“Lituanistika”, International Research Database
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Priests - defenders of Independence
No full textMinint Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės 105-metį, reikia prisiminti ir tuos Lietuvos kunigus, kurie anuomet, sunkiu laiku, rūpinosi ir daug padėjo steigiant partizanų ir šaulių būrius, organizuojant ginklų fondus, superkant iš vokiečių šaudmenis, ginklus ir aprangą kovotojams. Kunigai rėmė partizanus ir šaulius per spaudą ir finansiškai, šventino šaulių vėliavas, ragino kovoti ir kai kurie net patys dalyvavo pirmose fronto linijose su partizanais ir šauliais. Šį klausimą – kiek kunigų prisidėjo prie Šaulių sąjungos darbo – reikėtų detalizuoti ir surinkti daugiau žinių. Žemiau pateikiama informacija surinkta iš istorinės literatūros žinučių.On the occasion of the 105th anniversary of Lithuania‘s Independence, it is necessary to remember those Lithuanian priests who, in those difficult times, took care of and helped a lot in the establishment of partisan and rifle units, in the organisation of arms funds, and in the purchase of ammunition, weapons and clothing for the combatants from Germans. The priests supported the partisans and the riflemen through the press and financially, blessed the riflemen‘s flags, encouraged them to fight and even some of them took part in the front lines with the partisans and the riflemen themselves. The publication presents the contribution of thirteen priests from the dioceses of Vilkaviškis and Kaišiadorys to the independence struggle in Dzūkija. It should be noted that only one of them was born in Dzūkija, while the others were destined by a twist of fate to conduct their service to God and people in Dzūkija
Conflict over the parish of Vidugiriai
No full textNelinksmos nuotaikos pribloškė 1992 metų Kristaus gimimo šventę. Vidugirių bažnyčia užrakinta, jos statyba sustabdyta, vyskupo dekreto, atšaukiančio Vidugirių parapijos steigimą, kaip nebuvo, taip nėra. Punsko parapijos taryba yra priversta imtis dar vieno drastiško žingsnio – sustabdyti kalėdojimą! Greitai bėga laikas. Sunku patikėti, kad nuo tų įvykių prabėgo jau 30 metų. Per tą laiką išaugo nauja karta, nebeprisimenanti tų painių įvykių ir pamokančios istorijos. Konfliktas, kuris kilo Vidugiriuose, šiandien ne vienam gali būti nesuprantamas. Nagi, kaip Dievo šventovė gali tapti nesutarimų ir neapykantos namais? O vis dėlto.This article describes the conflict over the Vidugiriai chapel. The chapel was built in Vidugiriai on the idea and initiative of the parish priest of Punskas, Ignas Dzermeika. In 1992, the news broke that a new parish was to be established on the site. According to the Bishop of Ełk, the establishment of the Vidugiriai parish was supposed to improve the Lithuanian pastoral care. The faithful saw the deceit in the plan. They understood that the intention was to divide the Lithuanians, to reduce the size of the parish in Punskas so that the Polish element would be stronger there, and to make it possible to eliminate the Lithuanian services in the Seinai Basilica. It became clear that the parish priest of Punskas, playing on two fronts, was hypocritical. The parishioners were angry with him. In the summer of 1992, the construction of the Vidugiriai chapel stopped. Lack of communication was the reason for the mistrust. The parish priest felt attacked by the people and the faithful were deceived because they donated money and worked themselves. The people welded the doors of the chapel with iron beams, and decided not to accept the priest who was visiting the faithful. The protest of Lithuanians was successful. The Church hierarchs refused to establish a parish there
Duty of care: consular diplomacy response of Baltic and Nordic countries to COVID-19
No full textDeclaring the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 left thousands of travellers stranded, propelling consular work to the forefront, and testing governments’ capacity to aid their nationals abroad. While all consular departments provided assistance and duty of care (DoC) through information and guidance, some were reactive while others were proactive, and some were willing to make exceptions and engage in pastoral care. Analysis of the Baltic and Nordic countries’ reactions to the initial outbreak of COVID-19 shows us how DoC diverged in practice, and to note the transition of consular affairs into consular diplomacy and its interplay with facets of digital, citizencentric and diaspora diplomacy. The conclusion is that all eight countries exceeded normal consular practice and exhibited some level of pastoral DoC, with Latvia and Lithuania exhibiting high levels of pastoral care. In parallel, Lithuania and Denmark, in their responses, effectively incorporated innovative elements of digital and diaspora diplomacy. Keywords: consular diplomacy; consular assistance; COVID-19; duty of care; Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA); digital diplomacy; diaspora diplomacy
English and Scottish Jesuits and print culture of the sixteenth-century Grand Duchy of Lithuania
