Latvian constitutional referendum, 2012

Last updated
Result by municipality. IN FAVOUR 100.0%--90.0% 89.9%--80.0% 79.9%--70.0% 69.9%--60.0% 59.9%--50.0% AGAINST 50.0%--59.9% 60.0%--69.9% 70.0%--79.9% 80.0%--89.9% 90.0%--100.0% 2012 Latvian referendum.svg
Result by municipality.
Latvia
Coat of Arms of Latvia.svg
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Latvia
Foreign relations

A constitutional referendum on the "Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia" was held on 18 February 2012. [1] Proposed amendments included Articles 4, 18, 21, 101 and 104 of the Constitution of Latvia by adding the condition about Russian as the second official language, as well as prescribing two working languages — Latvian and Russian — for self-government institutions. [2] The referendum's question was "Do you support the adoption of the Draft Law "Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia" that provides for the Russian language the status of the second official language?". [3]

Constitution of Latvia

The Constitution of Latvia is the fundamental law of the Republic of Latvia. Satversme is the oldest Eastern or Central European constitution still in force and the sixth oldest still-functioning republican basic law in the world. It was adopted, as it states itself in the text, by the people of Latvia, in their freely elected Constitutional Assembly of Latvia on 15 February 1922 and came into force on 7 November 1922. It was heavily influenced by Germany's Weimar Constitution and the Swiss Federal Constitution. The constitution establishes the main bodies of government ; it consists of 115 articles arranged in eight chapters.

Russian language East Slavic language

Russian is an East Slavic language, which is official in the Russian Federation, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as being widely used throughout Eastern Europe, the Baltic states, the Caucasus and Central Asia. It was the de facto language of the Soviet Union until its dissolution on 25 December 1991. Although nearly three decades have passed since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Russian is used in official capacity or in public life in all the post-Soviet nation-states, as well as in Israel and Mongolia.

Contents

According to the 2000 census, Russian was the native language of 37.5% and the second language of 43.7% of the residents. Since 2000, Russian has been regarded as a foreign language according to the Official Language Law. [4]

A person’s second language, or L2, is a language that is not the native language of the speaker, but is learned later. For example, there are two official languages of Canada and some people use both.

Background

In 2010, the National Alliance started to collect signatures to force a referendum on whether all publicly financed schools would have to use Latvian exclusively. By 9 June 2011, they had gathered 120,433 signatures of the minimum 153,232 signatures required, failing to force a referendum.

National Alliance (Latvia) right-wing political party in Latvia

The National Alliance, officially the National Alliance "All For Latvia!" – "For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK", abbreviated to NA, is a right-wing populist, national-conservative political party in Latvia. With thirteen seats in the Saeima, the National Alliance is the fourth-largest party in the national parliament and the third-largest party in the government. The party is a coalition of conservatives, Latvian ethnonationalists, and economic liberals.

Latvian language Baltic language, official in Latvia and the European Union

Latvian is a Baltic language spoken in the Baltic region. It is the language of Latvians and the official language of Latvia as well as one of the official languages of the European Union. It is sometimes known in English as Lettish, and cognates of the word remain the most commonly used name for the Latvian language in Germanic languages other than English and Norwegian. There are about 1.3 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and 100,000 abroad. Altogether, 2 million, or 80% of the population of Latvia, speak Latvian. Of those, 1.16 million or 56% use it as their primary language at home. The use of the Latvian language in various areas of social life in Latvia is increasing.

Protesting against the National Alliance initiative, on 15 February 2011, the youth movement "United Latvia" (Russian : Единая Латвия), led by Eduard Svatkov, announced the idea of making Russian an official language, alongside Latvian. [5] [6] On 4 March 2011, "United Latvia", together with the newly created organisation "Mother Tongue" (Russian : Родной Язык), led by activist Vladimir Linderman (former leader of the Latvian branch of the Russian National Bolshevik Party), Yevgeny Osipov (leader of "Osipov Party"), [7] and Aleksandr Gaponenko (director of the Institute of European Studies, economist), started to collect signatures for a referendum petition. [8] [9] They gathered 187,378 signatures, forcing a referendum. [10] [11] [12]

Vladimir Ilyich Linderman is a Latvian and Russian publicist, political dissident of Jewish origin, and a member of Russia's unregistered National Bolshevik Party since 1997. Linderman is a non-citizen of Latvia.

