Integration monitor

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.

April 22, 2014

  • Latvijas Avize interviews the Riga City Council’s deputy Sarmite Elerte
  • Latvian Human Rights Committee highly appreciate the recommendation of the UN HRC to Latvia to "review the State Language Law and its application"

Latvijas Avize interviews the Riga City Council’s deputy Sarmite Elerte (the Unity.) Mrs Elerte believes that ethnic non-Latvian residents do not want to live in Russia, but, most likely, there is relative large percentage of those who want to see Latvia more pro-Russian. However, Mrs Elerte believes that idea of a pro-Russian Latvia is incompatible with Latvia as a national, democratic state. According to Mrs Elerte, granting Russian language official status in municipalities, granting Latvian citizenship automatically would strengthen two-community state. Sarmite Elerte believes that the capacity and funding of the integration department of the Ministry of Culture should be increased, and in the future it would be useful to appoint special minister for integration issues. Mrs Elerte also believes that it is an exaggeration to say that all Russian residents in Latvia live in Russia’s information space as a lot of residents receive information from local internet news portals and Latvian Radio Channel 4 – which is the most popular Russian language radio station in Latvia.

Vesti Segodnya interviews representatives of the Latvian Human Rights Committee Vladimirs Buzajevs and Aleksandrs Kuzmins about the information they and the state provided to the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) regarding the enjoyment of rights envisioned by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The interviewees highly appreciate the work of the HRC and especially its recommendation that Latvia "should review the State Language Law and its application in order to ensure that any restriction on the rights of non-Latvian speakers is reasonable, proportionate and non-discriminatory, and take measures to ensure access by non-Latvian speakers to public institutions and facilitate their communication with public authorities."

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  • Integration Monitor - daily Latvian press digest on minority and social integration issues

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