Integration monitor is a daily Latvian press digest on ethnic minority and society integration issues. The Monitor reviews the biggest Latvian dailies: Diena, Latvijas Avize, Neatkariga (in Latvian language), Vesti Segodnya (in Russian language). In specific cases other information sources are used. Latvian Centre for Human Rights is not responsible for information published by the media.

• Parents of a Russian language school in Aizkraukle protected school against eviction from its historical building
• Leader of the Anti-Fascist Committee Josifs Korens criticizes a new musical about Herberts Cukurs
• Saeima’s Speaker Solvita Aboltina: now it is not a proper time to organise any protest actions in Latvia

Vesti Segodnya reports that due to effort and activities of parents of students of a Russian language secondary school in Aizkraukle, the local council declined its plans on optimisation of local schools. Initially, the local council planned to merge the Russian language secondary school with Latvian language gymnasium in one building due to low number of students. But the building of the Russian language school would be given to a Latvian language primary school. Parents of the Russian students stood against such plans fearing those endanger further fate of the Russian language school. As a result, head of the Aizkraukle’s council stated that he does not want any conflicts in the town and took a decision that the Russian language schools remains in its historical building.

Leader of the Anti-Fascist Committee Josifs Korens criticizes a new musical about Herberts Cukurs staging by Latvian producers. Herberts Cukurs is know as a prominent Latvian pilot and one of the members of the SS unit called “Arajs Kommando”. H. Cukurs was involved in murders of Latvian Jews during the Holocaust but never stood trial. In 1965 he was killed by Mossad agents. Mr Korens believes that musical about H. Cukurs is another attempt to rehabilitate one of the Nazi criminals as the announcement about the musical says no word about his Nazi past but speaks about H. Cukurs as only about a great pilot. Vesti Segodnya

According to the Saeima’s Speaker Solvita Aboltina, now it is not a proper time to organise any protest actions in Latvia in the light of events in Ukraine. Mainly it was addressed to the protest action planned by Latvian pensioners who want to protest against the harsh economic and social situation and the protest action planned for 6 March by the Congress of Non-citizens against the transition of education in minority schools into Latvian language. As a response to such statement, representative of the Congress Elizabete Krivcova stated that the protest action will be conducted anyway. She also stressed that the source of instability in the Baltic states are not the local ethnic Russian residents but discriminatory policy towards them.