Policing Social Transition: Public Order Policing Change in Lithuania

Drawing from a series of interviews with senior police officers, Ministry officials and local government officers, this article examines policing change in post-Soviet Lithuania. Its particular focus is the policing of public order, and to this end it refers to the policing of a number of events both during the early transition phase and the present. Initially, the militia system of policing is outlined, before considering some of the obstacles facing the move towards democratic policing. The article then compares the early police reform proposals with the realities of the present. It concludes by arguing that whilst the police have made significant moves towards de-politicisation, they are still heavily centralised. Further, the de-militarisation process has recently taken the form of para-militarisation. Finally, it is suggested that the policing of protest generally operates on a formal 'law and order' ethos, rather than a more flexible and discretionary basis.