• Riga City Council will not ban 16 March events in Riga
• Saeima’s civic education subcommittee supported a proposal to grant 16 March status of the official commemoration day of Latvian Waffen SS legionnaires
• MPs received an e-mail from the extremist organisation “Tautas Trubunals” with insults and direct threats
• Activist of the political party Unity wants to receive names of deputies who signed for support of a referendum on granting Russian language status of a state language

The Riga City Council will not ban the events planned to be held in Riga on 16 March – unofficial commemoration day of Latvian Waffen SS legionnaires. According to the Council’s Executive Director Juris Radzevics, the law enforcement bodies do not see threats for public order and security due to the planned events. This year, four organisations submitted application for events in the centre of Riga – nationalists’ organisations “Hawks of Daugava”, “Centre of Gustavs Celmins”, youth organisation “Let’s Play” which will hold a procession and pickets commemorating legionnaires and the “Union against Nazism” which will held a protest action against the procession of the legionnaires and their supporters. Vesti Segodnya

Yesterday, the Saeima’s civic education subcommittee of the Education, Science and Culture Committee supported a proposal of the nationalists’ union to grant 16 March status of the official commemoration day of Latvian Waffen SS legionnaires. The annotation to the draft law says that granting 16 March status of the official commemoration day “would restore historical justice and promote respectful attitude of the state authorities and society towards the Latvian national warriors.” On 14 March, the Saeima will decide whether to forward the draft law for further revision in its committees. In the meantime, the Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis stated that the majority of the MPs do not support such proposal, because the meaning of this date is too controversial and it does not unite the society but rather splits it.  Vesti Segodnya, Diena, Neatkariga

Vesti Segodnya reports that all the MPs received an e-mail from the extremist organisation “Tautas Trubunals” (People’s Tribunal – in English) with insults and direct threats to life to a number of politicians. The email contains many Russophibic and anti-Semitic epithets. In particular, authors of the email delivered to the e-mail address of the MP Valerijs Agesins (Concord Centre) stated that he resides in Latvia illegally and a revenge of ethnic Latvians is waiting for him. Mr Agesins is planning to turn to the Security Police asking to initiate a criminal proceeding on incitement to ethnic hatred and threats to life to a state official.

Latvijas Avize reports about attempts of an activist of the political party Unity Gatis Purins to receive from the Central Election Committee (CEC) names of the Parliament’s members and municipal deputies who signed for support of a referendum on granting Russian language status of a state language in Latvia. Gatis Purins believes the society has the right to know the state officials who supported such initiative. However, the CEC refused the claim of Mr Purins, the Administrative Distrcit Court also refused the claim to check the electronic data base of the Committee.

• Register of Enterprises delays registration of a party “Honour and Order” in Daugavpils
• Latvijas Avize prints an interview with the Russia’s Ambassador to Latvia Alexandr Veshnyakov

The Register of Enterprises (RE) sent appeals to the Security Police, the Bureau on Protection of Constitution, and the General Prosecutor’s Office asking to provide their opinion on whether there are any obstacles for registration of a party “Honour and Order” founded in Daugavpils (city in the Eastern part of Latvia). Representative of the RE refers to information distributed in mass media according to which the party has falsified documents about its founding meeting and that one of its aims is autonomy of Latgale region which may contradict Latvian constitution. As reported earlier, the Ministry of Justice criticized the registration of another party “For Native Language” headed by Vladimirs Lindermans seeing in it as hostile political force towards the state. Diena

Latvijas Avize prints an interview with the Russia’s Ambassador to Latvia Aleksandr Veshnyakov. According to the Ambassador, the biggest number of Latvian non-citizens who accepted Russia’s citizenship was registered in 2010, when 3,186 persons took Russian citizenship. In 2011 and 2012 this number dropped down to 3,147 and 2,884 persons. The Ambassador believes such dynamics is connected with difficult economic situation Latvia faced couple of years ago. According to the Ambassador, 713 Latvian residents resettled to Russia within the framework of the Russia’s state program on voluntary resettlement. Mr Veshnyakov believes that positive dynamics in relations between Latvia and Russia will be reached after both countries stop rhetoric which does not promote normal political climate between both.  

