by the decision of July 11,1918, declaring Lithuania a constitutional monarchy. In a changing environment, the council chose to adopt the act without specifying the form of government or the head of state. On April 4,1919, the State Council adopted modified Fundamental Principles of Temporary Constitution, the modifications were mainly notable for the introduction of the office of the President, in place of the Presidium of the Council. The Constituent Assembly did not adopt a constitution until August 1,1922, the constitution envisioned a strong parliament and a politically weakened President as the head of state. A coup on December 17,1926 started the process of transforming the Republic of Lithuania into an authoritarian state headed by Antanas Smetona as the President. The constitution of 1922 was disregarded as early as April 12,1927, a constitutional reform was proposed, strengthening the authority of the President and weakening the parliament. A new constitution was proclaimed by Smetona in May 1928 without any attempt to follow the procedure for changing the Constitution established in the 1922 document. Instead, the constitution was presented as a proposal to the nation, to be approved within 10 years, the Seimas would not reconvene until 1936. The constitution of 1928 was never submitted for approval to the nation, instead, the government started working on a new constitution, approved by the newly assembled Seimas in 1938. The constitution reversed the liberal ideas of the constitution of 1922, introducing the notion that the state was the foundation of existence of its citizens and not the other way round
3.
Government of Lithuania
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Government of the Republic of Lithuania is the cabinet of Lithuania, exercising executive power in the country. The Government also has the right of initiative, puts together the state budget. The Government consists of the Prime Minister, who is the head of government, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President, with the assent of the Seimas. The Prime Minister then forms the rest of the cabinet, with the assent of the President, the current Government, the 17th Government since the independence in 1990, started work in December 2016 and is headed by Saulius Skvernelis as the Prime Minister. Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union and Social Democratic Party of Lithuania form the government, the Government of the Republic of Lithuania exercises executive power in Lithuania. The powers of the Government are defined by the Constitution and laws of Lithuania, the Government has the responsibility to administer the affairs of the country, ensure its security and public order. It executes laws and resolutions of the Seimas as well as the decrees of the President, the government disposes of the property of the state and establishes procedures for its management and use. The Government, along with the Seimas and the President, has the right of initiative in Lithuania. The government prepares draft laws and presents them to the Seimas for consideration, the government also prepares a draft budget and submits it to the Seimas. The Government executes the budget approved by the Seimas, in foreign affairs, the government establishes diplomatic ties and maintains relations with foreign states and international organizations. The Government shares the responsibility for managing the affairs of the country with the President. The Government proposes and the President approves Lithuanias diplomatic representatives to foreign states, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President, with the assent of the Seimas. Likewise, the ministers are proposed by the Prime Minister and appointed by the President, within 15 days of the appointment, the Prime Minister presents the Government and its programme to the Seimas for consideration. The Government receives its mandate after the Seimas gives assent to its programme in a majority vote, the Government is responsible to the Seimas for its activities. Likewise, the ministers are responsible to the Seimas and the President, the Government presents to the Seimas an annual report on its activities and reports to the Seimas on the execution of the budget. Upon the request of the Seimas, the Government or individual ministers must give an account of their activities, the Government is also obliged to inform the public about their activities through the internet and other media, or through meetings with the people. The Government returns its mandate to the President after the Seimas elections or the elections of the President, or upon the resignation of the Government. The return of the mandate after the elections of the President is largely ceremonial, if the Seimas expresses no-confidence in the Government, the Government may propose to the President to hold a new election to the Seimas
4.