National Bolshevik Party political party

The National Bolshevik Party operated from 1993 to 2007 as a Russian political party with a political program of National Bolshevism. The NBP became a prominent member of The Other Russia coalition of opposition parties. Russian courts banned the organization and it never officially registered as a political party. In 2010, its leader Eduard Limonov founded a new political party, called The Other Russia. There have been smaller NBP groups in other countries.

Initiative means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote

In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote in parliament called an indirect initiative or via a direct initiative, the latter then being dubbed a Popular initiated Referendum.

The referendum initiators mentioned possible assimilation of minority children as the main reason to protest. [13] [14] One of the goals of this protest action was to slow down the ongoing process of National Alliance signature collecting. [15] Those initiating the referendum to make Russian co-official argued: "In such case there is no other defense method than attack. The initiator of hysteria should be shaken strongly to stop hysteria." [16]

Cultural assimilation is the process in which a minority group or culture comes to resemble those of a dominant group. The term is used to refer to both individuals and groups; the latter case can refer to a range of social groups, including ethnic minorities, immigrants, indigenous peoples, and other marginalized groups such as sexual minorities who adapt to being culturally dominated by another societal group.

The referendum was held after the Saeima rejected the draft law "Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia" supported by more than one-tenth of the voters during the Collection of signatures. At least half of the entire electorate has to vote Yes in the referendum in order for it to be valid (771,893). [17]

Saeima parliament of Latvia

The Saeima is the parliament of the Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the popular vote. Elections are scheduled to be held once every four years, normally on the first Saturday of October. The most recent elections were held in October 2018.

Legal scholars stated that beside statehood elements, the initiative would have influenced multiple basic human rights and general principles of law protected by the Constitution of Latvia, such as the right to preserve and develop the Latvian language and Latvian ethnic and cultural identity, to participate in the work of the state and of local government, and to hold a position in the civil service; the right to choose one’s employment and workplace freely; the right to education; the rights of a child; and the right to equality and non-discrimination, principles of proportionality, legal certainty, and legitimate expectations. [2]

The referendum organisers did not deny that the main achievement would be to show a large number of Russian language supporters and the final goal would be to change the status of Russian from foreign to some legal (i.e. regional) in the future. [18] Official status for Russian was requested due to the fact that the Constitution and Official Language Law do not have any other definitions for language status other than making a language official. Amendments for granting any other status for Russian (i.e. regional) would have had a higher risk of rejection by the Constitutional Court, thus cancelling the referendum. [19]

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe High Commissioner on National Minorities Knut Vollebæk planned to visit Latvia after the referendum. [20]

Proposed constitutional changes

Current Constitution of LatviaProposed Constitution of Latvia
Article 4The official language in the Republic of Latvia is the Latvian language. The flag of Latvia is red with a white stripe.The official languages in the Republic of Latvia are Latvian and Russian languages. The flag of Latvia is red with a white stripe.
Article 18The Saeima itself shall examine the mandates of its members.

The elected person receives his mandate, when during a Saeima sitting he delivers a solemn promise:

"I, undertaking the duties of a member of Saeima, in front of the Latvian people swear (solemny promise) to be loyal to Latvia, while strengthening its sovereignty and the Latvian language as the only official language of the state, defend Latvia as an independent and democratic state, fulfill my responsibilities fairly and under full consciousness. I promise to abide by the Constitution as well as the legislation of Latvia."

The Saeima itself shall examine the mandates of its members.

The elected person receives his mandate, when during a Saeima sitting he delivers a solemn promise:

"I, undertaking the duties of a member of Saeima, in front of the Latvian people swear (solemny promise) to be loyal to Latvia, while strengthening its sovereignty and the Latvian as well as Russian languages as the only official languages of the state, defend Latvia as an independent and democratic state, fulfill my responsibilities fairly and under full consciousness. I promise to abide by the Constitution as well as the legislation of Latvia."

Article 21The Saeima shall draw up the rules of procedure for the regulation of its internal proceedings and order. The working language of the Saeima is the Latvian language.The Saeima shall draw up the rules of procedure for the regulation of its internal proceedings and order.
Article 101Every citizen of Latvia has the right, in the manner prescribed by law, to participate in the activity of the state and local governments as well as to perform state service.

