Jan 17, 2023
It seems that the right to freedom of expression and prohibition of discrimination on grounds of political opinion is not more protected in the EU.
My country, Latvia, is often formally praised for including citizen’s initiatives in the legislative process.
But what if initiators are proposing to deprive a large category of citizens of the rights guaranteed in the EU Fundamental Rights Charter?
Latvian Parliament began the new legislative year by moving forward initiative to deprive so-called “Kremlin-minded people” of the right to stand for elections and to take posts in the state and local government institutions.
In addition to political prisoners, whose number is constantly growing in Latvia (almost all of them are journalists), political disqualified will appear in the country.
How the people whom the petitioners call harmful or not loyal to the State shall be “appointed”?
Most likely, as it happened in Latvia in the times of deportations, on the basis of denunciations.
Shall we allow those times to return?
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