Elections in Lithuania
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Elections in Lithuania gives information on elections and election results in Lithuania. Voters in Lithuania elect members of the parliament, the president, members of the councils and mayors. Lithuanian citizens can vote in mandatory or consultative referendums. 71 of the members in the 141-seat parliament, elected to a term, are elected in single-seat constituencies. The remaining 70 members are elected in an election based on proportional representation. The structure of the means that a large number of parties is represented in the parliament. The head of the state - the president - is elected to a term in a majority vote. The Lithuanian representatives in the European Parliament, currently numbering 11, are elected using proportional representation every five years,12 referendums have been organized in Lithuania, initiated by either citizens or the parliament. Of these, only four have seen the referendum question approved in a deemed to have taken place. Voting in elections is open to all citizens of Lithuania who are at least 18 years of age. Citizens of other European Union countries that permanently reside in Lithuania can vote in the Lithuanian elections to the European Parliament, voting in municipal elections is open to all residents of Lithuania, regardless of their citizenship. Voting process is organized by the Central Electoral Commission and subordinate electoral bodies and is monitored by local and international observers, the voters vote in a secret ballot and the elections have generally been assessed as free and fair, although allegations of irregularities have been common. The parliament has 141 members, elected to a four-year term, Lithuania exhibits a fragmented multi-party system, with a number of small parties in which coalition governments are common. Ordinary elections to the Seimas take place on the second Sunday of October, to be eligible for election, candidates must be at least 25 years old on the election day, not under allegiance to a foreign state and permanently reside in Lithuania. Persons serving or due to serve a sentence imposed by the court 65 days before the election are not eligible, also, judges, citizens performing military service, and servicemen of professional military service and officials of statutory institutions and establishments may not stand for election. This provision of the constitution had been ruled to be in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, Parliament members in the 71 single-seat constituencies are elected in a majority vote if the voter turnout in the constituency is at least 40%. If the voter turnout is less than 40%, the candidate with the most votes is declared a winner, if there are more than two candidates and no candidate wins in the first round, a second round of voting is held within 15 days. The two leading candidates from the first round are eligible for the round of voting
5.
Lithuanian parliamentary election, 2008
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Parliamentary elections were held in Lithuania on 12 October 2008, with a second round on 26 October in the constituencies where no candidate won a majority in the first round of voting. All 141 seats in the Seimas were up for election,71 in single-seat constituencies elected by majority vote, together with the elections, a referendum on extending the operation of Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant was held. The elections were won by a coalition, led by Andrius Kubilius of the Homeland Union. Kubilius was appointed the Prime Minister of a government together with National Resurrection Party, Liberal and Centre Union. The coalition had 80 seats in the 141-member Tenth Seimas, the 2004 parliamentary elections were held on 10 October 2004, with the run-off on 24 October. The Labour Party ended up as the largest party in the parliament, the government also included the New Union, the Labour Party and the Peasants and New Democratic Party Union. The coalition did not last the full term - New Union and Labour Party left in 2006, bringing down the government of Brazauskas, gediminas Kirkilas became the new Prime Minister and the coalition was joined by the Civic Democratic Party and the Liberal and Centre Union. The new coalition governed in minority, with the support from opposition parties, New Union rejoined the coalition in 2008. At the end of the term, Social Democrats were the largest parliamentary group with 38 members, Homeland Union was the largest opposition group in the parliament before the 2012 elections with 26 seats. Voting in the elections was open to all citizens of Lithuania who are at least 18-years-old, the first round took place on 12 October 2008. Members of the Seimas in the 71 single-seat constituencies were elected by a majority vote, the remaining 70 seats were allocated to the participating political parties using the largest remainder method, with a 5% threshold to enter the parliament. Candidates took the seats allocated to their parties based on the lists submitted before the elections. To be eligible for election, candidates had to be at least 25-years-old on the day, not under allegiance to a foreign state. Persons serving or due to serve a sentence imposed by the court 65 days before the elections were not eligible, also, judges, citizens performing military service, and servicemen of professional military service and officials of statutory institutions and establishments could not stand for election. The election campaign in 2008 took place in the context of overheating economy, following years of breakneck economic growth, the GDP was expected to shrink the following year. Inflation in 2006 exceeded the levels that would have allowed the country to adopt euro as a currency. Economy, inflation and the adoption of the euro were high on the campaign agenda, in addition, energy security featured prominently, with the referendum on continued operation of Ignalina nuclear power plant was to take place with the elections. Political advertisements on TV were banned before the elections, to reduce the influence of money in the elections, Homeland Union was hoping to return to power for the first time since 2000
6.
