Vizit of the Democracy Knowledge Contest winners to Strasbourg
Winners of the Democracy Knowledge Contest from Lithuania visit Strasbourg
From 21 to 23 June, Strasbourg welcomed the young laureates of the Democracy Knowledge Contest organised by the Chancellery of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania. Martyna, Matas and Benediktas, representing schools from the Šilutė district, the town of Šilutė and the city of Vilnius, were accompanied by one of the competition's principal organisers, Rūta Petrukaitė. Their visit to Strasbourg is a prize established jointly by the Permanent Representation of Lithuania and the Council of Europe for the winners of the competition.
During their stay, the students visited the headquarters of the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights and the Permanent Representation of Lithuania. They had the opportunity to meet and engage in discussions with the Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General Bjørn Berge, the Lithuanian judge at the European Court of Human Rights Gediminas Sagatys, members of the Lithuanian parliamentary delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), led by Birutė Vėsaitė, and the Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the Council of Europe, Ambassador Andrius Krivas. They also attended a PACE plenary sitting from the visitors' gallery, where they listened to addresses by the Minister of State of the Principality of Monaco, Christophe Mirmand, representing the current Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, and by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset.
Throughout their discussions with politicians and diplomats, the students demonstrated an impressive knowledge of democracy, human rights and international affairs. They returned home with lasting impressions of Strasbourg, a deeper understanding of the Council of Europe, its institutions, priorities and activities, and of Lithuania's role within the Organisation. They showed particular interest in the Council of Europe's support for Ukraine in the face of Russia's aggression and in its efforts to develop international legal instruments aimed at ensuring accountability for the crime of aggression and its consequences.
We are proud of Lithuania's young generation and sincerely thank everyone who contributed to making this inspiring and educational project possible. Our special gratitude goes to Deputy Secretary General Bjørn Berge for his personal patronage of the initiative and for the time and attention he devoted to the young visitors from Lithuania.