Local governments are elected by the citizens of Latvia and the European Union who reside in Latvia. Each citizen of the European Union, who constantly resides in Latvia, has the rights, in the manner prescribed by law, to participate in the activity of the local governments. The working language of local government is the Latvian language.

Every citizen of Latvia has the right, in the manner prescribed by law, to participate in the activity of the state and local governments as well as to perform state service.

Local governments are elected by the citizens of Latvia and the European Union, who resides in Latvia. Each citizen of the European Union, who constantly resides in Latvia, has the right, in the manner prescribed by law, to participate in the activity of the local government. The working languages of local governments are Latvian and Russian languages.

Article 104Everyone has the right, in the manner prescribed by law, to turn to the state and local government institutions with applications and to receive an answer in point of fact. Everyone has the right to receive their answer in the Latvian language.Everyone has the right, in the manner prescribed by law, to turn to the state and local government institutions with applications and to receive an answer in point of fact. Everyone has the right to receive their answer in the Latvian and Russian languages.

Polling stations abroad

A total of 85 polling stations in 41 countries — the greatest number ever — have been open outside Latvia. [21] Besides the stations in all Embassies and many Consulates General and Honorary Consulates of Latvia, polling stations were operating in the Latvian Houses in Australia, in the Daugavas Vanagi House in London, and in the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Churches in the United States. New polling stations were operating in Austria, Chile, Ireland, Norway, Switzerland, Venezuela, and in the British cities of Boston and Manchester, as well as the island of Guernsey. [21]

Campaign

Mayor of Riga Nils Ušakovs, an ethnic Russian, initially refrained from supporting the referendum, but later called for a "yes" vote. [10] [22] [23] [24] President Andris Bērziņš initially stated he would abstain before calling for a "no" vote. [25] Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis also called for a "no". [25]

Opinion polls

According to research conducted by the Baltic Institute of Social Sciences in 2004, [26] 51% of respondents supported or rather supported official status for Russian, 44% opposed or rather opposed it. The focus group for this research was all the inhabitants of Latvia, including Latvian non-citizens and foreign citizens.

According to a poll performed by TNS Latvia in January 2012, 59% of citizens would vote 'no', 25% 'yes', 10% would abstain, and 6% had no opinion on the issue. [27] According to a poll performed by Latvijas fakti in January 2012, 62.4% of citizens would vote 'no', 28% 'yes', 12.8% would abstain, and 7% had no opinion on the issue. [28]

Results

Latvian constitutional referendum, 2012 [29]
ChoiceVotes%
X mark.svg No821,72274.80
Yes273,34724.88
Invalid or blank votes3,5240.32
Total votes1,098,593100.00
Registered voters and turnout1,545,00471.11

Around three-quarters of voters voted against Russian as a second national language, with only the eastern region of Latgale seeing a majority of citizens voting for the change. The referendum had considerably higher voter participation than in previous elections and referendums, with more than 71.1% of registered voters casting ballots. [30]

Controversy

A large part of the Russian speaking community in Latvia (290,660 or 14.1% of Latvia's entire population) could not vote in this referendum because, since 1991, they have held non-citizen status and thus have no right to vote. However, the above numbers also show that non-citizens could not have changed the result of the referendum if they had been allowed to vote. If all 290,660 members of the Russian community had participated and voted in favor of the motion, the proposal would still have been rejected with 59.15% against and 40.60% in favor, with turnout increasing to 75.68% from 71.11%.[ citation needed ]

Analysis

Analysts say the turnout, at nearly 70 percent, indicates the strength of feeling among many ordinary Latvians, who are keen to distance themselves culturally from their former Soviet rulers. [31] The referendum can widen the schism in society and the government will have to undertake serious efforts to consolidate the country's two groups. Though the Russians who spearheaded the referendum admitted they had no chance at winning the plebiscite, they at least hope the approximate 25 percent of support will force Latvia's center-right government to begin a dialogue with national minorities. Many fear the disgruntled minority will keep up the pressure by calling for more referendums to change Latvia's constitution for minorities' benefit. [32]

See also

Related Research Articles

Demographics of Latvia

This article is about the demographic features of the population of the historical territory of Latvia, including population density, ethnic background, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Politics of Latvia

The politics of Latvia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The President holds a primarily ceremonial role as Head of State. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament, the Saeima. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The Economist Intelligence Unit has rated Latvia as "flawed democracy" in 2017.

