On Thursday, with the votes of the opposition and the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS), the Saeima adopted a law on Latvia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, or the so-called Istanbul Convention.
The draft law was submitted by the opposition party “Latvija first” (LPV), but it was also supported by other opposition parties – National Association (NA), “Apvienotais listis” (AS) and “Stability”, as well as politicians from the ZZS in the ruling coalition. The withdrawal from the convention was not supported by the coalition parties “New Unity” (JV) and “Progressivie”.
56 deputies voted for withdrawal, 32 JV and “Progressive” politicians were against, but two deputies – Igors Rajevs and Didzis Šmits – abstained. The debate on the bill lasted more than 13 hours.
The Law on Withdrawal was adopted as a matter of urgency, however, it was not established by a 2/3 majority, which opens the possibility for the President not to promulgate it and return it to the Parliament for a second review. Opponents of the decision also voiced other possible solutions for stopping or delaying the entry into force of the law – an appeal to the Constitutional Court (ST) or an appeal to the president to stop the promulgation of the law, giving time to collect signatures for initiating a referendum.
As the LETA agency informed ST, taking into account that the Saeima has chosen to resolve the issue of the possible denunciation of the Istanbul Convention by adopting a law, such a law should theoretically be challenged in the Constitutional Court. Upon receiving such an application, the panel of the Constitutional Court should decide whether to initiate a case.
Initially, the draft law proposed by LPV did not even have an annotation or justification, which LPV prepared within a couple of weeks. LPV believes that the current implementation practice of the Istanbul Convention prevents us from gaining confidence, whether in every case state and local government institutions implement measures against violence and its risks in accordance with the principles contained in the declaration.
LPV is not satisfied that several other members of the Istanbul Convention – Austria, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland – have expressed objections to the declaration added by Latvia to the ratification of the convention. In all these objections, the declaration’s non-compliance with the norms of the Istanbul Convention is stated as the main argument, that is, the declaration is considered an unauthorized reservation. LPV concludes that the international community does not agree with the declaration expressed by the Saeima and opposes the understanding with which Latvia has approved the Istanbul Convention and assumed the international obligations established in this convention.
LPV believes that withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention “will eliminate the problems of application of its norms” related to the declaration added by Latvia and its non-recognition by several other member states of the Istanbul Convention. Also, in LPV’s view, withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention will give the country more freedom of action to allocate state budget funds to those measures and to those state and local government institutions and non-governmental organizations that “really need funds” to prevent and combat violence.
The other opposition parties also supported the idea of LPV. Although the convention is aimed at eliminating violence, opposition MPs traditionally invoke and highlight the concept of “social gender” mentioned in one of its places, which is attributed a negative impact on traditional family values.
The opposition in this matter is also supported by the politicians of the ZZS in the coalition, who have claimed that the Istanbul Convention offers an ideological, not a practical approach to the problem, as its content is largely based not on specific instruments for combating violence, but on an ideological view of the so-called “social gender”.
ZZS sided with the opposition on this issue in a vote at the end of September, thereby causing pronounced instability in the government coalition. The coalition partners are committed to work to adopt next year’s “security budget”, but only a rare politician expresses faith in the ability of Prime Minister Evikas Siliņa’s (JV) government to work in the long term. Support for the ratification of the Istanbul Convention was one of the bases for the establishment of the Silina government and the inclusion of ZZS in the coalition with JV and “Progresivajii”.
Meanwhile, most experts and non-governmental organizations working on violence prevention issues oppose the idea of withdrawing from the convention, expressing concern that it will reduce the protection of victims against violence and negatively affect Latvia’s international image in the eyes of Western allies.
On Wednesday, a protest against the withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention took place near the Saeima. At least 5,000 residents took part in it, and this was one of the most numerous residents’ protests in recent years. On the other hand, on Thursday, a picket was held near the parliament to denounce the Istanbul Convention, in which about 20 people participated.
Until now, the President Edgars Rinkevičs has spoken very evasively about the denunciation of the convention, without expressing support for one or the other position. According to the president, this is how he tries to maintain neutrality so as not to become a participant in the pre-election battles. Rinkēvičs has admitted that after the decision of the Saeima, the issue of withdrawing from the convention will come to “his table”, and then he will comprehensively evaluate it and make a decision.
Beata Jonīte, a representative of the “Marta” women’s rights protection organization, emphasized that since the ratification of the Istanbul Convention, people are turning for help much more often. Andra Švinka, the representative of the “Skalbe” association, stated that the number of people seeking help has increased because “people feel that the state protects them”. According to her, if there is no international monitoring mechanism, the national level might lack the ability to deal with the problem.
The representatives of the “Dardedze” center emphasized that the contribution of the Istanbul Convention is a clear system for working with violence prevention, and the violence prevention plan for 2024-2029 was also created on its basis. for the year, including the duties of all ministries and other institutions.
On the other hand, the law enforcement officer Karina Palkova explained that the term “social gender” highlighted by the opponents of the convention refers to people’s social role, not biological sex. She stated that the convention complies with the values of the Constitution. The convention does not provide for the recognition of another gender, does not encourage gender change, Palkova commented on widespread misconceptions. She also stated that the convention does not interfere with the term family, its main goal is to prevent domestic violence. Palkova pointed out that the convention makes prevention of violence an obligation for states and disciplines them in this area.
The judge of the General Court of the European Union, Inga Reine, stated that Latvia’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention would create a negative presumption against the country and potentially negatively affect international cooperation, but would not reduce obligations much.
At the same time, the majority of Saeima deputies have supported the declaration prepared by NA, ZZS and AS, which they present as an “alternative to the Istanbul Convention”. “Progressives” and JV stood against it, respectively stating that such parties, which want to denounce the Istanbul Convention, are trying to “wash themselves”, to create the illusion that this declaration could in any way be an alternative to the Istanbul Convention. “Marta” representative Jonīte noted that the statement of local politicians cannot replace the convention, because it does not provide for obligations and control mechanisms for the state.
In Latvia, the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, or the so-called Istanbul Convention, entered into force on May 1 last year. It is an international treaty that requires its member states to develop coherent policies to better protect women from all forms of violence, as well as women and men from domestic violence. Among them, member states must provide victims with comprehensive assistance and protection, crisis centers, a 24-hour crisis telephone line, specialized support centers for victims of sexual violence, protect and support children who are witnesses of violence.
