Zalewski, a member of Poland's liberal Civic Platform, gave his opinion during a discussion held at the International Relations and Political Science Institute of Vilnius University on Thursday.
"Why did the party make the good showing last year? I my opinion, there is only one answer. You spoke about mobilization of voters. I agree with that. For example, if you settled the name-spelling issue and the problem with location names but, first of all, solved the name-spelling issue, the mobilization would not be able to be as strong. In democracy, politicians have to mobilize their electorate. All citizens are equal," Zalewski said.
He said he understood the efforts of Lithuanians to restore their national identity, emphasizing that the historic conflict between the Lithuanian and the Polish identities has been settled.
"Without a doubt, I am aware of the historic background, I truly respect the Lithuanians who sought to restore their national identity in the second half of the 1800s, and I realize the causes behind the conflict between the Polish and the Lithuanian identity," said the MEP.
"The problems were solved only because Poland stepped back. Poland withdrew from the East, the eastern territory. It was a very wise decision on Poland's side. It allowed settling conflicts that dated back decades and centuries, for instance, with Lithuania or Ukraine. Today, there are no discussions as to whether Lviv is a Polish or a Ukrainian city. After World War Two, Poland universally acknowledged that the territories should belong to Ukraine, Belarus, or Lithuania, there are no discussions on this subject," said the politician of the neighboring country.
The situation of national minorities has been causing tensions between Lithuania and Poland over the past few years. Among Polish-speakers' demands are allowing to use original Polish spelling of their names in passports and putting up bilingual street signs in districts dominated by non-Lithuanian-speaking populations.
Lithuania's Justice Minister Juozas Bernatonis of the ruling Social Democrats has said that a bill on spelling of non-Lithuanian names should be submitted to the government by May.