Foreign relations of Lithuania
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Lithuania became a member of the United Nations on September 18,1991, and is a signatory to a number of its organizations and other international agreements. It is also a member of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, NATO and its adjunct North Atlantic Coordinating Council, the Council of Europe, Lithuania gained membership in the World Trade Organization on May 31,2001. It also seeks membership in the OECD and other Western organizations, Lithuania maintains foreign diplomatic missions in 94 countries on six continents and consular posts in two countries that are not represented by an embassy. Lithuanias liberal zero-option citizenship law has substantially erased tensions with its neighbors, Lithuania has established diplomatic relations with 176 countries. Talks continue over a boundary dispute with Latvia, primarily concerning oil exploration rights, however. There are ongoing popular demands to formally condemn the crimes committed by the Soviet regime, Lithuania has an embassy in Moscow. Russia has an embassy in Vilnius, with consulates in Klaipeda, ambassador to Russian Federation is Remigijus Motuzas, ambassador to the Republic of Lithuania is Alexander Udaltsov. Lithuania is in warm and good relations with Estonia, Latvia takes the 1st place on the list of Lithuanian investments abroad. Diplomatic relations established, 1991-10-05 Latvia has an embassy in Vilnius, Lithuania has an embassy in Riga. The two states share 588 kilometres of common border, both countries are full members of the European Union. Lithuania has an embassy in Warsaw and a general in Sejny. Poland has an embassy in Vilnius and a consulate in Klaipėda. There are around 200,000 Poles living in Lithuania and around 15,000 ethnic Lithuanians living in Poland, both countries are full members of the Council of the Baltic Sea States. The countries share a border of 103 km. Lithuania concluded the treaty of friendship with Poland in April 1994, Lithuania is also an active member in the cooperation between Northern Europe countries. Lithuania is a member of Baltic Council, since its establishment in 1993, Baltic Council is a permanent organisation of international cooperation, located in Tallinn. It operates through the Baltic Assembly and Baltic Council of Ministers, Lithuania also cooperates with Nordic and other two Baltic countries through NB8 cooperation format. The similar format, called NB6 unites Nordic and Baltic countries members of EU, the main goal of NB6 cooperation is to discuss and agree on positions before presenting them in the Council of the European Union and the meetings of the EU Foreign Affairs Ministers
7.
Republic
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It is a government where the head of state is not a monarch. Both modern and ancient republics vary widely in their ideology, composition, in the classical and medieval period of Europe, many states were fashioned on the Roman Republic, which referred to the governance of the city of Rome, between it having kings and emperors. The Italian medieval and Renaissance political tradition, today referred to as humanism, is sometimes considered to derive directly from Roman republicans such as Sallust. Republics were not equated with classical democracies such as Athens, but had a democratic aspect, Republics became more common in the Western world starting in the late 18th century, eventually displacing absolute monarchy as the most common form of government in Europe. In modern republics, the executive is legitimized both by a constitution and by popular suffrage, for instance, Article IV of the United States Constitution guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican form of Government. The term originates as the Latin translation of Greek word politeia, cicero, among other Latin writers, translated politeia as res publica and it was in turn translated by Renaissance scholars as republic. The term politeia can be translated as form of government, polity, or regime, and is therefore not always a word for a specific type of regime as the modern word republic is. And also amongst classical Latin, the term republic can be used in a way to refer to any regime. In medieval Northern Italy, a number of city states had commune or signoria based governments, in the late Middle Ages, writers, such as Giovanni Villani, began writing about the nature of these states and the differences from other types of regime. They used terms such as libertas populi, a free people, the terminology changed in the 15th century as the renewed interest in the writings of Ancient Rome caused writers to prefer using classical terminology. To describe non-monarchical states writers, most importantly Leonardo Bruni, adopted the Latin phrase res publica. While Bruni and Machiavelli used the term to describe the states of Northern Italy, which were not monarchies, the term can quite literally be translated as public matter. It was most often used by Roman writers to refer to the state and government, in subsequent centuries, the English word commonwealth came to be used as a translation of res publica, and its use in English was comparable to how the Romans used the term res publica. Notably, during The Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell the word commonwealth was the most common term to call the new monarchless state, likewise, in Polish, the term was translated as rzeczpospolita, although the translation is now only used with respect to Poland. Presently, the term republic commonly means a system of government which derives its power from the rather than from another basis. After the classical period, during the Middle Ages, many cities developed again. The modern type of itself is different from any type of state found in the classical world. Nevertheless, there are a number of states of the era that are today still called republics
8.