No full textThis present study has aimed to examine sixteenth-century Anglo-Lithuanian Catholic ties, revealing the influences of those contacts on the print culture of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. As the Counter-Reformation solidly took root in both parts of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, offering safe havens to recusants from England and Scotland, profound British-Lithuanian Catholic ties were forged after the foundation of Vilnius Academy in 1579. All the publications produced with the involvement of British Jesuit students suggest that they were accustomed to life in Vilnius Academy as much as other foreign and local students and actively participated in the corporate life of the institution. Many Englishmen and Scots were well aware that the wealthiest Lithuanian magnates, who professed Catholicism, were among the leading defenders of the Counter-Reformation. It would be fallacious to assert, however, that English and Scottish Catholics perceived the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a purely Catholic state. In 1580, William Shepreve, a Catholic priest and scholar, who accompanied the English Catholic scholar Gregory Martin from Douai to Rome, sent a report to the rector of the English College in Rome. [...] Although in the second half of the sixteenth century Protestantism was one of the major confessional cultures of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, having gained a significant foothold, the connections between English and Lithuanian Protestants were generally fortuitous. In contrast, the relationship between English recusants and Lithuanian Catholics was better structured, in comparison with occasional encounters between the Protestants of Lithuania and England, and the presence of English and Scottish Catholics within the Grand Duchy was much more noticeable than that of persons with a Protestant affiliation. Furthermore, Polish-Lithuanian Jesuits were more successful in exploiting the power of the press in advancing the triumph of the Catholic Church in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, engaging not only local writers but also authors of various ethnic origins. As a result, the networks established by Polish-Lithuanian Catholics with their counterparts abroad facilitated textual transmission between the countries, resulting in the construction of a martyrological narrative applicable to the situation in Poland-Lithuania
Assessment of the quality of obstetric services from the perspective of maternity patients and service providers in a tertiary care obstetric unit in Lithuania
No full textAlthough largely focused on the patient, the provision of healthcare services is a 2-way process and its success hinges on the interactions between patients and physicians. Given the growing role of subjective, patient-dependent assessment of the quality of care received, which is increasingly influenced by the individual aspects of the interaction between patients and care providers, in addition to the explicitly measurable, objective assessment of the quality of care received based on clinical indicators, quality assessment of services should especially consider and explore the attitudes, needs and dynamics of all the parties involved in the healthcare process. This study was designed to assess the attitudes of maternity patients and healthcare providers towards the quality of obstetric care. A quantitative questionnaire survey was conducted in a tertiary level healthcare facility providing obstetric services in Lithuania. Research findings suggested that maternity patients rate both the technical and functional quality of obstetric services higher than the staff providing it. Midwives and obstetricians-gynaecologists view quality assurance as a complex process, rather than focus solely on quantitative indicators. Since midwives were rated slightly higher than physicians in terms of services they provide, it may be appropriate to ensure and encourage a wider use of midwife-only deliveries in low-risk births. A comprehensive assessment of the quality assurance aspects as viewed by the patients and the staff should be included in the regular quality assessments of healthcare facilities as one of the most informative assessment tools on the service quality. Keywords: Healthcare service quality, patient, medical staff, midwifery, quality assessment
Remembering the anti-Soviet partisan war in Lithuania, 1944-1953: the effects of heroization at different levels of remembrance
