When Tsichanouskaya began her speech in Lithuanian, the Peasant Valius Ąžuolas stood up demonstratively and turned his back on her.
During Zurabishlivi's address, he sat facing away from the former Head of Sakartvelo.
Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, former Speaker of the Seimas and leader of the Liberal Movement, noticed and recorded this.
„Since two prominent politicians addressed the Seimas, it is not often that such an occasion arises, and usually, regardless of their views, the members of the Seimas listen attentively, respectfully, because they are foreign visitors. This is a demonstration of essential political culture.
However, some fellow Members demonstratively left the Chamber. They left when the speeches had just begun and returned as soon as they had finished. This is certainly not a coincidence,“ Čmilytė-Nielsen told Lrytas.
She took a picture on her phone of how Ąžuolas behaved during Zurabishvili's speech.
„And even one actor was demonstratively sitting turned away when the President was speaking. Such things show that the alternative part of our Seimas, which votes against the interests of the Seimas, is not hiding.
They show their attitude at every opportunity. When you see it every day in the Seimas hall, you can name it,“ the liberal noted.
Čmilytė-Nielsen did not hide that she was „disgusted to see such disrespect“.
The politician pointed out that during the guests' speeches, some representatives of Nemuno Aušra and the Union of Lithuanian Peasants, Greens, and Christian Families rose from their seats and returned only after they had finished speaking.
Ąžuolas: The mandate of a Member of the Seimas is free
Ąžuolas himself argued to the news portal Lrytas that every member of the Seimas is free to act according to their will.
„A member of the Seimas is free to behave freely in the Seimas hall – there are no rules of conduct. I don't know what's good or bad about that,“ he said.
The Peasant said there are speakers you sometimes do not want to listen to or hear, and then, according to him, you either leave the Chamber or stay outside it.
„If we talk about Tsikhanouskaya, she is a person who uses our taxpayers' money and does not even promise to go to work and earn her living like the 50,000 Belarusians who are in Lithuania.
This individual is, unfortunately, taking advantage. America has already cut off taxpayers' money to fund it, so I hope that Lithuania will do the same at some point, and I hope that the person will finally start working,“ argued Mr. Ąžuolas.
He also had criticisms of the former President of Sakartvelo.
„If the former President of Sakartvelo called for a coup in the country so that she could remain in power without being elected, this is probably not the kind of action that adorns a former President.
Some people think it is expected, some people are happy about it – it is up to each politician to decide how to evaluate the other politician“, he said.
He also rejected the former Speaker of the Seimas Čmilytė-Nielsen's criticism that the politician was simply showing disrespect to the visiting guest.
„We have various guests, but this does not mean that there is a monopoly on respecting the guest or that there is some instruction on who should be respected and who should not be. Each Member of the Seimas is free to decide who is highly respected and who is less respected,“ the Peasant pointed out.
He also disagreed with claims that such behaviour showed his pro-Russian position.
„What is pro-Russian here? I don't understand. In the last parliamentary term, some members of the Seimas even walked out of the Seimas chamber because of certain actions of the ruling party. It was a form of protest. There were times when we stood in the Chamber and turned away. It is the free mandate of a Member of Parliament to act according to their views,“ he reiterated.
The politician argued that in other parliaments, there have also been cases when foreign politicians have come, and local MPs have also turned away during their speeches.
„And this did not cause very negative emotions for anyone,“ he assured.