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.

Integration and Minority Information Service
of the Latvian Centre for Human Rights and Ethnic Studies

• Former Prime Minister Andris Berzins blames former Minister for Education and Science Karlis Sadurskis for complications with the education reforms implementation
• Article questioning credibility of the non-governmental organizations Rietumu krievi and Pilsoniska iniciativa XXI
• Results of the survey Ukrainians in Latvia

Vesti Segodnya prints an interview with the former Prime Minister Andris Berzins about the education reform and Latvias accession to the European Union. Andris Berzins claims that all present complications with the education reform are the consequences of the unprofessional actions of the former minister for education and science. According to the former prime minister, his government has completed the monitoring of minority schools preparedness to the reform, and next Minister for Education and Science Karlis Sadurskis just had to develop a dialogue with all the stakeholders based on the monitoring results, but he chose a different way, and now it will be very difficult to achieve a compromise.

Chas features a critical article about the non-governmental organizationsRietumu krievi (Western Russians)and Pilsoniska iniciativa XXI (Civic initiative XXI)in response to the recent publications in the Latvian-language newspapers Diena and Latvijas Avize, where representatives of these organizations criticize activities of the Headquarters for the Defense of Russian-language Schools. Chas claims that organizations in question cannot represent the opinion of the Russian community and Russian intelligentsia on the education reform because total number of their staff is 5 persons. According to the newspaper, organization Rietumu Krievi is ‘substantially financed by the government, as they receive funding from the EU PHARE society integration program, which is administrated by the Society Integration Foundation.

Public policy portal

Public policy portal www.politika.lv features an article by the sociologist Natalija Lisogorova about results of the survey Ukrainians in Latvia about the attitude of the Ukrainian minority towards the issues of naturalization and Latvias accession to the EU. According to Natalija Lisogorova, Ukrainians join in the integration process very slowly – only 16, 3% of them have naturalized until now, which is the lowest naturalization level among Latvian minorities. At the same time, 46% of Ukrainians support integration, but 61% believe that the process of integration has not started yet. The sociologist believes it proves that there are different views on integration aims and principles within the society, and that formalization of the state integration structures has possibly distanced them from the Ukrainian minoritys needs and interests.