A Lithuanian court on Thursday fined lawmaker Remigijus Žemaitaitis €5,000 for inciting hatred against Jews and grossly downplaying Nazi Germany’s crimes.
Announcing the verdict, Judge Nida Vigelienė of the Vilnius Regional Court said Žemaitaitis had “publicly mocked, demeaned and encouraged hatred toward a group of people and individuals belonging to it because of their Jewish ethnicity” in texts and a speech he published in 2023.
She said the politician had also “grossly minimised the Holocaust carried out by Nazi Germany on Lithuania’s territory in an offensive and insulting manner”.
“The judicial panel finds Remigijus Žemaitaitis guilty,” Vigelienė said.
Žemaitaitis was convicted under criminal code provisions covering incitement against national, racial, ethnic, religious or other groups, as well as public approval, denial or gross belittlement of international crimes and those committed by the USSR or Nazi Germany.
Neither Žemaitaitis nor his lawyer, Egidija Belevičienė, attended the hearing.
Vigelienė said the court examined seven posts published on the politician’s social media account between May and June 2023, a June exchange with journalist Rūta Janutienė, and a speech delivered in Parliament in May.
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The panel concluded that Žemaitaitis’ posts – all but one – and his parliamentary remarks “could not be justified by constitutional freedom of expression”, which the defendant had emphasised during proceedings.
The judge said the posts met the criteria for mockery, humiliation and incitement of hatred under Article 170 of the criminal code.
Addressing posts that included an antisemitic rhyme, Vigelienė said the court focused not on whether Žemaitaitis claimed to be expressing critical opinions or citing sources, but on “how it was done and what language was used”.
“By expressing his views, Remigijus Žemaitaitis chose and used language that was degrading, violated human dignity and demonstrated hatred toward a group distinguished by nationality,” she said. “Such publicly expressed opinions exceed the limits of freedom of expression.”
The court found that the politician falsely accused Jews of killing Lithuanians, playing a significant role in Soviet-era deportations, and – without any basis – blamed them for massacres in the villages of Pirčiupiai and Kaniukai. He also published a largely unsubstantiated list of Jews allegedly involved in Soviet repressions.
“This promoted hostility toward Jews and advanced the idea that Jews, as a national group, were responsible for Soviet repressions and crimes against humanity,” Vigelienė said.
Žemaitaitis must pay the fine within two months of the ruling taking effect. The verdict can be appealed to the Lithuanian Court of Appeal within 20 days.
Prosecutor Justas Laucius had sought a €51,250 fine and an additional payment to a victims’ fund.
The politician denied wrongdoing and sought acquittal.
The case stemmed from posts published on Facebook in May and June 2023, in which he referred to Israel as “animals” for bombing a Palestinian school, but also claimed Jews helped destroy the Lithuanian nation, among other remarks.
Parliament later launched impeachment proceedings over the comments. In April 2023, the Constitutional Court ruled that Žemaitaitis had violated his oath of office and grossly breached the Constitution.
He resigned his seat but later ran for parliament again and was re-elected to the Seimas in November 2024.
‘Politicised’ ruling
Commenting on the indictment, Žemaitaitis said it was politicised and that he would appeal.
“It is clear that when they wrote the verdict and imposing the fine, the judges showed that, even though it would be an acquittal, we have to punish him somehow, we have to teach Remigijus a lesson that it is wrong to speak like that,” the politician told BNS on Thursday.
He argued that this was evidenced by the fact that the fine was ten times smaller than what the prosecutor asked for. Žemaitaitis said he would appeal the verdict.
“One cannot allow politicised rulings or actions against political opponents in this state,” he said.
“The people also understand that this is a politicised decision. Especially since in the 2024 parliamentary elections, the people clearly showed that the tactics used against Remigijus Žemaitaitis will not work for you, so don’t use them,” said the leader of the Nemunas Dawn party.
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