🔗 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 protect women from violence, covering domestic abuse, following extensive and heated discussions in the parliament.

Several thousand of protesters gathered in Riga this past week to voice disagreement with the decision. The ultimate decision now rests with President Edgars Rinkevics, who must decide whether to endorse or veto the legislation.

Known as the European treaty, the 2011 agreement only took effect in the Baltic state last year, mandating authorities to establish laws and support services to end all forms of abuse.

Latvia has become the initial EU country to begin the procedure of withdrawing from the convention. The transcontinental nation withdrew in 2021, a move that human rights organizations characterized as a major regression for gender equality.

Political Controversy and Resistance

The treaty was approved by the European Union in last year, yet traditionalist groups have argued that its emphasis on equal rights undermines traditional families and promotes what they term "gender ideology".

Following a lengthy discussion in the Saeima, lawmakers decided 56 to 32 to withdraw from the convention, a action sponsored by opposition parties but backed by representatives from one of the three governing partners.

The outcome represents a setback for moderate conservative government leader the nation's PM, who stood with demonstrators outside parliament earlier this week. "We refuse to give up, we will continue fighting so that abuse does not triumph," she stated to the assembly.

Political Divisions and Responses

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

The nation's human rights commissioner Karina Palkova appealed for the agreement not to be made political, while the organization Equality Now asserted it was "not a danger to Latvian values, it served as a tool to realize them".

The Thursday's decision has provoked broad protest both within Latvia and abroad.

Twenty-two thousand individuals have signed a national appeal calling for the treaty to be preserved. The women's rights organization Centrs Marta has called a demonstration for the coming week, charging lawmakers of ignoring the will of the Latvian people.

International Concerns and Potential Future Actions

The leader of the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly commented that the Baltic state 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 Turkey abandoned the treaty in 2021, cases of femicide and violence against women had increased significantly.

Because the decision did not secure a two-thirds majority, the head of state could possibly send back the bill for additional consideration if he has objections.

President the national leader stated on social media that he would evaluate the decision according to legal principles, "considering governmental and judicial considerations, rather than ideological or political viewpoints".

Recently, another component of the ruling coalition, the Progressives, indicated it would not exclude appealing to the Constitutional Court.

"This decision represents a concerning development for gender equality not only in Latvia but across the continent," commented a rights activist.

• Family violence rates have been increasing in several European countries
• The European treaty mandates particular legal protections for victims of domestic abuse
• The nation's decision could affect comparable debates in other EU countries