For the first time, the European of the Year 2021 award was organised in Lithuania. Vytis Jurkonis won the award after receiving the most votes from visitors to the Lithuanian national broadcaster portal LRT.lt. The long-term human rights defender V. Jurkonis was nominated for providing support to the Belarusian people based on European values. The vote, which was open to the public, was organised by the European Movement Lithuania (EML).

The European of the Year award was presented to the winner on 9 May in a special LRT television show dedicated to Europe Day. “I am very pleased that the European of the Year award has been launched, as it not only encourages us to think about what it means to be European, but also to take action to make Europe more like  Lithuania and Lithuania more like Europe. To me, the European of the Year award represents a huge commitment. I am grateful to those who nominated me and voted, and I want to believe that this is an expression of our solidarity and support for Belarusians. By fighting for their freedom and right to choose, Belarusians are sending a clear message that values such as freedom and democracy are unfortunately not just a matter of course,” said Vytis Jurkonis as he accepted the award.

According to Arnoldas Pranckevičius, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs, who was a member of the Selection Commission, it is gratifying that people are showing their appreciation of V. Jurkonis’ long-term activities based on the most important European values: strengthening democracy and demanding respect for human rights. “The protection of human rights and the provision of assistance to Belarusian citizens who have suffered as a result of the repressive Belarussian regime are only a small part of all the efforts made by Vytis Jurkonis, who reminds us every day that our European values are not a given. We need to nurture these values and be prepared to defend them every day. Such examples provide us with the inspiration to do so,” the Vice-Minister noted.

Vytis Jurkonis has been Head of the Lithuanian branch of the non-governmental human rights organisation Freedom House for many years. He also teaches at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University. Following the rigged presidential elections that took place in Belarus in 2020, V. Jurkonis implemented a number of initiatives to protect human rights, assist persecuted Belarusians and support political prisoners, in order to ensure support based on European values was provided for the Belarusian civil society.

In the final stage of European of the Year 2021, readers of the LRT.lt portal could choose from five candidates selected by the Competition Selection Commission. During the first stage of the competition, members of the public were invited to nominate their candidates and almost 50 nominations were received from all over Lithuania. Among the five other finalists were: Birutė Sabatauskaitė, a human rights defender and Equal Opportunities Ombudsman of the Republic of Lithuania; Dalia Puidokienė, Head of the Klaipėda Social and Psychological Services Centre; Aistė Adomavičienė, Head of the National Anti-Poverty Network; and journalist Elena Reimerytė with the “Colours” (Lith. “Spalvos”) project. “We are proud of Vytis and we congratulate him on becoming European of the Year 2021. We are very pleased that the European of the Year competition has received such a great deal of interest, both in nominating the candidates and in voting for those selected. It is only by working together that can we create a Europe that not only protects but also inspires us, so we intend to continue organising this successful competition for years to come,” said Gaja Šavelė, Chair of the Competition Selection Commission and Chair of the Board of the European Movement.

The European Movement, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania and the Representation of the European Commission in Lithuania, organised the European of the Year 2021 awards to honour a person who has contributed to spreading European values in Lithuania and implementing the goals set by the European Union. To commemorate the European Year of Rail, AB Lietuvos Geležinkeliai provided a special prize – the European of the Year 2021 card, which provides the winner with an opportunity to travel by train throughout Lithuania free of charge all year round.