• Radical nationalist Mayor candidate proposes to liquidate minority kindergarten programmes and introduce higher taxes for foreign real estate buyers
• Anonymous informers of the State Language Centre publish personal information of persons allegedly lacking state language proficiency

 

Newspapers report about the Congress of the radical nationalist union "All for Latvia!-For Fatherland and Freedom / Latvian National Independence Movement" (AfL!-FF/LNIM) held on 9 March 2013. The leader of the union MP Raivis Dzintars emphasised that the union is strengthening its positions. The greatest challenges to the union are demographics, national ethnic culture, social justice and ethnic Latvianness. The Minister of Welfare Ilze Vinkele (Unity) got criticised for being "keen on solving pseudo-problems" of changing children gender identity while ignoring low birthrate in Latvia (the lowest in the EU). The union's candidate to the post of the Mayor of Riga Baiba Broka presented the action programme for the Riga municipality. Mrs. Broka proposes to liquidate minority kindergarten programmes and introduce higher taxes for foreigners, who buy real estate in Riga in order to receive residence permits in Latvia. Mrs Broka is disappointed about the fact that the Unity and the Reform Party did not respond to the call to strengthen the cooperation of "ethnically Latvian" parties in Riga municipality. Diena, Latvijas Avize, NRA, Vesti Segodnya

 

Vesti Segodnya reports that informers of the State Language Centre publish personal information and other details of persons or organisations accused of insufficient state language usage or proficiency: names, employment positions, names or registration numbers of the enterprises. Informers remain anonymous. According to the information of the State Language Centre, the number of complaints about insufficient usage or proficiency in the state language has increased 12-fold since 2005. 

• Latvijas Avize: Ministry of Education and Science did not leave the idea to wider usage of foreign languages in state funded higher education establishments

Latvijas Avize reports that the draft amendments to the Law on Higher Education Establishments submitted for the revision at the meeting of the State Secretaries by the Ministry of Education and Science foresee wider usage of not only the EU official languages but also of other foreign languages in the state funded higher education establishments. The draft amendments stipulate that a foreign language which is not the EU official language can be used in implementation of study programs starting with bachelor’s degree if there is a study program with the same content also implemented in Latvian language.  The draft amendments also stipulate that the final and state examinations could be taken in a foreign language as well as bachelor’s, master’s, qualification and promotion papers could be written in a foreign language. The Ministry explained that such amendments would promote competitiveness of the state funded higher education establishments. However, there are many objections against such amendment. Thus, the head of the Saeima’s Education, Culture and Science Committee, MP Inna Druviete stated that such system is unacceptable because it contradicts state language policy and she will do everything to prevent it.

• MP Valerijs Agesins asks the General Prosecutor to evaluate whether the statements of the MP Raivis Dzintars about enemies of Latvia incite ethnic hatred
• Nationalists’ union wants to introduce punishment for public blasphemy of the state language
• Municipality of Riga is planning to get involved in a project on promotion of communication between immigrants and the host community

MP, member of the Concord Centre Valerijs Agesins appealed to the General Prosecutor asking to evaluate whether the statements of the MP, leader of the nationalists’ union Raivis Dzintars about enemies of Latvia incite ethnic hatred. As reported, Mr Dzintars in an interview with Neatkariga on 27 February stated that there are a huge number of the state’s enemies reside in Latvia and they will betray the country at the first opportunity. Vesti Segodnya, Neatkariga

The nationalists’ union All for Latvia!-FF/LNIM wants to introduce punishment for public blasphemy of the state language. The nationalists propose to introduce amendments to the Criminal Law equating blasphemy of the state language to the blasphemy of other state symbols (flag, anthem, blazon).

Latvijas Avize reports that municipality of Riga is planning to get involved in a project on promotion of communication between immigrants and the host community. The project would promote communication based on mutual respect and ensure equal treatment, provision of services and other important issues.