• MP Andrejs Elksnins: Russian should be granted status of ethnic minority language in Latvia
• Vesti Segodnya prints an article by Aleksandrs Gilmans about recently terminated criminal proceedings against him on incitement to ethnic hatred and denial of genocide
• Latvijas Avize reports about the meeting of the Congress of Non-Citizens

The MP, member of the Concord Centre Andrejs Elksnins believes that it is not normal that Russian language which is native language for around 40% of residents has status of foreign language in Latvia. He believes that Russian should be granted status of ethnic minority language. Mr Elksnins believes that such status would promote society consolidation and would not harm the status of Latvian language as state language. In order to grant status of ethnic minority language to Russian there is no need to change the Constitution, but it is enough to adopt the law on ethnic minorities or to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Vesti Segodnya

Vesti Segodnya prints an article by Aleksandrs Gilmans about a criminal proceeding against him on incitement to ethnic hatred and denial of genocide, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace and justification of war crimes, which was recently terminated due to the lack of evidence. Gilmans was charged for an article about Stalinist deportations in Latvia in 1941 published on 15 June 2012 following a letter to the Security Police initiated by the leader of nationalists’ union All for Latvia!/FF-LNIM, MP Raivis Dzintars. Gilmans describes the materials of the case. For instance, the police asked the Ombudsman, two historians and one linguist to evaluate his statements. But in the end, only the conclusion of the Ombudsman was taken into account according to which Mr Gilmans did not exceed the limits of the freedom of speech.

Latvijas Avize reports about the meeting of the Congress of Non-Citizens (CN) conducted on 21 September. The CN expressed its support to the party Russian Union of Latvia because both have the same aims – to grant Russian language official status in Latvia and to grant citizenship to all non-citizens.

• Miroslavs Mitorfanovs (Russian Union of Latvia): the hopes of ethnic Latvians might turn towards Russia again in the future
• Minister of Defence believes that Youth Guard can increase patriotism of young people and promote society integration
• Nationalists repeatedly submitted proposal to ban on the issuing of residence permits to Russian investors

Vesti Segodnya reports that the Head of the Saeima’s National Security Committee Valdis Zatlers called the Security Police to check the election campaign material of the political party the Russian Union of Latvia (RUL). The party’s newspaper was distributed in Latgale (eastern Latvian region) in which, allegedly, Latgale was compared with Crimea. One of the leaders of the RUL Miroslavs Mitorfanovs in an interview with the newspaper explains that the same newspaper was distributed in all Latvia (not just Latgale) and that the party signed cooperation agreement with Crimea in order to show its sympathy and solidarity with the Crimean people. He hopes that these contacts with Crimea will give opportunity for Latvian businesses once the sanctions will be lifted. He believes Latvian journalists and the ex-president Valdis Zatlers invented second interpretation of the agreement with Crimea: if Latvia will not care about Latgale and if the EU will not care about Latvia, then another country and another union will take care. He also believes that ethnic Russian residents of Latvia would be equals among equals with ethnic Latvians within the empire as there would be no discrimination in admission to the civil service and no moral terror of language inspection. At the same time, Mitrofanovs says that the majority of ethnic Latvians want to develop their own independent state and ethnic Russian minority has only one moral choice: to support ethnic Latvians in their choice. However, he also assumes that in the perspective of the next 10 years, if the standard of living in Latvia will be lower than in the neighbour countries, the sympathies of ethnic Latvians might change and the hopes of ethnic Latvians might turn towards Russia again.