Head of state
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A head of state is the public persona that officially represents the national unity and legitimacy of a sovereign state. In some countries, the head of state is a figurehead with limited or no executive power, while in others. Former French president Charles de Gaulle, while developing the current Constitution of France, some academic writers discuss states and governments in terms of models. An independent nation state normally has a head of state, the non-executive model, in which the head of state has either none or very limited executive powers, and mainly has a ceremonial and symbolic role. In parliamentary systems the head of state may be merely the chief executive officer, heading the executive branch of the state. This accountability and legitimacy requires that someone be chosen who has a majority support in the legislature and it also gives the legislature the right to vote down the head of government and their cabinet, forcing it either to resign or seek a parliamentary dissolution. In parliamentary constitutional monarchies, the legitimacy of the head of state typically derives from the tacit approval of the people via the elected representatives. In reality, numerous variants exist to the position of a head of state within a parliamentary system, usually, the king had the power of declaring war without previous consent of the parliament. For example, under the 1848 constitution of the Kingdom of Italy, the Statuto Albertino—the parliamentary approval to the government appointed by the king—was customary, so, Italy had a de facto parliamentarian system, but a de jure presidential system. These officials are excluded completely from the executive, they do not possess even theoretical executive powers or any role, even formal, hence their states governments are not referred to by the traditional parliamentary model head of state styles of His/Her Majestys Government or His/Her Excellencys Government. Within this general category, variants in terms of powers and functions may exist, the constitution explicitly vests all executive power in the Cabinet, who is chaired by the prime minister and responsible to the Diet. The emperor is defined in the constitution as the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people and he is a ceremonial figurehead with no independent discretionary powers related to the governance of Japan. Today, the Speaker of the Riksdag appoints the prime minister, Cabinet members are appointed and dismissed at the sole discretion of the prime minister. In contrast, the contact the President of Ireland has with the Irish government is through a formal briefing session given by the taoiseach to the president. However, he or she has no access to documentation and all access to ministers goes through the Department of the Taoiseach. The president does, however, hold limited reserve powers, such as referring a bill to the court to test its constitutionality. The most extreme non-executive republican Head of State is the President of Israel, semi-presidential systems combine features of presidential and parliamentary systems, notably a requirement that the government be answerable to both the president and the legislature. The constitution of the Fifth French Republic provides for a minister who is chosen by the president
9.
