HEADLINES
The President of Latvia congratulates 100,000th naturalised citizen of Latvia On 8 September 2005, the President of Latvia, Vaira Vike-Freiberga, congratulated the one hundred thousandth naturalised citizen, 17 year-old Deniss Rostrovski, and 14 other new citizens. The President noted that through Latvian citizenship people gain the capacity to determine the country's future, because in a civil, democratic state the power belongs to the people, and the government is only its manifestation. Every citizen has a vote, and all votes are equally significant. However, to gain this vote, non-citizens have to go through a special naturalization process. The President congratulated the new citizens on having chosen citizenship, stressing that this is a wise and correct choice, as these people now have the same rights as other citizens. The President emphasized that in a law-based, democratic state all the citizens have equal rights, and they all have common duties and responsibilities. She urged them to realize that Latvia, now belongs to them as its citizens and that they belong to it, and that it is now in their hands to shape it. She invited the young people to continue to study and the adults – to support their children and family members, in order to help them become successful and valued members of Latvian society. President's Chancellery (08.09.2005) BNS (08.09.2005) Statistics on naturalization (as at August 31, 2005) Latvia's Minister of Foreign Affairs opens a travelling exhibition National Minorities in Latvia: Then and Now On 8 September 2005, a travelling exhibition, National Minorities in Latvia: Then and Now, in Latvian and English, prepared at the initiative and under the auspices of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Artis Pabriks, was opened at the Saeima (Latvia's parliament). The exposition reflected the ethnographic situation in Latvia's territory in the course of centuries and shows the development, over time, of the traditional minorities in Latvia. It brought to light the minority policy of pre-war Latvia and showed the composition of the Latvian community of citizens until the beginning of the Soviet occupation in 1940. The exhibition showed the role of the historical minorities in the political, social, and cultural spheres in the period between the two world wars. The exposition revealed the changes that have occurred as the result of Latvia's occupation by two major powers and also displayed the current situation in the areas of naturalisation and societal integration. The exhibition at the Saeima was open for viewing from 8 to 22 September. Before travelling abroad, it was also shown at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a goal of raising awareness of the position of national minorities. The project was prepared by the Deputy Director of the Latvian War Museum in charge of the research work, Juris Ciganovs, and the Director of Latvia's Naturalisation Board, Head of Office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Latvia, Ilmars Mezs, in cooperation with the Director of the Latvian Naturalization Board, Eizenija Aldermane. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has provided the financial support for the project. It is planned that the exposition revealing the minority policy of Latvia and the development of Latvian citizenry before the Soviet occupation in 1940 will travel to the Embassy of Latvia to Belgium and Belarus, and in spring – to Switzerland and the Netherlands. It might also be exhibited in Germany, Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic, Sweden and Great Britain. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (06.09.2005) Latvijas Avīze (09.09.2005) Liv language preservation plan to be developed by State Language Agency experts Experts from the State Language Agency will elaborate a plan for Liv (Livonian) language preservation and development. It is planned to include this plan in the special-purpose programme Livs in Latvia. Experts from the State Language Agency, who have experience in drafting conceptual language policy documents and implementation of language policy, will develop the language section of the plan. At the moment the Liv language, as the language of Latvia's second basic nationality, is considered an endangered language and the number of people able to speak this ancient Finno-Ugric language is very small. The preservation and development of the Liv language is defined as a priority in the national long-term special-purpose programme Livs in Latvia. Several activities are being undertaken at the moment as part of the programme: funding of Liv language courses, organisation of language camps for children and young people, publishing of "Liv Yearbook". The Latvian government supports the projects of Liv non-governmental organisations and also individual projects which promote the study and maintenance of the Liv language by publishing and preparing audio recordings of the language, as well as dictionaries and textbooks. In cooperation with the University of Tartu, the leading centre for Liv language research, a conference on the Liv language and a seminar for Liv speakers was organised this year. BNS (23.09.2005) Sports unite different nationalities On 10 September 2005, the mood of the participants of the sports games in the Jelgava sports hall was one of fun and sportsmanship. Lilija Putane, a member of he Lithuanian culture society team, noted that such sports games were very exciting and definitely needed because they create the feeling of togetherness, as well as provide entertainment. Among the more numerous groups was the Roma Culture Association team consisting of 17 members. The sports games gathered members of Jelgava Jewish Society, Jelgava Russian community, Ukrainian culture centre "Dzerelo", Jelgava Roma Association, Jelgava Lithuanian Society "Vytis" and the local department of the Latvian Polish Union, as well as their family members. The idea of organising sporting competitions that bring different cultures together was suggested by the leaders of the various ethnic societies last year, and the application of the project for the contest for non-governmental organisations issued by the Jelgava City Council was supported. Latvijas Avīze (12.09.2005)
For more information:
Newsletter "Societal Integration in Latvia: Towards Mutual Understanding and Cooperation" is a compilation of press releases and news reports drawn from the mass media and official sources. Not all of the views published reflect the official position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. |
|
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
