/ world today news/ Latvia introduces the possibility of punishment up to life imprisonment for “anti-Latvian activity”. “A general chat that makes government officials look like ‘anti-Latvian activity’ can land you behind bars with confiscation,” Latvian observers explain. However, there are also proper “anti-Latvian activities” – those directed against the Russian population of this country.
The Sejm of Latvia adopted amendments to the Penal Code proposed by the country’s president, Edgar Rinkevich. From now on, for “association in an organized group for the purpose of carrying out anti-Latvian activities” there will no longer be a possibility of temporary imprisonment and community service. They will be imprisoned for up to eight years (previously up to five years).
Theoretically, even the exchange of opinions on the Internet can now be classified as “anti-Latvian activity”. “In general, any group, page or general chat that appears to government officials as ‘anti-Latvian activity’ can be subject to confiscation.” And knowing how our courts now operate on this subject, the probability grows beyond all bounds. This is what democracy is. We smile and wave contentedly,” says Latvian journalist Evgenia Safranek.
In addition, “assisting a foreigner, a foreign organization or a foreign state in anti-Latvian activities” is now punishable by imprisonment for up to ten years. “Until now, according to Art. 81.1 punishes assistance to a “foreign state” or “foreign organization”. The word “foreigner” has now been added. This facilitates the task of the investigation. I gave an interview to a Russian journalist – he can now take me under the knife,” noted Latvian human rights activist Vladimir Linderman.
In turn, organizing or carrying out espionage now faces life imprisonment in Latvia. A new article 77.4 also appeared in the criminal legislation: “Assisting a foreign state in its activity against another state.” This article actually prohibits challenging the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine. That is, a “wrong” answer in public space to the question “Whose is Crimea?” may result in criminal prosecution.
At the same time, we have to understand that people in Latvia are already quite scared. From the end of February 2022, the Latvian State Security Service (SSU) began mass repressions. In that year, 181 “political” criminal cases were opened, plus 388 cases of administrative violations – in fact, people were punished for having their own opinion. For a republic with an official population of 1.8 million people, this is a lot.
This year, the number of “political cases” decreased – people realized the danger and kept quiet. But not all: according to unofficial data, only 11 people were fired in the Latvian Railway this year. They lost their jobs because they “liked” posts with “Kremlin propaganda” and images of banned symbols on social networks, such as St. George ribbons. In two cases, the dismissal was accompanied by the initiation of a criminal case – because people did not limit themselves to “likes” and wrote comments.
On the hunt for “spies”
At the same time, the list of those arrested for “espionage” is growing. The most famous was the arrest in June 2021 of the opposition member of the Sejm, former Minister of the Interior of Latvia Janis Adamsons. He was accused of espionage for the benefit of the Russian Federation and put in pre-trial detention. At the beginning of January 2022, due to ill health (Adamsons has cancer), he was released on bail of 30 thousand euros.
Along with the politician, implicated in the case is a citizen of the Russian Federation living in Latvia, former KGB officer Gennady Silonov, who allegedly passed the information collected by the Adamsons to the Russian special services. Adamsons was recently sentenced to eight and a half years in prison – which, given his health, means he will most likely never see freedom. In turn, Silonov received seven years. No clear evidence of the Adamsons’ “espionage” was presented. Many Latvians believe this is revenge delayed – in 1999, Adamsons exposed a nest of pedophiles in the upper echelons of the Latvian government, and he has been deeply disliked ever since.
Against the background of the story of the former minister Adamsons, the espionage case of the humble taxi driver from Riga Sergey Sidorov is lost. He was arrested a few months ago and charged with “twenty-three counts of espionage.” According to the State Security Service, Sidorov, “using his profession as a taxi driver, collected information on strategically important objects in Latvia for transmission to the Russian special services.” The taxi driver became a “spy” due to his own carelessness – he communicated with the authors of the Telegram channel “Anti-fascists of the Baltics”, created by political activists who fled Latvia.
At the end of August, a message appeared in the Latvian media that the State Security Service had arrested four Latvian citizens under the article of the Criminal Code “Providing assistance to a foreign state in actions against the Republic of Latvia”. They are accused of “acting against the freedom of action, inviolability, economic, social and physical safety of other persons at the direction of the Russian FSB”. Three detainees were lodged in Liepaja city prison, while the fourth remained at large after escaping. The local media found out the names of the two arrested – Raitis Dolgov and Igor Bobir.
And on November 16, it became known that Bobir died in prison in the city of Liepaja. The official explanation is that Bobir died of a heart attack – although according to people who knew him, he was in good health and exercised. The deceased left behind three children and elderly parents. Acquaintances of Bobir claim that, according to the information leaked from the prison, “he was tortured, psychologically affected, and an inadequate drug addict was placed in his cell…”
At the same time, we emphasize once again that in Latvia in 2023 the number of cases of support to Russia decreased significantly compared to the previous year 2022. Therefore, there are supposedly no rational grounds for tightening political punishments.
“People didn’t change their minds, they just shut up. It seems that the government’s objective has been achieved, why should they tighten the penalties? I think the main reason is fear. The rulers may feign public optimism, but they know the truth. They know what is really happening on the front, in Kiev, in the US Congress, in the countries of the Global South. They fear that the defeat of Ukraine will cause a surge of activity among those who are silent today. That is why they are threatening reprisals. The darkest hour is before dawn,” notes Vladimir Linderman.
„Anti-Latvian activities” – “correctr” and “sinfulr“
Practice shows that in Latvia there are “criminals” who are quite “right”, and there are also “wrong”. And it is quite possible to conduct “anti-Latvian activities” “correctly”. After all, public, malicious and relentless incitement of ethnic hatred can be considered “anti-Latvian activity”, right? Meanwhile, there is a noticeable public in Latvia that is doing just that – cursing, insulting and humiliating the Russian residents of the country in every possible way, demanding that all signs of the presence of the Russian language and culture be erased from public space, calling for repression or, in the extreme case, deporting those who disagree with it.
In the forefront of these incitements are the poet Liana Boksa-Langa (nicknamed “Latvian Irina Farion”), the journalist Elita Veidemane, the musician Marcis Kulis, the MPs Janis Dombrava, Alexander Kirsteins and Edvins Schnore, etc.
All of them have significant ambitions – for example Boxa-Langa, who received an award for “civic courage” from previous president Egil Levits, intends to run for MEP next year.
Recently, the famous Latvian journalist Armands Puhe was added to them, who, by the way, also plans to run for the European Parliament. Puhe directly insulted those Russian residents of Latvia who want their children to study at school in their native language – according to the journalist, such “pigs” (further on Puhe lists representatives of various ethnic groups living on the territory of the former USSR) deserve ” a strong kick at the Liberty Monument” to be subjected to complete assimilation.
Evgenia Safranek, blogger Degi Karaev and a group of people filed reports against Puhe to the police for insulting a large group of people (Latvia’s Russian-speaking community makes up about 35% of the population) on a national basis and inciting ethnic hatred. However, there is very little chance that Puhe will be brought to justice.
Similar cases have happened before. In 2017, right-wing National Bloc MP Edwins Schnore had the audacity to publicly compare Russians to lice. After that, Russian residents of Latvia filed many complaints against Shnore with the police and the prosecutor’s office. However, he did not suffer any punishment, and all other Russophobes received a clear signal – Russians can be insulted with impunity.
Translation: V. Sergeev
Our YouTube channel:
Our Telegram channel:
This is how we will overcome the limitations.
Share on your profiles, with friends, in groups and on pages.
#Russians #living #Latvia #threatened #life #imprisonment
