official translation SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS (

official translation SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS (As Amended by 20 June 1995) The variety of political parties and political organisations ensures the democratic character of the political system of the Republic of Lithuania. Political parties unite citizens of the Republic of Lithuania for the implementation of common political goals, help to form and express the interests and political will of Lithuania's citizens. The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, seeking to guarantee equal rights of political parties and ensure that their activities serve the strengthening of the independent democratic Lithuanian State and the progress of society, passes and promulgates this Law. I. GENERAL PROVISIONS Article

1. Right to Form Political Parties and Political Organisations Citizens of the Republic of Lithuania have the right to form political parties and political organisation and to take part in their activities. Only a citizen of Lithuania who possesses an active voting right may be a member of a political party or political organisation. Citizens of Lithuania may belong to only one political party or political organisation at a time. Article
2. Grounds of the Activities of Political Parties and Political Organisations Political parties and political organisations shall function in accordance with the Constitution, this law, and other laws of the Republic of Lithuania, and conduct their activity according to party charters registered in the established manner. Political parties and political organisations of other countries, as well as their subdivisions and organisations may not be established and may not function in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania. The establishment or activity of political parties or political organisations whose program documents propagate and whose activities practice racial, religious, social class inequality and hatred, methods of authoritarian or totalitarian rule, methods of forcible (violent) seizure of power, propaganda of war and violence, violation of human rights and freedoms, or other ideas or actions which contradict the constitutional order of the Republic of Lithuania and are incompatible with universally recognised norms of international law, shall be prohibited. Leading political party or political organisation institutions must operate only in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania. II. FOUNDING OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS, SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION OF THEIR ACTIVITIES Article
3. Founding of Political Parties and Political Organisations In order to found a political party or a political organisation, the party or the organisation must have no less than four hundred members in Lithuania, a charter approved by its meeting or conference, a program, and an elected leadership. The program and charter of the party or organisation that is being founded may not contradict the laws of the Republic of Lithuania. Article
4. Registration of Political Parties and Political Organisations Political parties and political organisations shall be registered by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania. The founders shall present to the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania an application the registration of the political party or political organisation no later than within a month after the adoption of the charter, program and the election of the governing bodies. The application shall be signed by the leader stating the address and the telephone number of the party or political organisation headquarters. The following documents shall be appended to the application for registration: 1) charter, program in two copies; 2) a copy of the minutes of the constituent meeting which must indicate the date and place of the founding of the political party or political organisation, as well as stating the number of founders who voted for the founding of the political party or political organisation; 3) founders' list where full name, date of birth, citizenship and personal code, address of the place of residence, occupation, certificate testifying to his not being a member of other political parties or political organisation. The above data must be certified by each founder's signature as well as by the signature of the person who compiled the founders' list; 4) samples of symbols, banners of political parties or political organisations or their drafts. The charter, program, minutes and the founders' list must be signed by the leader of the political party or political organisation. The Ministry of Justice shall examine the above-mentioned documents within a month from the day of their filing and shall register the political party or political organisation provided that all the required documents have been filed and there have been no violations of the requirements of this law In case not all documents are filed, the founders shall be notified thereof in writing and the deadline for the presentation of the missing documents shall be set. The term may not be longer than one month. The political party or political organisation shall be registered within a month from the day of filing of the missing documents. A political party or political organisation which misses the deadline for the filing of documents set forth in this law as well as having violated other requirements of the law shall not be registered. Upon refusal to register a political party or political organisation, the founders shall be notified thereof in writing and the reasons for refusal shall be stated. A political party or political organisation which has been refused registration on the grounds specified in this law shall have to settle the issue of its registration anew in accordance with the procedure established by law. The name and symbols of a political party or political organisation which is being registered must be different from the names and symbols of the already registered political parties and political organisations or public organisations. A political party or political organisation must within 15 days notify the Ministry of Justice in writing of the changes in the charter, program, presenting it with the amended charter, program and a copy of the minutes of the meeting which changed them. If a political party or political organisation changes its name it shall be reregistered in the manner established in this law. A political party or political organisation and their structural subdivisions specified in their charter shall be legal persons from the day of registration of the party or political organisation. Article
5. Suspension of Activities of Political Parties or Political Organisations The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania shall suspend activities of a political party or political organisation if it violates the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania or this law. State and local government institutions, as well as other political parties or political organisations may appeal for the suspension of activities of political parties or political organisations. The appeal for the suspension of activities of a political party or political organisation must be examined not later than within a month from the receipt thereof. The Ministry of Justice shall also have the right to suspend the activities of a political party or political organisation on its own initiative. The Ministry of Justice, after learning of a violation of the law, shall inform, in writing, the leading institutions of a political party or political organisation, indicating what provisions of the law have been violated and setting the time for the elimination of the violation. If the violation is not eliminated by the set time, the activities of the political party or political organisation shall be suspended. When deciding whether or not the political party or political organisation has violated the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania or this law, the Ministry of Justice shall have the right to address other state institutions and obtain their findings. During an election campaign, the activities of a political party or op may only be suspended by the Vilnius County Court whose decision shall come into effect form the moment of its pronouncement. After the suspension of activities of a political party or political organisation, the party shall be forbidden to use any and all media of mass information, conduct campaigning or propaganda activity, or participate in elections. The activities of a political party or political organisation may not be suspended for a period longer than six months. If a political party or political organisation does not eliminate legal violations after its activities have been suspended or if, within a year after the date its activities were suspended, it again violates the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, its activities shall be suspended for one year. After eliminating legal violations, a political party or political organisation shall notify the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania of this fact, and the Ministry, within five days of the receipt of such notification, shall permit the political party or political organisation to resume its activities. Article
