• Riga City Council granted additional funding for Latvian language courses
• Political scientist Ilga Kreituse: local Russians want to be Latvian Russians, European Russians and therefore do not support radical ideas

The Riga City Council granted LVL 31,736 for five Latvian language learning courses for Riga residents. The priority target group for the courses is personnel of Riga preschool establishments. In total, it is planned to train 489 persons. Latvijas Avize

Latvijas Avize prints an interview with political scientist Ilga Kreituse about the current developments in Latvian politics. According to Mrs Kreituse, the elections to the Riga City Council showed that Russians speakers are less inclined to support radical nationalistic issues than ethnic Latvians. It is approved by the fact that the party “For Native Language” and radically minded leaders gain very little support of Riga residents. Mrs Kreituse believes that ethnic Russian residents of Latvia do not want to become like Russia’s Russians but they want to be Latvian Russians, European Russians and therefore do not support radical ideas. Mrs Kreituse also believes that it is important to follow the activities of the radical Russian activists and from which sources they receive funding.

• Vesti Segodnya: Latvian non-citizens are still unable to travel to the United Arab Emirates
• Baiba Broka:transition of education into Latvian language only is not violence against children

Vesti Segodnya reports thatLatvian non-citizens are still unable to travel to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). According to the MEP from Latvia Tatjana Zdanoka, the ban on non-citizens of Latvia was imposed year and a half ago, and the UAE authorities argue that such ban is necessary in order to combat the threat of terrorism. The Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs several times appealed to the UAE officials explaining the special status of Latvian non-citizens. Also the Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis during his visit to the UAE mentioned this problem, however, nothing has changed. Mrs Zdanoka considers that now it is a proper time to push again on the UAE as it actively holds conversation with the EU in order to achieve visa-free agreement with the Schengen area.

Head of the nationalists’ union faction in the Riga City Council Baiba Broka in an interview with Latvijas Avize says that the bilingual education system has not proved itself in Latvia as there are still problems with integration. Mrs Broka does not see any violence against children or oppression of democracy in transition education into Latvian language only. Mrs Broka says that a person does not need the genetic compliance to become ethnic Latvian but need a sense of belonging to this nation which is a matter of education and family.

 

• Vesti Segodnya interviews the ex-President of Latvia, current leader of the Reforms Party Valdis Zatlers

Vesti Segodnya interviews the ex-President of Latvia, current leader of the Reforms Party Valdis Zatlers who is planning to leave the post of the party’s leader in the up-coming party’s congress. Mr Zatlers asserts that for the Reforms Party ethnic factor is not a weapon of ideological battle. However, the society does not hurry to support such parties because it does not believe that it is possible, believes Mr Zatlers. Mr Zatlers also believes that Russian speaking residents get engaged in politics less that ethnic Latvians. 

• Administrative court reviews one more case on Latvianisation of personal name

 Latvijas Avize reports about a court case in which parents of a child are complaining about Latvianisation of the child’s name. The child was born in Germany and registered there as Hugo Mark, yet in Latvia, the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs registered the child as Latvian citizen adding Latvian ending –s to the name – Marks. Parents appealed such decision in the Administrative Court. Newspaper notes that in 2008, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in a similar case that if the EU citizen was born in one of the EU states and his/her name was registered in the registry of acts of civil status in the birth country, including birth certificate, according to the country’s legal rules, than the name of the person should be acknowledged in all others EU member countries, including the country of citizenship.

• Persons with dual citizenship most likely will be restricted of access to the state secrets
• Security Police refused to initiate a criminal proceeding regarding the elections to the Parliament of Unrepresented

 According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Edgars Rinkevics, there will be restrictions for persons with dual citizenship to occupy certain posts, especially those which are relevant to the work with the state secrets. The Minister says that the relevant amendments to the Rules of the Cabinet of Ministers are to be prepared and the issue should be solved by 1 October 2013. As reported, in May, the Saeima adopted the amendments to the Citizenship Law, which also allow Latvian citizens to have dual citizenship with the EU member states, the European Free Trade Association, the NATO, Australia, Brazil, and New Zeeland, or countries which concluded treaties on recognition of dual citizenship with Latvia. Vesti Segodnya

The Security Police refused to initiate criminal proceedings regarding the elections to the Parliament of Unrepresented conducted by the Congress of Non-Citizens as there are no components of the crime. The appeal to the Security Police and to the Constitution Protection Bureau was submitted by the leader of the nationalists’ union All for Latvia!/FF-LNIM Raivis Dzintars asking to check whether the alternative elections of the Congress of Non-Citizens are the attempt of the state coupe. Vesti Segodnya