Human Rights Monitoring Institute

Today the first radio programme from the series „Closer Look at Multpiple Discrimination“ was aired at the radio station „Kelyje“ („On the Road“, Klaipeda City). The programmes are financed by the European Community Programme PROGRESS implemented by HRMI, Lithuanian Centre for Human Rights, and the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson Office.   

The interest of the listeners was already obvious during the first show – people called the station, wrote text messages and emailed questions. Among the reactions were complaints about discrimination, worried comments regarding the general situation, and presentations of numerous problems. Apparently, the society feels the need for this type of information, people seem tired of passive stance of governmental institutions, and many of them feel unable to protect themselves.
 
During the show, the newest documentary by Audrius Lelkaitis "Vilnius Ghetto 2009" was also introduced demonstrating the tragedy of one community which is revealed in the film and which illustrates the issue of multiple discrimination.

The film pictures the lives of Roma in Vilnius. Over 50 years ago, Soviet authorities ghettoized these people in Kirtimai district next to Vilnius. Roma living there own nothing – neither the land they were forced to live on, nor the humble barracks that the municipality tried to bulldoze once and is willing to continue demolishing.

Official première of the documentary took place during the human rights film festival Ad Hoc: Inconvenient Films. The first screening has received overwhelming attention. The grand hall of the new cinema in Vilnius Old Town was crammed, and the additional séances were highly in demand. Therefore, the screenings in the regional towns were arranged at the same dates as the radio shows depicting the issues of multiple discrimination.

A permanent team of experts will speak in 12 radio shows to be aired in the five regions of Lithuania on 8 different radio stations. Among them, film director Audrius Lelkaitis, Adviser to the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson Laima Vengale, Executive Director of the Institute for Ethnic Research Tadas Leoncikas, and HRMI Programme Director Dovile Sakaliene.