A Vilnius court on Monday ruled to liquidate the International Forum of Good Neighborhood, an organisation co-founded by Algirdas Paleckis, a controversial Lithuanian figure convicted for spying for Russia.
Members of the group previously visited Moscow and Minsk, where they also spoke with the authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko.
"The association's chairwoman, in Russia, claimed to be speaking on behalf of Lithuanian citizens without the right to do so, basically advocated for authoritarian rule, and denied the fundamental principles of the Lithuanian state," Judge Enrika Janušonienė said.
The court said the forum was established unlawfully and appointed Turto Bankas (Property Bank), Lithuania’s centralised public property management company, as its liquidator. The ruling may still be appealed.
Prosecutor Sigita Vasiliauskienė of the Prosecutor General's Office asked the Vilnius court to dissolve the organisation because the objectives of its establishment were unlawful and contrary to public policy and that the rules for the establishment of a legal person were violated.
Read more: Following visits to Minsk and Moscow, Lithuanian political organisation comes under investigation
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