6. Termination of Activities of Political Parties or Political Organisations Activities of a political party or political organisation shall be suspended if: 1) the party or political organisation itself discontinues its activity in the manner provided by its charter; 2) the Supreme Court orders the suspension of activities of a political party or political organisation. Article
7. Termination of Activities of Political Parties and Political Organisations On the proposal of the Ministry of Justice, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania may terminate the activities of a political party or political organisation if after a repeated suspension of its activities within a year the party or the organisation violates the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania or this law. Article
8. Procedure for Appealing Refusal to register a political party or a political organisation, suspension of its activities may be appealed against to the Vilnius County Court which shall consider the appeal within 3 days. III. GUARANTEES FOR THE ACTIVITIES OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS Article
9. Freedom of Activities of Political Parties and Political Organisations All political parties and political organisation ion the territory of the Republic shall function freely and independently. State bodies, enterprises, institutions, and organisations, as well as public organisations and individual officials shall be prohibited from interfering in the internal affairs of a political party or political organisation. Persons interfering with the activities of a political party or political organisation shall be held accountable under the laws of the Republic of Lithuania. State bodies, enterprises, institutions, and organisations, as well as public organisations, other political parties, political organisations and also private persons must compensate a political party or political organisation for any material or moral damage inflicted on it by illegal action. Article
10. Restriction of Political Activities The organisational structure of a political party or political organisation shall be based only on the principle of territorial divisions. Political party or political organisation subdivisions may not be established or operate in work collectives. National defence of the Republic of Lithuania officers or re-enlistees, personnel of the services of internal affairs or state security institutions, judges, prosecutors or investigators may not be members of political parties or political organisations. Political party or political organisation membership of persons called for defence service or persons appointed by the Seimas or the Government of the Republic of Lithuania for positions in the Departments of National Defence or State Security, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Prosecutor-General, as well as officers of the Department of State Control shall be suspended for the duration of their service or employment. Persons whose membership in a political party or political organisation has been suspended may not vote or be elected to the organisational bodies of a political party or political organisation or their subdivisions, nor may such persons execute their directives. Article
11. Property of Political Parties and Political Organisations Political parties and political organisations shall be entitled to ownership of buildings, equipment, publishing houses, printing offices, means of transportation, and other property necessary for the fulfilment of objectives established in their charters. The rights of ownership of political parties or political organisations shall be regulated by laws of the Republic of Lithuania. Political parties and political organisations shall be entitled to use buildings and other property in accordance with lease contracts concluded with state and public organisations, enterprises and private persons. The funds of political parties and political organisations shall consist of membership fees, proceeds from publishing activities, donations from private citizens or public organisations, and other proceeds derived from legal sources. Bodies of state power and government, state enterprises, offices, or organisations shall have no right to finance, in any form or manner, political parties or political organisations and their subdivisions, as well as Seimas members or local government council members or their groups representing political parties or political organisations. Political parties and political organisations may not receive finances or any other funds given by governmental institutions of other countries or their organisations or financial foundations. Political parties and political organisations may receive finances or other resources from international organisations, non-governmental organisations, financial foundations, or persons, only according to procedures established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania. Any finances or assets obtained illegally shall be transferred to the property of the Republic of Lithuania by a decision of the court. A party or political organisation member shall not be entitled to ownership of the political party or political organisation property and shall not be responsible for the liabilities of a political party or political organisation. Article
12. Right to Receive Funds from the State Budget Political parties and political organisations represented in the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania shall be entitled to subsidies from the State Budget of the Republic of Lithuania in accordance with the procedure established by law. Article
13. Control over Financial Activities of Political Parties and Political Organisations Financial activities of political parties and political organisations shall be controlled by financial institutions of the Republic. Political parties and political organisations shall file a declaration on their annual financial activities with financial institutions each fiscal year and publicly announce the budget revenue and its resources, expenditures, and its appropriation no later than on or before 1 February of the proceeding year. Article
14. Right to Participate in the Management of State Affairs All political parties and political organisations shall be equally entitled to participate in the election of government institutions. During elections, all candidates to the post of deputy shall be provided with equal opportunities to use the mass media, free of charge, in accordance with procedures established by the laws on elections of the Republic of Lithuania. Article
15. The Right to Form Coalitions, Unions of Political Parties and Political Organisations Political parties and political organisations shall be entitled to form coalitions, unions, and electoral blocks. Article
16. The Right to Disseminate Information about the Activities of a Political Party or Political Organisation Political parties and political organisations shall be entitled to free vocal or written or other dissemination of information on their activities, to the propagation of their ideas, goals, and programs. Political parties and political organisation shall have the right to establish media of mass information, with the exception of radio and television, and also, in conformity with the established regulations, to make use of the state press and other mass media. Article
17. The Right to Hold Mass Events In accordance with procedures established by laws of the Republic of Lithuania, political parties and political organisations shall have the right to hold rallies, demonstrations, meetings, and other mass events. Article
18. Responsibility or Political Parties and Political Organisations A political party or political organisation which by illegal actions inflicts material or moral damage on the state, its enterprises, institutions, organisations, other political parties or political organisations or public organisations, must compensate for such damage from its resources in accordance with procedures established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania. IV. FINAL PROVISIONS Article
19. International Relations of Political Parties and Political Organisations Political parties and political organisations shall have the right to maintain relations with political parties and political organisations of other countries, as well as international and other organisations. Vytautas Landsbergis President Supreme Council Republic of Lithuania 25 September 1990 No. I-606