🔗 Share this article

Protesters gathered outside the legislative building this week

The Baltic nation's parliament members have decided to withdraw from an global treaty created to safeguard women from violence, covering domestic abuse, following prolonged and intense debates in the legislature.

Several thousand of protesters gathered in Riga this past week to oppose the vote. The ultimate authority now lies with President Edgars Rinkevics, who must decide whether to approve or reject the proposed law.

Referred to as the Istanbul Convention, the 2011 agreement only became active in Latvia last year, requiring governments to establish legal frameworks and assistance programs to end all types of abuse.

Latvia has become the first EU country to initiate the process of withdrawing from the treaty. Turkey withdrew in 2021, a decision that human rights organizations characterized as a major setback for gender equality.

Ideological Controversy and Resistance

The treaty was approved by the European Union in last year, yet conservative factions have contended that its emphasis on gender equality undermines traditional families and advances what they term "gender ideology".

Following a thirteen-hour discussion in the Saeima, MPs voted by a margin of 56-32 to withdraw from the convention, a action proposed by political opponents but backed by representatives from one of the three governing partners.

The outcome represents a defeat for moderate conservative Prime Minister Evika Silina, who joined protesters outside parliament earlier this week. "We will not surrender, we will continue fighting so that abuse does not triumph," she stated to the crowd.

Ideological Disagreements and Reactions

One of the primary parties supporting the withdrawal is a nationalist party, whose head has urged citizens to select from what he terms a "natural family" and "gender ideology with various gender identities".

Latvia's ombudswoman Karina Palkova appealed for the treaty not to be politicized, while the group the rights organization asserted it was "not a danger to Latvian values, it was an instrument to achieve them".

The Thursday's decision has sparked broad outcry both within Latvia and abroad.

22,000 people have endorsed a national appeal demanding the convention to be preserved. The gender equality group the rights center has called a protest for the coming week, charging lawmakers of ignoring the will of the Latvian people.

International Worries and Possible Future Actions

The leader of the European organization's parliamentary assembly commented that Latvia had made a rash decision fueled by false information. He characterized it as an "never-before-seen and extremely worrying step backward for female equality and fundamental freedoms in the continent".

He noted that since Turkey abandoned the treaty four years ago, cases of femicide and abuse targeting females had risen sharply.

Because the vote did not secure a two-thirds majority, the president could possibly send back the bill for further consideration if he has concerns.

President the national leader stated on social media that he would assess the decision according to constitutional principles, "taking into account state and legal considerations, instead of belief-based perspectives".

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

"This decision represents a worrisome development for women's rights not only in our nation but throughout Europe," commented a rights activist.

• Domestic abuse statistics have been rising in several European countries
• The Istanbul Convention requires specific safeguards for survivors of gender-based violence
• The nation's vote could influence comparable discussions in other member states