According to the Minister of Defence Raimonds Vejonis, the Youth Guard in Latvia can help to increase patriotism of young people and promote society integration. The Minister believes that every Latvian school must have its detachment of Young Guards. Vesti Segodnya

The nationalists’ union All for Latvia!/FF-LNIM repeatedly submitted to the Saeima proposal to ban the issuing of residence permits to Russian investors and owners of expensive real estate. The nationalists want to restrict the influx into Latvia of Russian citizens who possess certain economic influence. The same proposal was refused by the majority of the Saeima last week. Latvijas Avize

 

• Latvia will not respond to the statements made a representative of Russia’s Ministry of Foreign regarding attacks on Russian language and Russophobia in Baltic States
• Neatkariga interviews political scientist Ilze Ostrovska about geopolitical changes

Commenting recent statements made by a representative of the Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that Russia will not tolerate attacks on Russian language and Russophobia in Baltic States including Latvia, a representative of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that such statement cannot be viewed as a personal opinion of a state official but it is official Russia’s position. However, the Ministry is not planning to respond on such provocative statement. According to the representative of the Ministry, by accusing other countries Russia’s officials try to hide unsatisfactory human rights situation in own country, to suppress criticism of international society towards Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and to hinder integration process in Latvia. Diena

Neatkariga interviews political scientist Ilze Ostrovska about geopolitical changes. According to her, the worst developments that can happen in Latvia is that after next 4-6 years, Latvia might receive is a proposal to establish a government of so-called pro-Russian parties in exchange for not being occupied. Mrs Ostrovska also believes that Russian will propose Latvia to join the Eurasian Union promising cheep oil and gas and such proposal will be hard to resist. Thus Latvia might take fatal errors. The only factor able to stop such developments is insight of politically active ethnic non-Latvians and Latvians that only occupants would benefit from the occupation.

• Russia’s Embassy protested against LTV1 accusations that the Embassy assists volunteers to join the separatists in East Ukraine
• Neatkariga interviews the MP Raivis Dzintars
• Days of Belorussian Culture start in Latgale

The Russia’s Embassy to Latvia submitted a protest to the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding a TV story broadcasted on LTV 1 according to which Russia’s Embassy assists persons willing to take part in the military actions in the Eastern Ukraine on the side of separatists. In the TV story, journalists interviewed anonymous persons who claimed to be residents of Latgale (region in the eastern part of Latvia) and planned to travel to the Eastern Ukraine as mercenaries. According to anonymous persons, Russia’s Embassy assists in processing with documents and promises to pay. The Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not approve credibility of such information arguing that such issue is in the competence of the security services. Vesti Segodnya

Neatkariga interviews the MP, one of the leaders of the nationalists’ union All for Latvia!/FF-LNIM Raivis Dzintars. As one of the strategic actions aimed at strengthening of sense of belonging to Latvia among its residents, Mr Dzintars proposes the state to define a national order for commercial media as well as complete implementation of national order in public media. The order should be oriented towards ethnic Latvians and representatives of other ethnicities, says Mr Dzintars. Mr Dzintars also says that if the Concord Centre, who has signed the co-operation agreement with Putin’s party and supported granting Russian language status of official language in Latvia,  comes into the government after the upcoming parliamentary elections it would be a signal to the world that allegedly Latvia also wants to become Russia’s subordinate country.

Vesti Segodnya reports about the launch of Days of Belorussian Culture in Latgale region named “Love Latvia, Remember your Roots.” The aim of the event is to acquaint Latvian residents with Belorussian culture and to remind that Belorussian diaspora is integral part of Latvia.

• The Saeima’s Committee supported the proposal to forbid foreign language proficiency requirements in the work contracts, unless such proficiency is necessary for the fulfilment of job duties
• Conference “Russian World in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia” conducted in the House of Moscow in Riga

The Saeima’s Committee on Social and Labour Affairs supported draft amendments to the Labour Law proposed by the MP from the nationalists’ union Vineta Porina stipulating that a work contract shall not include foreign language proficiency requirement unless such proficiency is necessary for the fulfilment of job duties. As reported, such proposal did not gain support of the Latvian Employer’s Confederation. Vesti Segodnya

Vesti Segodnya reports about a conference “Russian World in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia” conducted in the House of Moscow in Riga this weekend. The participants discussed options how to unite Russians in different countries and criticized the alleged growth of Russophobia in the EU countries and neo-Nazi and fascist sentiments, as well as double standards regarding these issues. Representative of the Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs compared the recently adopted Preamble to the Constitution of Latvia with a Nazi slogan “Germany for Germans”.