Using a right to submit a petition was regulated by constitutional act

On December 23, 2022 the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania passed the constitutional act about petitions which widens capabilities to use the constitutional right to submit petitions. As the Ministry of Justice notices, changes are going to involve approving all jural acts that are significant publicly. It also provides more transparent and effective procedure of submitting and processing application.  It is important that a citizen will be able to submit a petition not only to the Parliament, governmental or municipal institutions with standing petition committees, but also to other state institutions that enact normative acts,” Minister Ewelina Dobrowolska further points out.

In minister’s view, in the aim of responsible management, even after withdrawing a petition by a petitioner, the committees will still be able to process petitions. It will provide effective solutions to noticed issues and fixing regulations by law.

A maximum time limit of 20 working days has been set for processing petitions. During this time, state or local governments, research, scientific or educational institutions will have to provide an opinion or other relevant information regarding the request or proposal contained in the petition.

In an effort to increase transparency and public scrutiny, including the openness and transparency of the application procedure, it has been made mandatory to post information about the activities of the petitions committee on the website, which guarantees the public’s right to information about petitions accepted for consideration, as well as the petitioner’s right to information regarding its consideration. Accordingly, if a citizen makes such a request, he or she will be able to obtain information or opinions on the requests and demands contained in the petition.

According to the EFHR, the Justice Ministry’s initiative to implement the constitutional right to petition is a welcome change. Indeed, the right to petition is a political right and, as such, is complementary to other civil rights that give citizens the opportunity to influence public power. Although this entitlement exists in almost every democratic political system, not all citizens are aware of this right. Every citizen has the right to participate in the political life of the country and thus submit petitions, as this is a way for citizens to communicate with public authority. Importantly, public authorities are entities obliged by law to guarantee respect for the right to petition and to counter behavior aimed at suppressing unjustified criticism. This means that the obligations arising from the right to petition, impose on public authorities to accept, consider and respond to the petition.

From a human rights perspective, these changes are extremely positive, as the right to petition protects an extremely important aspect of citizens’ lives – the ability to actively participate in the social and political life of their country. This makes it all the more gratifying that 106 deputies voted unanimously in favor of the Constitutional Law.

The law will take effect on July 1, 2023.

Translated by Jakub Błaszczyk-Pukiewicz within the framework of a volunteer programme of the EFHR