Latvian Russian Union political party

The Latvian Russian Union (LKS) is an ethnic minority, left-wing political party in Latvia, supported mainly by ethnic Russians and other Russian-speaking minorities. The co-chairpersons of the Latvian Russian Union are Miroslav Mitrofanov, Yuriy Petropavlovsky and Tatjana Ždanoka.

Dissolution of parliament in Latvia

The Constitution of Latvia, ratified on February 15, 1922, contains a provision regarding one of the reserve powers of the President of Latvia to initiate the dissolution of the parliament. According to Article 48-50 of the Constitution,

Russians in the Baltic states

Russians in the Baltic states describes self-identifying ethnic Russians and other primary Russian-speaking communities in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, commonly referred to collectively as the Baltic states. In 2017, there were 0.9 million ethnic Russians in the Baltic States, having declined from 1.7 million in 1989, the year of the last census during the Soviet era.

Latvia does not recognize same-sex unions, either in the form of partnership or marriage. The Latvian Constitution prohibits the recognition of same-sex marriages.

Delfi is a major internet portal in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania providing daily news, ranging from gardening to politics. It ranks as one of the most popular websites among Baltic users.

LGBT rights in Latvia

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Latvia face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Latvia, but households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples. Same-sex couples are unable to marry or adopt. Latvia does not recognize same-sex marriage or any other type of partnership, including registered partnerships.

Valdis Zatlers President of Latvia

Valdis Zatlers is a Latvian politician and former physician who served as the seventh president of Latvia from 2007 to 2011. He won the Latvian presidential election of 31 May 2007. He became President of Latvia on 8 July 2007 and left office on 7 July 2011 after failing to win reelection for a second term.

Language policy in Latvia

Articles 4 and 114 of the Constitution of Latvia form the foundation for language policy in Latvia, declaring Latvian to be the official state language and affirming the rights of ethnic minorities to preserve and develop their languages. Livonian language is recognized as "the language of the indigenous (autochthon) population" in the Official Language Law, but Latgalian written language is protected as "a historic variant of the Latvian language." All other languages are considered foreign by the law on state languages. Latvia provides national minority education programmes in Russian, Polish, Hebrew, Ukrainian, Estonian, Lithuanian, and Belarussian.

2008 Latvian constitutional referendum

A constitutional referendum to amend the constitution of Latvia in order to allow one-tenth of the total registered electorate to initiate a popular referendum to dissolve the Latvian parliament was held in Latvia on 2 August 2008.

2010 Latvian parliamentary election general election

Parliamentary elections were held in Latvia on 2 October 2010. It was the first parliamentary election to be held in Latvia since the beginning of the economic crisis during which Latvia had experienced one of the deepest recessions in the world.

Andris Bērziņš (Latvian President) eighth president of Latvia

Andris Bērziņš is a Latvian businessman and politician who was President of Latvia from 2011 to 2015. Bērziņš was the President of Unibanka from 1993 to 2004. He was elected as President by the Saeima on 2 June 2011.

Reform Party (Latvia) Latvian political party

The Reform Party, until April 2012 known as Zatlers' Reform Party, was a centre-right political party in Latvia founded by former President Valdis Zatlers on 23 July 2011. It won 22 seats in the Saeima in the 2011 election.

2011 Latvian parliamentary election election

Early parliamentary elections were held in Latvia on 17 September 2011, following the country's first parliamentary dissolution referendum held on 23 July 2011. The previous parliamentary election was only held in October 2010.

For the Native language! was a political party in Latvia. The party's leader was Vladimir Linderman.

Russian language in Latvia

The Russian language in Latvia is the second most commonly used language at home and 26.9% of the population were ethnic Russians (2011).

Amendments to the Citizenship Law of Latvia, suggested by a popular initiative in 2012, sought to grant citizenship of Latvia, starting in 2014, to those non-citizens who would not refuse it. The proposed amendments were rejected by the Central Election Commission. The CEC decision was contested by the proponents of the amendments, who applied to court. The court proceedings were suspended in 2013, with the Supreme Court requesting the Constitutional Court to decide on the compliance of some applicable provisions with the Constitution.

