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In Vilkaviskis district, several hundred people, who have dared to voice their opinion that is not liked by the authorities, have been interrogated.

Alvydas Lekesys, the coordinator of the referendum in the said municipality, who has helped to collect about 6,000 signatures, have received many complaints that people were invited to the police station or were visited by the police at home.

Pranciskus Sliuzas, the member of the initiative group of the referendum also confirmed it. According to him, Chair of the Central Electoral Commission (VRK) Zenonas Vaigauskas explained he had given to the Office of Prosecutor General only 400 conclusions of handwriting experts about suspicious signatures. "However, there were only 400 such signatures in the entire country, while about 500 hundred people were interrogated in Vilkaviskis district alone. I have no doubt that it is an attempt to intimidate people so they would never want to sign for holding a referendum again," said Sliuzas.

This information yesterday reached the Seimas as well. At a plenary session MP Aurelija Stancikiene informed her colleagues about the supporters of the referendum being already persecuted - "intimidation and bullying policy is carried out." Edvardas Gruzdys, the head of Vilkaviskis district police, confirmed information about the mass questioning taking place in the said municipality. Yet actually, he does not regard it as intimidation and persecution. "We have received an order of the Office of Prosecutor and we are working on correction of signatures. I think other commissariats will do the same," said Gruzdys. According to him, a direct order was received from Marijampole's Office of Prosecutor, while it has received an order from the Office of Prosecutor General and the latter is dealing with the query of the VRK.

At an interview with Respublika daily, Chairman of the VRK Vaigauskas assured that the Commission turned to the Office of Prosecutor General over only 400 signatures, which raised the suspicions of the experts, yet he could not explain why more than 500 persons were questioned in Vilkaviskis alone. He denied that the VRK had received an instruction from parliamentary parties to intimidate people.