Photo: LETA/BNN collage
This week Latvia continued following the war crimes in Ukraine. Mariupol has become a real hell on earth. According to Ukraine, 100 000 people are trapped there without medicine, electricity or food.
Officials in Ukraine also claim Russia refuses to let a safe humanitarian corridor to be opened to let civilians leave the bombarded city. It is also reported that the Russian army still has not been able to take the city.
The situation in Russia is not great either. Latest reports indicate one of Vladimir Putin’s advisors – Anatoly Chubais – has left his post and Russia entirely. Chubais is the first high-ranking Russian official to have cut ties with Kremlin after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Putin continues suppressing resistance. One of the biggest critics of the government in Russia – Aleksey Navalny – has been sentenced to nine more years in prison.
This week Latvia commemorated the victims of Communist genocide. Officials stress what is now happening in Ukraine is as awful as what happened to Latvians on 25 March 1949.
BNN gives you a summery of the most relevant events of the past week in the following topics: 25 March; Church; Putin’s frenemies; Navalny; Development; Latvia’s defence; Quality of life in Latvia.
15 MARCH
President: crimes of Communism were never internationally tried and this resurrected totalitarianism in Russia
Latvia’s President Egils Levits. Photo: Gatis Rozenfelds/State President’s ChancelleryThe crimes committed by Communism were never internationally tried by Europe or the former Soviet Union the same way as the crimes committed by Nazism, which made it possible for totalitarianism to resurface in Russia and Vladimir Putin’s regime to commence a criminal war against Ukraine, said Latvia’s President Egils Levits in his video address for the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Communist Genocide.
He said on 25 March 1949 the Soviet occupation sent 42 000 Latvian residents to Siberia. These people were farmers, national partisans and their families. Nearly 95% of them were Latvians, followed by Russians, Polish and Belarusians.
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CHURCH
Latvian Saeima hands over St Peter’s Church to Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church
Photo: Ieva Lūka/LETAOn Thursday, 24 February, Latvia’s Saeima passed in the final reading the Law on Riga St Peter’s Church, in which it is stated that this church is to be transferred to Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church (LELB) and LELB German St. Peter’s Community’s Riga St. Peter’s Church Foundation.
As reported by Saeima’s press-service, the foundation will receive ownership rights over the church.
The law states St. Peter’s Church is a culture memorial place of Catholic and Lutheran faith. It is also mentioned that after everything has been coordinated, the church will be available for religious service of relevant confessions.
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PUTIN’S FRENEMIES
Putin’s representative leaves office because of Russia’s war against Ukraine
Anatoly Chubais, special representative of Russian President for relations with international organizations to achieve sustainable development goals. Photo: REUTERS/SCANPIXAnatoly Chubais is a veteran high-ranking Russian politician and entrepreneur, who has been Russian President Vladimir Putin’s representative in sustainable development affairs. Chubais has left the post and his country over the current Russian invasion of Ukraine, US broadcaster Bloomberg reports.
Bloomberg quoted two people familiar with the situation as confirming this, yet Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had not immediately responded to a request for comment.
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NAVALNY
Russia sentences Navalny to nine more years in prison
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, right, is seen via a video link provided by the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, standing during a court session in Pokrov, Vladimir region, about 100 kilometers east of Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, March 22, 2022. Photo: AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko/ScanpixRussia’s leading opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who has been behind bars since 2021, has been sentenced to nine more years in prison in a fraud case, British public broadcaster BBC reports.
The politician and anti-corruption activist was detained in 2021, when he returned to Russia, after surviving a poisoning by Novichok chemical weapon he blamed on the Kremlin. Navalny is already serving three and a half years in jail for breaking bail conditions while in hospital.
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DEVELOPMENT
Latvian Ministry of Regional Development halts Riga’s territorial planning
Photo: Evija Trifanova/LETALatvian Ministry of Environment Protection and Regional Development (VARAM) has decided to halt Riga’s territorial planning. The reason given is the non-compliance of the plan with laws and lack of balance between the interests of the sides involved in development of the plan, said minister Artūrs Toms Plešs at a press-conference.
The minister said development of territorial planning failed.
‘The most important aspect is that with new Riga territorial planning coming into force, the capital’s historic centre would be left with no legal territorial plan,’ said the minister.
According to Riga City Council’s decision, there are two mutually uncoordinated territorial plans within Riga’s territory, which is in breach of the law – no more than one territorial plan is allowed to exist in national cities.
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LATVIA’S DEFENCE
Latvian government supports increasing defence budget to 2.5% of GDP in 2025
Photo: Evija Trifanova/LETAOn Tuesday, 22 March, Latvian government supported the proposal included in the report presented by the Ministry of Finance on the gradual increase of the country’s defence budget to 2.5% of GDP in 2025.
It is planned to set the defence budget to 2.25% of GDP in 2023, 2.4% of GDP in 2024 and 2.5% of GDP in 2025 to help enhance state security and defence, as well as speed up the development of National Armed Forces’ combat capabilities.
The report presented by the Ministry of Finance mentions the planned financing will be diverted towards the enhancement of National Armed Forces’ combat capabilities and to speed up the introduction of new capabilities, including medium-range anti-air systems, indirect fire support, mechanized infantry forces and enhancement of cyber security capabilities.
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QUALITY OF LIFE IN LATVIA
CSP reports 5.3% of Latvia’s population are deeply materially and socially deprived
Photo: Edijs Pālens/LETAIn 2021, 5.3 % of the population was exposed to severe material and social deprivation which is 1.7 percentage points lower than in 2020, when this share was 7.0 %.
Persons with low income were the most vulnerable to material and social deprivation. Among the lowest income group (1st quintile group) the share of the population exposed to severe material and social deprivation reached 16.2 % in 2021, while among the highest income group (5th quintile group) it was only 0.2 %, according to data from the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia.
In 2021, 59.3 % of the Latvian population could not afford at least 1 of the 13 basic needs (59.8 % in 2020).
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BNN summary of the week: War in Ukraine continues. Advisor leaves Kremlin. Riga’s development plan called off