No full textThe collective-level heroisation of the armed resistance (1944–1953) against the Soviet occupation in Lithuania faces various challenges, which initially address the threat posed by foreign propaganda or the legacy of Soviet period narratives. However, in this article, I argue that the difficulties in constructing a hero-freedom fighter from the partisan past lie in the exaltation of the ‘right’ type of behaviour at the ‘wrong’ time of occupation. As collective (political)-level memory portrays heroic resistance, the ‘memory consumers’ within families of different generational experiences mediate meanings and react to them with certain strategies. This reveals rather painful aspects of remembering collaboration and being on the ‘wrong side’, although the heroic image of the partisan aims to foster pride in the conflictual past. The Lithuanian case illustrates more general challenges in the intersection of individual, communicative and structural (political) memory in a country that experienced transformational regime change and commemorates the difficult past. Keywords: armed resistance, communicative memory, family, generation, heroisatio
Governing health service purchasing agencies: comparative study of national purchasing agencies in 10 countries in eastern Europe and central Asia
No full textThis study discusses findings from comparative case studies of the governance of health services purchasing agencies in 10 eastern European and central Asian countries established over the past 30 years, and the relationship between governance attributes, institutional development, and the progress made in strategic purchasing. The feasibility and effectiveness of implementing international recommendations from the health sector and wider public sector governance literature and practice are also discussed. The study finds that only those countries that have transitioned from middle to high-income status during the study period have been successful in comprehensively and consistently implementing internationally recommended practices. Moreover, these countries have made varying progress in developing capable purchasers with technical and operational independence, as well as advancing strategic purchasing. However, the current middle-income countries (MICs) in the study have implemented only certain elements of recommended governance practices, often superficially. Notably, the study reveals that some international recommendations, particularly those related to higher degrees of purchaser autonomy and the associated governance structures observed in western European social health insurance funds, have proven challenging to implement effectively or sustain in the MICs. None of the MICs succeeded in strategic purchasing beyond a limited agenda or scale, and even then, only implementing and sustaining them during favorable conditions. Difficulties in maintaining these achievements can be attributed, in part, to governance deficiencies. However, setbacks are commonly linked to periods of political and economic instability, which in turn lead to fluctuations in policy priorities, institutional instability, and inadequacies in health budgets. The study findings point to some actions related to civil society and stakeholder engagement, accountability frameworks, and digitalization in MICs that can facilitate continuity in health reforms and the functioning of purchasing institutions despite these challenges. The findings of the study provide important lessons for countries designing or newly implementing health purchasing agencies and for countries reviewing the performance and governance of their health purchasing agencies with a view to developing or strengthening strategic purchasing. Keywords: Governance Health financing; Strategic purchasing; Health service purchasing agency; Middle-income countries
Inclusivity in online and distance disaster education: a review of educators' views
No full textFuture exemplary education should foster inclusive and respectful learning environments to meet new challenges like digital inequality and power concentration. In the new normal of education due to COVID-19, inclusive online disaster risk reduction (DRR) education is essential. Therefore, this article aims to investigate the current status quo of inclusive online and distance DRR education and its benefits. Expert interviews were conducted with 40 educators with experience in 13 countries. The experts were selected based on their experience in designing and/or delivering courses/modules related to disaster management and/or disaster risk reduction at the tertiary level. The interview questions covered 3 key aspects i.e., 1. the effectiveness of online delivery methods, 2. the status quo of online and distant DRR education and 3. the unique benefits of online education for DRR. The key findings suggest that an online setting works best when it is scientifically designed for the right audience, the right subject area, and the right mix. In creating inclusivity in DRR education, the digital divide needs to be acknowledged and interactive learning should be diversely designed. This study identifies gaps in digital disaster education, urging policy and practice changes to support diverse DRR communities beyond education providers and recipients. Keywords: Disaster education; Inclusive education; Online education
"To be informed and involved": women's insights on optimising childbirth care in Lithuania
