Far-right publisher faces libel

Latvia's security police have opened a criminal case against right-wing publisher Aivars Garda and his publishing house, Vieda Publishing, over comments in its recently released book "Homosex-uality - The Infamy and Misery of Mankind."

State prosecutors asked the security police on April 23 to investigate whether Garda should be charged with "libel against a representative of state power or another state official" after the head of state-owned Latvijas Radio, Dzintris Kolats, complained that the book contained libelous information about employees at the radio station.

"The book clearly offended my colleagues," said Kolats. "I'm offen-ded by what he wrote because it's totally untrue."

The book is a collection of essays assailing homosexuality written by various authors from throughout Latvia. According to a source familiar with the investigation, there are three statements in particular from Garda's preface to the book that investigators are paying close attention to.

The first is Garda's assertion that "Latvijas Radio is a passionate defender of pederasts and civil occupants," a term he uses to refer to ethnic Russians living in Latvia.

He later poses the rhetorical question to the reader: "Has power in Latvijas Radio been completely taken over by traitors, people who operate in the lower intestines, and lesbians?"

And about Kolats he writes that in a broadcast on Latvijas Radio last Jan. 22 "he demonstrated a technique that was 'piepidarot'" a fictitious Latvian word of Garda's making that he explains in the footnotes as meaning "infected with homosexual propaganda."

"I feel like my right to air my views is being infringed on," Garda told The Baltic Times. "Before the book came out I was invited to speak on four different Latvijas Radio programs. But since then Latvijas Radio is not cooperating and are not allowing me to air my views."

Garda questioned why the security police, and not Latvia's state police, are in charge of the investigation.

"The security police deal with issues when the state's security is in jeopardy, but in this case it clearly isn't," he said. "Latvijas Radio's chief legal counsel Dzidra Reinika is the wife of security police chief Janis Reiniks, so there is an obvious conflict of interest."

According to Nils Muiznieks, director of the Latvian Center for Human Rights and Ethnic Studies, though, the security police investigate cases when extremist groups are involved.Garda heads an NGO called The National Front, labeled by some as an extremist organization. He said that the group stands for the complete "de-occupation" and de-colonization of Latvia by "illegal immigrants."

In a letter to the governor of Russia's Krasnodarsky region last month, Garda made waves by pledging to repatriate 1 million ethnic Russians from Latvia. He sent copies of the letter to the American and Russian presidents as well as to the pope.

Last year, Garda's publishing house produced a controversial book of essays about what Latvia would be like if there were no ethnic Russians living in the country, and what Latvia should do to make the ethnic Russian population leave the country.

"Security institutions in Latvia have been following my actions for a year, but they couldn't find anything to nail me with so they are persecuting me for my political views," said Garda.

Some of Garda's critics are particularly disturbed by the inclusion of essays by both the head of Latvia's Roman Catholic Church, Cardinal Janis Pujats and the head of Latvia's Lutheran Church, Archbishop Janis Vanags in the anti-homosexuality book.

"The Catholic Church and Mr. Garda share a common view of homosexuality," said Pujats. "The church recognizes marriages only between a man and woman. Same-sex marriages are one of the biggest sins that one can commit."

Garda believes that if Latvia joins the European Union it will be forced to legalize same-sex marriages.

Pujats doesn't feel that his contribution to Garda's latest book lends him credibility. "I have no comment on the other things that Garda wrote in his books. I have his other book on the shelf in my office, but I haven't read it yet," said Pujats.

"On issues other than homosexuality, my views conflict with Garda's, but individuals have to decide for themselves if my name should be associated with his other views and books."