🔗 Share this article

Protesters gathered outside the legislative building this week

Latvia's parliament members have decided to withdraw from an international accord designed to protect women from violence, covering domestic abuse, following prolonged and heated debates in the parliament.

Several thousand of demonstrators gathered in the capital this past week to voice disagreement with the decision. The ultimate authority now rests with Head of State Edgars Rinkevics, who must determine whether to approve or veto the proposed law.

Known as the European treaty, the 2011 agreement only took effect in Latvia last twelve months ago, requiring authorities to develop laws and assistance programs to end all types of abuse.

Latvia has become the first EU country to begin the process of exiting from the treaty. Turkey withdrew in two years ago, a decision that human rights organizations characterized as a major regression for women's rights.

Ideological Controversy and Opposition

The treaty was approved by the European Union in last year, yet traditionalist factions have argued that its emphasis on equal rights weakens family values and advances what they term "non-traditional gender concepts".

Following a thirteen-hour discussion in the Saeima, lawmakers voted 56 to 32 to exit from the convention, a action proposed by opposition parties but backed by politicians from one of the three coalition parties.

The result represents a defeat for centre-right Prime Minister Evika Silina, who stood with demonstrators outside the legislature earlier this seven-day period. "We refuse to give up, we will persist in our struggle so that abuse will not prevail," she stated to the crowd.

Ideological Divisions and Responses

One of the main parties supporting the withdrawal is Latvia First, whose leader has urged the public to choose between what he terms a "traditional family unit" and "gender ideology with various gender identities".

The nation's human rights commissioner the rights official appealed for the agreement not to be made political, while the organization Equality Now asserted it was "not a threat to national principles, it served as a tool to realize them".

The recent vote has provoked broad outcry both inside the country and internationally.

Twenty-two thousand people have signed a Latvian appeal calling for the convention to be preserved. The women's rights organization Centrs Marta has announced a protest for next Thursday, charging MPs of disregarding the will of the nation's citizens.

International Worries and Possible Future Actions

The leader of the European organization's parliamentary assembly stated that Latvia had made a hasty decision driven by false information. He characterized it as an "unprecedented and deeply concerning regression for women's rights and human rights in Europe".

He noted that since the transcontinental nation abandoned the treaty in 2021, instances of gender-based killings and abuse targeting females had increased significantly.

Because the decision did not secure a two-thirds support, the president could potentially return the bill for additional consideration if he holds objections.

President Rinkevics stated on social media that he would evaluate the vote according to legal requirements, "taking into account state and legal factors, rather than belief-based viewpoints".

Recently, another component of the ruling coalition, the Progressives, indicated it would not exclude appealing to the supreme judicial body.

"This vote represents a worrisome development for women's rights not only in Latvia but throughout Europe," stated a rights advocate.

• Family violence rates have been increasing in several European nations
• The European treaty requires specific legal protections for survivors of gender-based violence
• The nation's decision could influence similar discussions in other EU countries