LHRC: Ten years of apartheid in Latvia

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Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2001 18:06:13 +0300 (EEST)
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Subject: LHRC: Ten years of apartheid in Latvia

From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>

Original sender: Leonid Raichmann <[email protected]>

LHRC: Ten years of apartheid in Latvia
        

Ten years of apartheid in Latvia
        
Ten years ago, on October 15, 1991, the residents of Latvia were
divided into two main groups - citizens and non-citizens.

Leaders of Latvia's independence movement in late eighties - early
nineties have promised citizenship to every
permanent resident who wishes to be a Latvian citizen (para. 2.4. of
the pre-election program of the "Popular Front", adopted in October,
1989) � so called "zero option".

Many non-Latvians had believed in this promise and voted in favor of
independent democratic Latvia at the referendum in 1991. However,
these people were deceived.

One third of the population of Latvia were deprived of all political
rights in spite of possessing these rights at the moment of the
previous elections. This is a unique case in parliamentary history: a
parliament deprived his own voters of citizenship and, thus, voting
rights. 

At the moment, the non-citizens of Latvia constitute 23% of the total
population. No country in the world has such a large number of
non-citizens. Moreover, a half of these people were born in Latvia,
and overwhelming majority of "non-citizens" have declared their wish
to Latvian citizenship in 1992-1993. 

However, only 7 percent of the non-citizens of Latvia have been
naturalized since 1995. At the current pace of
naturalization, the statelessness problem in Latvia is not going to be
resolved in the nearest decades. 

There were about 15,000 applications to the Naturalization Board in
1999 � a record number since the start of the process. However, the
naturalization process has slowed down recently, as the number of the
applications submitted in 2001 constitutes only 57% of the same number
two years earlier. It means, that the "capacity" of the positive
amendments to the Law "On citizenship" adopted in 1998 (abolishment of
the "age-windows") is already exhausted. 

As a result of division into citizens and non-citizens and thus,
deprivation of the non-citizens of all political rights, the great
majority of persons belonging to national minorities in Latvia are
deprived of an adequate representation both at the national and local
government levels. 

Out of 100 MPs, only 16 represent national minorities' interests,
which stands significantly lower than the share of minorities within
the total population (42%). Very few state officials belong to
national minorities.

As a result, national minorities have almost no influence upon
decision making even on the matters, which directly concern minorities
themselves: education, usage of the native language in communication
with authorities, projects on societal integration, etc. Latvian
legislation discriminates against non-citizens in respect of economic
and social rights, including employment (e.g. jobs of barristers,
detectives, land-surveyors, etc., are reserved to citizens only). 

150 years ago Victor Hugo wrote that granting universal suffrage
abolishes people�s right to revolt. Does it mean that a quarter of
Latvia�s people has the right to revolt? Indeed, this part of
population should be considered as politically repressed.
   
We believe, the following steps have to be taken to ensure real
democracy in Latvia:

- to grant all permanent residents the right to vote and to be elected
at the local elections;

- to grant Latvian citizenship by registration to all those
"non-citizens" born in Latvia, who request it; 

- to simplify the procedure of naturalization exams and minimize the
limitations on the right to be naturalized. 


Latvian Human Rights Committee 

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