Lithuania ratifies the Additional Protocol to the European Charter of Local Self-Government

31.07.2012 - On 26 July 2012 Lithuania ratified the Additional Protocol to the European Charter of Local Self-Government on the right to participate in the affairs of a local authority.  This ratification complies with the expectations of the Congress and with its Recommendation 321, adopted on 21 March 2012.

"We welcome this ratification, which illustrates the co-operation between the Congress and the national authorities working towards local and regional democracy", declared Keith Whitmore, President of the Congress.  "We encourage Lithuania to continue along this path, adopting all the measures recommended by the Congress, and particularly those relating to the allocation of sufficient resources to local authorities and the inclusion of the principle of subsidiarity in the law on local self-government", he added.

The Additional Protocol was opened for signature on 16 November 2009.  It is a text intended to bring within the scope of the Charter everyone's right to participate in the affairs of a local authority.  In this context it echoes the Preamble to the Charter, which recognises that the right of citizens to participate in the conduct of public affairs is one of the democratic principles that are shared by all member States of the Council of Europe.

Council of Europe treaties website

Recommendation 321 (2012)