This page was last updated on March 4, 2026.

Since the autumn of 2025 Lithuania has seen growing civic resistance in response to political decisions affecting culture, media policy, and democratic governance. Artists, cultural institutions, and professionals from across the society have raised concerns that these developments are threat to institutional independence and public trust. What is happening? 

You can find the full timeline of events at the end of this page.

In September 2025, the Lithuanian government transferred the Ministry of Culture to Nemunas Dawn (Nemuno aušra), a populist party associated with anti-European, antisemitic, and pro-Russian narratives. The leader of Nemunas Dawn has already been found to be in violation of the Constitution, raising serious concerns about his and the party’s commitment to democratic principles. Its growing influence on cultural policy increases the risk of censorship, the marginalization of minority voices, the distortion of historical memory, deeper polarization, and greater Kremlin influence.Since the Ministry is in charge of public information policy, the delayed handover put freedom of speech in Lithuania at risk.

This decision sparked an unprecedented civic movement: the Culture Assembly (Kultūros asamblėja). It brought together hundreds of cultural institutions, independent artists, and organisations committed to protecting cultural autonomy, artistic freedom, and the integrity of democratic governance.

What began as a cultural protest has since expanded into a broader civic movement uniting communities and and forming over a dozen regional assemblies across Lithuania. Representatives from education, science, agriculture, health, and other public sectors have expressed solidarity and joined the calls for accountability and transparency in cultural governance. Universities, farmers’ associations, and professional unions have also taken part, emphasising that this struggle extends beyond culture – it concerns the future of democratic participation and the rule of law in Lithuania.

The Assembly does not seek political power; its purpose is to defend the independence of cultural and media institutions, strengthen democratic values, and resist political capture.

Despite public protest, on 25 September 2025 Ignotas Adomavičius was appointed by the Nemuno Aušra party to serve as Minister of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania. However, under mounting public pressure, he resigned on 3 October 2025, after only one week in office. But the movement didn’t stop: the first month of resistance united Lithuanians nationwide. On October 5, the largest protest in independent Lithuania’s history took place: the Warning Strike with over 300 events held in 81 towns across the country and in 22 countries abroad.

From 21 October to 21 November 2025, the Assembly led a Month of Cultural Protest under the slogan We Are Culture— a series of peaceful, inclusive, and creative actions expressing civic responsibility and solidarity. The movement brought together artists, educators, scientists, farmers, public-sector professionals, and others holding diverse political views. It culminated in a rally of around 5,000 people who gathered near Parliament.

During this period of sustained mobilisation, the Ministry of Culture began forming its political team without a confirmed minister. On 10 November 2025, Vaida Aleknavičienė was appointed Minister of Culture, marking a new stage in the government’s response to the crisis.

Alongside protests and legal challenges, the Culture Assembly announced December 2025 as a Month of Education, shifting part of its activity toward civic education and democratic literacy. As part of this, on 5–6 December 2025, the Assembly organised an International Forum on Democratic Resistance “To Jump from the Boiling Pot” bringing together journalists, media experts, academics, and civic activists from 12 European countries including Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova, Georgia, as well as participants and observers from Poland, Czech Republic, Latvia, and Estonia. The forum focused on shared experiences of media capture, democratic erosion, and resistance, highlighted common warning signs and stressed the importance of early civic response and international solidarity.

At the same time, the 2026–2028 Ministry of Culture budget has been drastically reduced.This decision will have long-term consequences for cultural institutions, artists, and regional programmes – threatening not only operational stability but also the very foundations of Lithuania’s cultural ecosystem.

Solidarity actions and public statements continued across Lithuania, as journalist associations, environmental activists, healthcare professionals, and business representatives reaffirmed their support for the movement’s core demands: transparency, competence, and democratic governance. It has become clear that democracy in Lithuania is under strain. What started as a crisis in the cultural sector has revealed much deeper challenges in the way the country is governed, exposing problems far beyond the “culture” field itself. These developments raised wider concerns about the protection of independent institutions, including public service media, which became the focus of the next phase of civic mobilisation.

New challenges: attack on free speech and cultural autonomy of the Public Broadcaster

At the beginning of December 2025, members of the ruling majority in the Lithuanian Parliament, including representatives of the Nemuno Aušra party, fast-tracked and introduced a package of amendments to the law governing LRT, the national public broadcaster. The proposed changes included lowering the threshold for dismissing LRT’s Director General by secret voting, altering governance procedures, and freezing the broadcaster’s budget for several years. Media experts and international organisations warn that these steps would place LRT under political pressure and influence, weaken its editorial independence, expose it to the influence of political parties seeking to control public communication. The amendments were pushed through under an expedited legislative procedure, sharply limiting or ignoring public consultation, expert assessment, and institutional oversight. During this turmoil the President stood silent.

The rushed and politicised procedure triggered four consecutive mass protests in Vilnius focused on defending media freedom and opposing changes to the LRT law. On 9 December 2025, more than 10,000 people gathered outside Parliament for the protest “Hands off free speech!”, making it the largest protest against the amendments to date. This was followed by three consecutive days of protests on 16, 17, and 18 December, as the proposed changes continued to move forward under an expedited procedure despite widespread opposition.

In parallel, journalists organised solidarity actions and public statements, while civic mobilisation resulted in record-breaking petitions signed by more than 140,000 people, the largest online petition in Lithuania to date. Inside Parliament, opposition lawmakers used procedural tools, including parliamentary filibuster, to slow the legislative process and prevent the amendments affecting LRT from being adopted before the end of 2025.

