Saeima committee could review next week petition calling for suspending activities of Latvian Russian Union

  • 2022-07-19
  • LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - A public initiative on the ManaBalss.lv portal demanding that activities of the Latvian Russian Union be suspended could be considered by Seaima Mandate, Ethics and Submissions Committee next week, as the committee's head Janina-Kursite-Pakule (National Alliance) told LETA.

The committee would review the initiative as soon as it is received from the Saeima Presidium, said Kursite-Pakule.

Representatives of the prosecutor's office and the State Security Service will be invited to the committee's meeting where the initiative will be discussed, said the MP. It is possible that, based on amendments to the Law on Political Parties, Saeima could vote on transferring the initiative to the prosecutor's office, as it has the right to turn to a court in order to suspend a political party.

More than 10,000 citizens signed the petition during the signature drive on ManaBalss.lv portal for the initiative to stop the operations of the Latvian Russian Union. The initiative was submitted to the portal this past May by Gatis Aizins, who said that he wanted to "encourage Latvian lawmakers to create a precedent and establish a system for putting a halt to political and other activities that obviously are anti-state", which should start with termination of the Latvian Russian Union as a political party.

"The Latvian Russian Union is not part of democracy, it is a weapon of the enemies of democracy. If this initiative is implemented, it will set an example of how to protect Latvian and Western values in the future," said Auzins.