References

  1. ↑ "Valodas referendums notiks 18.februārī" (in Latvian). Delfi.lv. Retrieved January 23, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Jarinovska, Kristine. "Popular Initiatives as Means of Altering the Core of the Republic of Latvia", Juridica International. Vol. 20, 2013. p. 152, ISSN   1406-5509
  3. ↑ "Referendum on the Draft Law "Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia"". Web.cvk.lv. 2012-01-18. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  4. ↑ "Valsts valodas likums". Vvk.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  5. ↑ "Vienota Latvija: Krievu valodai ir jābūt oficiālai valsts valodai". Vienotalatvija.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  6. ↑ "Activitists want Russian to be Latvia"s 2nd state language: Voice of Russia". :. 2011-02-16. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  7. ↑ ""Партия Осипова" официально зарегистрирована". Ves.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  8. ↑ ""Vienota Latvija" sāk parakstu vākšanu par krievu valodas nostiprināšanu Satversmē". Vienotalatvija.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  9. ↑ ""Единая Латвия" начинает сбор подписей для закрепления русского языка в Сатверсме". Vienotalatvija.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  10. 1 2 "The voice of the people". The Baltic Times. 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  11. ↑ "Don't panic at Russian referendum in Latvia" (in German). eurotopics.net, Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung. 2012-02-09. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  12. ↑ Владимир Линдерман, инициатор референдума в Латвии: "Не врите, что русский язык был ввезен в Прибалтику на танках" (in Russian). Komsomolskaya Pravda. 2012-01-25. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  13. ↑ "Может ли русский язык быть вторым государственным?". Old.subbota.com. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  14. ↑ "Peculiarities of bilingual education from the point of view of the national identity". Noravank.am. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  15. ↑ "За русский язык". Gazeta.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  16. ↑ "За родной язык". Za-rodnoj-jazik.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  17. ↑ "Referendums notiks; 18.februārī visi dodamies balsot" (in Latvian). Tvnet.lv. Retrieved January 23, 2012.
  18. ↑ "Линдерман: получение русским официального статуса и в интересах латышей тоже". Ves.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  19. ↑ http://www.nasha.lv/rus/novosti/news/Interwie/46990.html
  20. ↑ DELFI. "После референдума в Латвию прибудет комиссар ОБСЕ Воллебек - DELFI". Rus.delfi.lv. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  21. 1 2 Andris Straumanis (2012-01-20). "Voting abroad on language issue possible in more places than ever". Latviansonline.com. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  22. ↑ Ушаков: Нам не нужна конфронтация после референдума. Нам нужен диалог (in Russian). ushakov.lv. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  23. ↑ Мэр Риги изменил мнение по вопросу присвоения русскому языку госстатуса в Латвии (in Russian). REGNUM News Agency. Retrieved February 15, 2012.
  24. ↑ LETA (February 18, 2012). "Ušakovs nobalso par krievu valodu un sola papildu līdzekļus latviešu valodas apmācībai" (in Latvian). Delfi.lv. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  25. 1 2 TVNET/LETA (February 18, 2012). "Valsts prezidents un premjers balso "pret"" (in Latvian). Tvnet.lv. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  26. ↑ Ethnopolitical tension in Latvia: looking for solving the conflict — see p. 39 Archived 2007-05-09 at the Wayback Machine .(in Latvian)
  27. ↑ "59% of citizens to vote against Russian as the second official language". Baltic News Network. 2012-01-17. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
  28. ↑ "В Латвии 62% избирателей собираются голосовать против русского языка". Newsbalt.ru. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  29. ↑ ":: CVK » 2012. gada 18. februāra tautas nobalsošana par likumprojekta "Grozījumi Latvijas Republikas Satversmē" pieņemšanu » Provizoriskie rezultāti". Tn2012.cvk.lv. 2012-02-18. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  30. ↑ Provisional results of the referendum Retrieved 2012-02-19. (in Latvian)
  31. ↑ Latvians say “no” in Russian language vote www.euronews.net. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  32. ↑ Latvia Russian Language Referendum Has High Turnout The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.