Public figures demand investigation into Kaunas mosque incident

Sixty representatives of Lithuanian public life have called for an investigation into the disruption of prayers and the humiliation of worshippers at a mosque in Kaunas on September 11, LRT reported.

In an open letter, representatives of the public, cultural, academic, journalistic and political spheres said the incident challenged Lithuanian society, the state and the legal system. They urged the responsible institutions to assess it decisively.

The letter says an organised group humiliated worshippers in various ways and displayed symbols insulting to believers. A group of bikers staged the provocation outside the Kaunas mosque and brought a pig’s head, according to material published by LRT.

The signatories said the actions violated the right to freedom of belief and the free practice of religion established in Article 26 of Lithuania’s Constitution. They also said the incident showed possible signs of offences described in Article 171 of the Criminal Code, which concerns obstructing religious rites or ceremonies, and Article 170, which concerns incitement against an ethnic, religious or other group.

The letter also said that incitement to hatred could potentially be used as a tool of Russian hybrid influence.

Its authors stressed that people in a democratic state have the right to disagree, criticise, protest and raise uncomfortable questions about migration, Islam, integration, state policy and other issues. However, they said such actions must remain within the limits set by law and must not abandon humanity or respect for others.

They argued that migration policy, attitudes towards Islam and previous disputes over the mosque were irrelevant to the incident. Potentially criminal conduct, they said, is not a form of public debate, and support for its aims cannot justify criminal means.

The signatories condemned attempts to turn hatred, humiliation or intimidation into a normal form of political struggle. They called for the incident to be treated as a question of the boundaries of society, human dignity and mutual respect rather than as another political dispute.

They demanded a thorough pretrial investigation, the identification of the organisers and perpetrators, and a legal assessment of their actions under Lithuanian law. They also said that potentially criminal acts should be stopped as soon as they begin rather than merely observed.

The open letter was signed by 60 people, including writers, translators, academics, teachers, historians, philosophers, artists, journalists, politicians and public figures.