No full textIntroduction: The user expectations and experiences of healthcare services are acknowledged as components of the quality of healthcare evaluations. The aim of the study is to analyse women's experiences and views on childbirth care in Lithuania. Methods: The study used the Babies Born Better (B3) online survey as the data collection instrument. The B3 is an ongoing longitudinal international project, examining the experiences of intrapartum care and developed as part of EU‐funded COST Actions (IS0907 and IS1405). Responses to open‐ended questions about (1) the best things about the care and (2) things in childbirth care worth changing are included in the current analysis. The participants are 373 women who had given birth within 5 years in Lithuania. A deductive coding framework established by the literature review was used to analyse the qualitative data. The framework involves three main categories: (1) the service, (2) the emotional experience and (3) the individually experienced care, each further divided into subcategories. Results: Reflecting the experience and views regarding the service at birthplace women wished empowerment, support for their autonomy and to be actively involved in decisions, the need for privacy, information and counselling, especially about breastfeeding. In terms of emotional experience, women highlighted the importance of comprehensibility/feeling of safety, positive manageability of various situations and possibilities for bonding with the newborn. Individually experienced care was described by feedback on specific characteristics of care providers, such as competence, personality traits, time/availability and encouragement of esteem in women in childbirth. The possibilities of homebirth were also discussed. The findings reflected salutogenic principles. Key Conclusions: The findings suggest that the Lithuanian healthcare system is in a transition from paternalistic attitude‐based practices to a shift towards patient‐oriented care. Implementation of the improvements suggested for women in childbirth care in Lithuania would require some additional services, improved emotional and intrapersonal aspects of care and a more active role for women. Patient/Public Contribution: Patients and the public contributed to this study by spreading information about surveys and research findings through their involvement in service user groups that have an interest in maternity care. Members of the patients' groups and the public were involved in the discussion of the results. Keywords: Babies Born Better survey, childbirth, Lithuania, maternity, qualitative research, women's experiences and views
The Jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania as a safeguard for human rights protection: recent ECtHR cases against Lithuania
No full textŠiame straipsnyje autorė nagrinėja Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucinio Teismo (toliau – Konstitucinis Teismas) jurisprudencijos reikšmę naujausioje Europos Žmogaus Teisių Teismo (toliau – EŽTT) praktikoje (laikotarpiu nuo 2020 m. sausio mėn. iki 2023 m. sausio mėn.). Nagrinėjamu laikotarpiu EŽTT dažnai rėmėsi Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija. Iš EŽTT naujausios praktikos matyti, kad EŽTT aiškiai parodo savo ir Konstitucinio Teismo pozicijų panašumą, lygindamas savo praktiką su Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija. Šių dviejų teismų pozicijų suderinamumas rodo abipusę pagarbą ir suderintą praktiką. EŽTT aiškiai nurodo, kad Lietuvos teismai pareiškėjų bylose nesivadovavo Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija, suformuota remiantis EŽTT praktikoje suformuluotais principais. Straipsnyje nagrinėjamos ir EŽTT bylos, kuriose Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija, kuria tinkamai vadovavosi Lietuvos teismai konkrečiose pareiškėjų bylose, padėjo išvengti Konvencijos pažeidimų. Galiausiai analizuojamos EŽTT bylos, kuriose EŽTT rėmėsi Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija kaip papildomu argumentu savo pozicijai pagrįsti. Pavyzdžiui, EŽTT rėmėsi Konstitucinio Teismo jurisprudencija žmogaus teisių ribojimo pateisinimo tikslais arba Lietuvos Vyriausybės (bylos šalies) argumentams atmesti. Pagrindiniai žodžiai: Konstitucinis Teismas, Europos Žmogaus Teisių Teismas, EŽTT, Žmogaus teisių ir pagrindinių laisvių apsaugos konvencija, EŽTK, teismų dialogas, teismų praktika.Under the Constitution, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter – the Constitutional Court) is the institution of constitutional justice which carries out the constitutional judicial control1. Pursuant to Article 102 § 1 of the Constitution, the Constitutional Court shall decide whether the laws and other legal acts of the Seimas are not in conflict with the Constitution and whether the acts of the President of the Republic and the Government are not in conflict with the Constitution or laws (the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, 1992). The Constitutional Court also presents the conclusions under Article 105 § 3 of the Constitution and examines the individual constitutional complaint under Article 106 § 4 of the Constitution