Help Fight Lithuania Skating Ban

MARCH 2003 UPDATE: The skating ban announced in this article was reversed by the Klaipeda City Council in the Spring of 2004, so it is now possible to skate again in the third largest city in Lithuania (Hooray!).

On July 21, 2003, The third largest city in Lithuania voted to ban all forms of skating in their city

The city council of Klaipeda Lithuania, the third largest city in that country, has passed a complete ban on all forms of skating in their city. The law includes an absolute ban on inline skating, quad roller skating, skateboarding, cycling, and playing any other sports games in public areas of the city, including all of the streets, sidewalks, and squares.

Penalties for Skaters Who Violate the Ban
The penalty for skaters who violate the new law could anything from receiving an official warning up to a large fine, which could be as much as 500 US dollars..

No Support for Klaipeda Skaters
There is almost no support for skating in Klaipeda. The city has completely banned the sport of skating, but they only have one small outdoor skate park that was established by a group of local skateboarders, and that park receives no support at all from the city.

Skaters of Lithuania Unite
Thursday Night Fever, a social club of inline skaters from Vilnius, opposes decision of the City Council, and is planning a campagn to show their support for the skaters of Klaipeda, which will include keeping opposition to the skating ban in the news by sending out regular press releases. The Vilnius skaters are also considering traveling in a large group to Klaipeda and participting in a large protest ralley to support the local skaters.

Skaters of the World Unite
All skaters on the Planet Earth are urged to express their opinion about these restrictions ! They can do that by e-mailing the City Council of Klaipeda at rysiai@klaipeda.lt, with a cc (copy) to tnf@omni.lt.

About Klaipeda
Klaipeda is the third largest city in Lithuania, after Vilnius and Kaunas, and it is an important port and fishing center located on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea. It has a population of approximately 200,000 citizens. The city was known as "Memel" until 1923 when it passed from Sweden to Lithuania. In 1939 Klaiped was taken by Germany, and in 1945 it was incorporated into the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1991 Klaiped became part of the new and completely independent Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika)

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