Under sustained public pressure, the final vote was postponed to 2026. However, the draft law has not been withdrawn and remained on the parliamentary agenda. As of early 2026, the process remains unresolved and highly politicised, with continued concerns that the amendments could be reintroduced and passed without meaningful consultation or safeguards for public service media independence.

The developments have also drawn international attention. In early 2026, Members of the European Parliament raised concerns about the proposed amendments during discussions on media freedom and the rule of law in Lithuania, calling for close monitoring of the situation and respect for European standards on public service media independence. The case has been referenced in the broader context of the implementation of the European Media Freedom Act and the EU’s annual Rule of Law reporting framework.

In parallel, the Lithuanian authorities requested an opinion from the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe on the proposed amendments to the LRT law. The Commission is currently preparing its assessment, which is expected to evaluate the compatibility of the draft legislation with European standards on media independence, democratic governance, and institutional safeguards. Civil society organisations and media experts have urged that the legislative process remain suspended until the Venice Commission’s conclusions are published and properly considered.

As the situation continues to evolve, public debate remains intense. Civic groups, journalist associations, and academic experts stress that the outcome of the LRT amendments will serve as a critical test of Lithuania’s commitment to democratic governance, media pluralism, and institutional resilience

The working group and exclusion of protesting organisations

After the final vote on amendments to the law governing LRT was postponed, a parliamentary working group was set up to continue work on the proposals. However, the journalists organisations that initiated and led the protests were not included in this group. This exclusion is a serious weakness of the process, the process remains highly politicised. In this context, postponement alone does not resolve the problem, as it does not change how decisions are being shaped. The battle is not finished.

For this reason, the Assembly continues its public, legal, and international advocacy. It stresses that a credible and democratic review of the LRT law requires genuine dialogue and the inclusion of independent journalists, media professionals, and civil society representatives, not only procedural delays without structural change.

Background and timeline

• 23 September 2025: Formation of the Culture Assembly in response to the planned transfer of the Ministry of Culture to the Nemunas Dawn political party.

• 25 September 2025: A protest took place outside the Presidential Palace following a petition.

• 25 September 2025Despite the protest, Ignotas Adomavičius was appointed by the Nemuno Aušra party to serve as Minister of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania.

• 3 October 2025: The appointed minister resigned after one week under public pressure.

• 5 October 2025: A nationwide Warning Strike: over 300 events took place in 81 towns across Lithuania and in 22 countries abroad.

• 21 October – 21 November 2025 – Month of Cultural Protest under the slogan We Are Culture. The movement expanded, with representatives from education, science, agriculture, health, and other sectors expressing support and joining actions.

• 25 October The petition was signed by more than 80,000 citizens over the course of the month.

• 4 November For the first time since independence, the Ministry of Culture’s political team was being formed without an appointed minister, starting with the nomination of vice-ministers. Public pressure led to the resignation of appointed viceminister Aleksandras Brokas, while another proposed deputy minister, whose appointment raised serious public concerns about her competence, was ultimately not appointed.

• 10 November 2025 Vaida Aleknavičienė was appointed as the Minister of Culture.

• 21 November 2025 – A major rally gathered around 5,000 people in Vilnius, calling on leaders to take responsibility for safeguarding democracy. Farmers and cultural workers joined symbolically, highlighting cross-sector unity.

• Late November 2025 – The Assembly warned that Lithuania was at risk of democratic backsliding and called attention to political pressure on cultural and media institutions.

• 23 November 2025 The Culture Assembly announced December as a Month of Education, putting focus on civic education, democratic literacy, and resilience-building.

• 1 December 2025 – NEW CHALLENGES: members of the Lithuanian Parliament introduced a package of amendments to the law governing LRT, the national public broadcaster.

• 5–6 December 2025 – International Forum on Democratic Resistance took place in Vilnius discussing media capture, democratic erosion, and civil resistance.

• 9 December 2025 – Protest “Hands off free speech!” held in Vilnius against political interference in LRT. More than 10,000 people gathered near Parliament.

• 16, 17, 18 December 2025 – Protests over media freedom in Lithuania continued for three days. Despite calls to abandon the reforms affecting LRT, the proposals continued to advance under an expedited legislative procedure. Over 143,000 people signed a petition, making it the largest online petition to date.

• 18 December 2025 In response to mass demonstrations, petitions, legal challenge efforts, and parliamentary filibustering, the ruling coalition decided to postpone the final vote on the amendments until early 2026, deferring consideration to the next legislative session rather than adopting them before the end of 2025.

• January 2026 – The Venice Commission of the Council of Europe began preparing an urgent opinion on the proposed amendments to the LRT law. A delegation visited Lithuania to consult with authorities, civil society, and media stakeholders, and the Commission’s findings were scheduled to be published by late January, with final approval at the plenary session in early March.

• January 2026 – The final vote on the amendments to the LRT law was formally postponed to the spring session of Parliament.

• January–February 2026 – Members of the European Parliament raised concerns about the proposed amendments in discussions related to media freedom and the rule of law in Lithuania, urging compliance with European standards on public service media independence.

• February 2026 – A parliamentary working group tasked with revising the controversial amendments to the LRT law concluded its work. The group’s draft maintained the current qualified majority requirement for dismissing the LRT Director General and proposed adjustments to governance arrangements aimed at strengthening institutional safeguards, though not all recommendations addressed public concerns. It was also announced that the draft would not be fast-tracked and would be considered during the Seimas spring session

• Spring 2026 (pending) – The Venice Commission is expected to publish its opinion on the amendments to the LRT law.

• Ongoing in 2026 – The draft amendments remain on the parliamentary agenda, with continued concerns that they may be reintroduced under expedited procedure.