Audrius Butkevičius (born 24 September 1960 in

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...

) is a

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n politician, a signatory of the

Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania The Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania or Act of March 11 ( lt, Aktas dėl Lietuvos nepriklausomos valstybės atstatymo) was an independence declaration by Lithuania adopted on March 11, 1990, signed by all members of the S ...

, former minister of defense (1991-93), and member of the

Seimas The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendmen ...

(

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

) (1996-2000). He does not belong to any party. In 1988 was one of the organizers of the Lithuanian reform Movement "

Sąjūdis Sąjūdis (, "Movement"), initially known as the Reform Movement of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Persitvarkymo Sąjūdis), is the political organisation which led the struggle for Lithuanian independence in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was es ...

", a member of the Sąjūdis Seimas. He was an establisher and chairman of the "Tremtinio klubas" ("Club of Deportees") of Sąjūdis in Kaunas, the precursor of the

Lithuanian Union of Political Prisoners and Deportees The Lithuanian Union of Political Prisoners and Deportees ( lt, Lietuvos politinių kalinių ir tremtinių sąjunga, LPKTS) was a political party in Lithuania between 1990 and 2004. It represented interest of those repressed by the Soviet regime ...

. In the period of 1990-1993 he was in the state of negotiations with the Russian Federation. One notable issue that was raised was the withdrawal of the Russian troops stationed in Lithuania, whereupon Lithuania and Russia signed an agreement that declared that all of the Russian troops stationed on the territory of Lithuania must withdraw by 31 August 1993. The agreement was concluded on schedule. In the late 1990s Butkevičius was convicted and jailed for

fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...

. On 12 August 1997 he was apprehended by the Lithuanian secret service agents in a hotel lobby while accepting 15,000 US dollars. After a brief explanation, he was permitted to leave. On 14 August criminal proceedings were instituted against him. He was eventually arrested on 28 October, whereupon he was imprisoned and sentenced to five and a half years in jail. He was released on 20 March 2000. Subsequently, he appealed to the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...

. He stated that his detention was unlawful and that Articles 5 and 6 were breached. The court held the fact that these articles certainly were breached and that Lithuania was ordered to pay Butkevičius compensation. In 2007, he was elected to Vilnius City Council.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butkevicius, Audrius Living people 1960 births Members of the Seimas Ministers of Defence of Lithuania Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights European Court of Human Rights cases involving Lithuania Politicians from Vilnius Signatories of the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania