All Lithuanian schools in Poland that have been risking closure due to insufficient funding will receive the necessary funding

All Lithuanian schools in Poland that have been risking closure due to insufficient funding will receive the necessary funding, according to a leading Polish-Lithuanian lobbyist. Irena Gasperaviciute told Baltic News Service on Thursday that the Polish Ministry of National Education and Sport has allocated 880,000 zloty (200,000 euros) for schools with instruction in Lithuanian. Currently there are eight such schools in Poland, located in the towns of Sejny and Punsk. In Punsk Lithuanians comprise 80 percent of the population, and in Sejny the make up one-third of city residents. Of the eight schools with Lithuanian instruction five are threatened with closure since the local administration was unable to finance their upkeep and pay teachers’ salaries. To protest the schools’ predicament, the Lithuanian community in the two towns hung Polish flags with black bands outside the schools. Both Lithuanian and Polish schools were informed of the situation, and together the two sides reached an agreement whereby Warsaw would provide finance. According to the latest Polish census there are only 6,000 Lithuanians living in Poland, while the Lithuanian community claims the real number is closer to 20,000.