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.

• Saeima votes down proposal on ratification of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
• Rene van der Linden: Latvia should promote societal integration of Russian-speakers
• Diena points to inevitability of ethnic voting in tomorrows municipal elections
• After a possibly racially motivated assault, police increases patrolling in the OldTown
• Peoples Harmony Party calls for resignation of the head of Saeima Foreign Affairs Committee
• Minister of Justice Solvita Aboltina blames the State Security Police for not preventing registration of a national-Bolshevics organisation
• Latvijas Vestnesis writes about terrorist threats and Muslims in Latvia
• Opening of an Ethnic Centre in Daugavpils

Yesterday Saeima voted down proposal of the union For Human Rights in the United Latvia (FHRUL) to ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. Only 19 MPs from the FHRUL, the Peoples Harmony Party and the Latvian Socialist party supported this proposal, while the 57 representatives of the governing coalition and the union For Fatherland and Freedom/LNIM voted against, and 10 MPs, mainly from the parliamentary group of Latvias First Party, abstained. Latvijas Avize, Chas, Vesti Segodnya

‘We expect an intensification of the Latvian governments work in the area of Russian-speakers integration, stated the president of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Rene van der Linden during an interview to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti. Rene van der Linden believes that it is necessary to help Russian-speakers to learn Latvian language, and to facilitate the naturalisation process in order to foster social integration. Telegraf, Vesti Segodnya

Diena points to the inevitability of ethnic voting in tomorrows municipal elections. According to the newspaper, political parties use nationalistic issues in order to frighten voters. Political analyst Marija Golubeva notes that parties For Human Rights in the United Latvia and the New Centre extensively use minority education reforms issue in their pre-election campaigns. Party For Fatherland and Freedom/LNIM warns voters about possible appearance of street signs in Russian after the planned ratification of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The head of the International Migration Organisations Bureau in Latvia Ilmars Mezs believes that ethnic voting is pre-conditioned by the demographic situation in Latvia, and predicts that people will not start to vote on a different basis for another ten-twenty years. Diena

Following an order of the Minister of Interior Eriks Jekabsons, police started to pay special attention to the places in the Old Town of Riga where skinheads and other radically minded young persons are known to gather. The minister issued the order after a possibly racially motivated assault against a dark-skinned Indian in the Old Town. Diena

Proposal of the Peoples Harmony Party to recall the head of Saeima Foreign Affairs Committee Aleksandrs Kirsteins (Peoples Party) from his post was not included in the Saeimas agenda yesterday. The chairperson of the party Janis Jurkans reproached Aleksandrs Kirsteins for his recent statements about necessity to substitute the state integration policy for partial assimilation or repatriation of ethnic non-Latvians. Latvijas Avize, Chas, Vesti Segodnya, Telegraf

The Minister of Justice Solvita Aboltina expressed indignation about the fact of the State Security Police not being able to provide legal arguments to the Register of Enterprises which would be good enough to prevent registration of a National Bolshevik organisation NBP. According to the Minister of Interior Eriks Jekabsons, who supervises work of the State Security Police, the police repeatedly asked the Register of Enterprises not to register this organisation. Latvijas Avize, Vesti Segodnya

Latvijas Vestnesis publishes an article about last year terrorist attack in Madrid, present terrorist threats in Europe, Islamic extremists, and Muslim community in Latvia. The author states that it is difficult to obtain precise information about number of Muslims living in Latvia. According to the head of the Board on Religious Affairs Ringolds Balodis, approximately 2,000 supporters of this religion united in seven religious organisations and several cultural societies, are living in Latvia, while chairperson of the Riga Muslims Board Rufija Sevireva names a figure of 5,000. Latvia. According to Latvijas Vestnesis, Muslims pose no threat to the political system or state security at present, but the situation could change due to a possible increase of the number of asylum seekers in the future.

This week the Ethnic Centre of Daugavpils was opened in the building of Daugavpils City Council, with a financial support of the EU PHARE programme. According to the project coordinator Ilze Onzule, the goal of the centre is to promote collaboration between different ethnic communities in Daugavpils. 54,3% of people living in Daugavpils are Russians, 17,2% - Latvians, 15% - Poles, and 8,3% - Belarussians. Diena