Dalia Henke, right, chair of the World Lithuanian Community, and Skirmantas Mockevicius, mayor of Jurbarka, in western Lithuania, campaign to change the country’s constitution and allow for dual citizenship.Anna Liminowicz/The Globe and Mail
Whether or not to allow dual citizenship is an issue Canada has long resolved, but it still divides Lithuanians, and has ever since the country broke free from the Soviet Union 34 years ago. On Sunday, voters here will finally decide whether Lithuanian citizens can also be citizens of another country.
Lithuania’s constitution has prohibited dual citizenship for everyone who left after the country declared independence in 1990. Only four other European Union countries – Austria, Estonia, Slovakia and the Netherlands – have similar restrictions, and more than 100 other nations, including Canada, have permitted some form of dual citizenship for decades.
The ban has left Lithuania’s substantial diaspora – estimated to number around one million – facing an often-painful dilemma about whether to give up their citizenship, and each year as many as 1,000 Lithuanians living abroad go through with it after becoming citizens of their adopted country.
“I live in Germany now. So why can’t I keep my Lithuanian passport when I get my German citizenship?” said Dalia Henke, chair of the World Lithuanian Community. “I’m Lithuanian in my heart, but why do I need to lose it?”
Ms. Henke has been among the campaigners pushing to win over enough support in Sunday’s referendum to change the constitution. The vote is being held in conjunction with the election for Lithuania’s president, which campaigners hope will increase turnout.
“We are hopeful,” Ms. Henke said after a meeting with voters on Tuesday in Jurbarka, a town in western Lithuania. “We are talking to as many people as possible.”
From left: Tadas Kubilius, an official in Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Mockevicius and Ms. Henke, address residents in Jurbarka about Sunday’s referendum.Anna Liminowicz/The Globe and Mail
The issue of dual citizenship has been divisive in Lithuania ever since independence. After the country split from the Soviet Union, patriotism and loyalty were deemed essential in building a new nation, and restricting dual citizenship played a key role. Deep mistrust of Russia lingered, and while the Russian-speaking population in Lithuania is relatively small, the idea of allowing someone to become a citizen of both Russia and Lithuania left many people wary of dual citizenship.
The steady stream of Lithuanians moving abroad, especially after the country joined the European Union in 2004, has intensified the debate. Expats argue that the sizable diaspora can provide substantial benefits to Lithuania in the form of greater international clout and support in a time of need. Along those lines, they point to Ukraine – which is also currently considering amending its constitution to allow dual citizenship – emphasizing how that country’s diaspora has been instrumental in the war effort.
But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has only heightened some Lithuanians’ concerns about dual citizenship. “People are afraid and most of them ask ‘What about Russians?’,” said Marija Šaraitė, who has been campaigning in support of a constitutional change in Vilnius, the country’s capital. The government has already made it clear that dual citizenship would not be extended to Russians, but Ms. Šaraitė said campaigners have had a difficult time convincing some people of that.
Only 47 “Lithuania-friendly” countries would meet the criteria for dual citizenship – including EU member states, NATO members and countries that belong to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Along with Russia, citizens of countries such as Argentina and South Africa would be excluded.
Most politicians and presidential candidates support the change, but getting enough people to cast a vote on the issue is a challenge. Ms. Šaraitė's group is holding an outdoor concert on Sunday, and several mayors have been holding public information sessions about the importance of the referendum.
Mr. Mockevicius, Mr. Kubilius, and Ms. Henke chat with residents.Anna Liminowicz/The Globe and Mail
“Absolutely, I favour it,” said Skirmantas Mockevičius, the mayor of Jurbarkas, who joined Ms. Henke at the town’s public library for the meeting with residents. Mr. Mockevičius has also been working with a number of other regional mayors to encourage people to vote “Yes” on Sunday.
He has two cousins living in the United States who had to give up their Lithuanian citizenship when they became American citizens. “The majority of people who came here to this meeting have somebody in their family who are living abroad,” he said.
After the meeting, Tekle Kucinaite, 18, said she would vote for the change. “I have a brother in Germany, and he had to give up Lithuanian citizenship and he’s now only German. And it’s really sad because we grew up together.”
While opinion polls show that most Lithuanians support dual citizenship, the population has been historically apathetic on the issue.
A similar referendum in 2019 failed because it didn’t meet the required voting thresholds. Changing the constitution requires what’s known as a double majority: at least half of eligible voters must participate in the referendum, and at least half of all voters must vote to approve it.
In 2019, the turnout was 53 per cent, which met the first test. Around 74 per cent voted in favour, but that represented only 38 per cent of all registered voters, short of the 50 per cent required.
There are also substantial sections of the population who oppose the idea. Many fear that dual citizens living outside the country could have undue influence on Lithuania’s affairs and elections, given that they could account for up to one-quarter of the population.
“I’m personally afraid they might vote in the wrong way,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Linas Idzelis, who heads the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union, a volunteer military organization that has around 15,000 members. “Why should they interfere in my life, living in the United Kingdom or somewhere?”
Others worry that dual citizens could claim social benefits or avoid compulsory military service.
Campaigners for the change have gone to great lengths to ease those concerns. They point out all citizens living abroad share only one representative in Lithuania’s 141-seat parliament, and that eligibility for social benefits is based on residency, not citizenship.
Furthermore, they remind people that dual citizens would still have to complete military service.