Head of government
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The term head of government is often differentiated from the term head of state, as they may be separate positions, individuals, and/or roles depending on the country. In parliamentary systems, including constitutional monarchies, the head of government is the de facto leader of the government. For example, in the United Kingdom, the prime minister advises the Queen on the appointment of the cabinet, advice she is required to accept. On the other hand, the Queens long service as the head of state enables her to provide the prime minister with information and insight into many matters to better run the government. However, because the United Kingdom is a monarchy, the Prime Minister uses his or her own discretion regarding whether or not to follow the Queens advice. The Queen also is entitled to appoint a new Prime Minister, in presidential republics or in absolute monarchies, the head of state is also usually the head of government. The relationship between that leader and the government, however, can vary greatly, ranging from separation of powers to autocracy, in semi-presidential systems, the head of government may answer to both the head of state and the legislature, with the specifics provided by each countrys constitution. A modern example is the present French government, which originated as the French Fifth Republic in 1958, in France, the president, the head of state, appoints the prime minister, who is the head of government. In some cases, the head of state may represent one political party, in this case, known as cohabitation, the prime minister, along with the cabinet, controls domestic policy, with the presidents influence is largely restricted to foreign affairs. In directorial systems, the executive responsibilities of the head of government are spread among a group of people, a prominent example is the Swiss Federal Council, where each member of the council heads a department and also votes on proposals relating to all departments. A common title for many heads of government is prime minister, various constitutions use different titles, and even the same title can have various multiple meanings, depending on the constitutional order and political system of the state in question. In addition to prime minister, titles used for the democratic model, some of these titles relate to governments below the national level. Have been used by various Empires, Kingdoms and Princely States of India as a title for the Prime Minister, maltese, In Malta, the head of government is Prim Ministru. In this case, the prime minister serves at the pleasure of the monarch, some such titles are diwan, mahamantri, pradhan, wasir or vizier. However, just because the head of state is the de jure dominant position does not mean that he/she will not always be the de facto political leader, in some cases, the head of state is a figurehead whilst the head of the government leads the ruling party. In some cases a head of government may even pass on the title in hereditary fashion, the ability to vote down legislative proposals of the government. Control over or ability to vote down fiscal measures and the budget, all of these requirements directly impact the Head of governments role. Many parliamentary systems require ministers to serve in parliament, while others ban ministers from sitting in parliament, heads of government are typically removed from power in a parliamentary system by Resignation, following, Defeat in a general election
10.
Parliament
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In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative, elected body of government. Generally a modern parliament has three functions, representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government, historically, parliaments included various kinds of deliberative, consultative, and judicial assemblies. The term is derived from Anglo-Norman parlement, from the verb parler talk, the meaning evolved over time, originally any discussion, conversation, or negotiation, through various kinds of deliberative or judicial groups, often summoned by the monarch. By 1400, it had come to mean in Britain specifically the British supreme legislature, various parliaments are claimed to be the oldest in the world, under varying definitions. The Sicilian Parliament, whose first assembly was convened in 1097, the Icelandic Althing, year 930, but only including the main chiefs. Since ancient times, when societies were tribal, there were councils or a headman whose decisions were assessed by village elders, some scholars suggest that in ancient Mesopotamia there was a primitive democratic government where the kings were assessed by council. The same has been said about ancient India, where some form of deliberative assemblies existed, however, these claims are not accepted by most scholars, who see these forms of government as oligarchies. Ancient Athens was the cradle of democracy, the Athenian assembly was the most important institution, and every citizen could take part in the discussions. However, Athenian democracy was not representative, but rather direct, the Roman Senate controlled money, administration, and the details of foreign policy. Some Muslim scholars argue that the Islamic shura is analogous to the parliament, however, others highlight what they consider fundamental differences between the shura system and the parliamentary system. England has long had a tradition of a body of men who would assist, under the Anglo-Saxon kings, there was an advisory council, the Witenagemot. The name derives from the Old English ƿitena ȝemōt, or witena gemōt, the first recorded act of a witenagemot was the law code issued by King Æthelberht of Kent ca. 600, the earliest document which survives in sustained Old English prose, however, the Witan, along with the folkmoots, is an important ancestor of the modern English parliament. As part of the Norman Conquest of England, the new king, William I, did away with the Witenagemot, membership of the Curia was largely restricted to the tenants in chief, the few nobles who rented great estates directly from the king, along with ecclesiastics. William brought to England the feudal system of his native Normandy and this is the original body from which the Parliament, the higher courts of law, and the Privy Council and Cabinet descend. Of these, the legislature is formally the High Court of Parliament, only the executive government is no longer conducted in a royal court. Most historians date the emergence of a parliament with some degree of power to which the throne had to defer no later than the rule of Edward I, like previous kings, Edward called leading nobles and church leaders to discuss government matters, especially finance. A meeting in 1295 became known as the Model Parliament because it set the pattern for later Parliaments, in 1307, Edward I agreed not to collect certain taxes without the consent of the realm
