In October and November, Latvia’s civil society was confronted with a series of political attacks aimed at undermining independent media and civil society organizations, weakening public participation, and eroding democratic processes.
Protests and a Near Withdrawal from the EU Convention
On 23 October, after several hours of debate, the Saeima supported at first reading a draft law proposing Latvia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence – the so-called Istanbul Convention. Latvia had only ratified the Convention in autumn 2023, under the same parliament.
The decision triggered widespread public backlash. Several protests the withdrawal took place across Latvia, the largest one gathering 10,000 people in Riga[1], as well as in other European cities and even further abroad, such as in the United States and Australia. The protest took place a few days after President Edgars Rinkēvičs announced that he would return the withdrawal law to parliament for further review
During this period, civil society organisations working on violence prevention, victim support, women’s rights and LGBTQI+ issues faced intense disinformation and smear campaigns. In addition, CSO representatives were denied the opportunity to speak during parliamentary committee meetings regarding this issue.
Ultimately, due to strong civil society mobilisation, the Saeima decided not to proceed with the withdrawal. Instead, the decision was postponed and left to the next parliament to consider. Threats to Shut Down the Fund Safeguarding Resilience, Media Independence, and Civil Society Organisations.
On November 8, the Civic Alliance – Latvia (CAL) raised alarm about a proposal submitted to the Saeima by the political party of “Zaļo un Zemnieku savienība” to liquidate the Society Integration Foundation (SIF) – a state institution that for more than 20 years has provided significant support to civil society organizations, independent media, social cohesion initiatives and support to Latvia’s most vulnerable and underserved communities.
More than 70 CSOs and media organizations signed a joint letter warning of a serious threat to civil society and media freedom, as such a proposal should be viewed as an attempt to weaken civil society, limit opportunities for public participation, and undermine the independent media environment, signalling a worrying trend toward restricting democratic processes and the Memorandum Council of Civil Society Organizations and Cabinet of Ministers adopted an official position, which was sent to the government and the Saeima.
On November 12, following strong alarm and mobilisation from civil society, the coalition parties agreed that SIF would not be liquidated, but that an audit of the SIF’s functions and an assessment of its administrative costs would be carried out. During the following budget discussions, “Zaļo un Zemnieku savienība” has withdrawn its proposal to liquidate the SIF, although the draft budget still includes several proposals that could affect civil society and the media environment from the oposition parties, including reducing funding for programes administered by the SIF. CAL will continue to mobilize the sector and actively work to prevent this from happening.
It is planned that the final reading of the draft law “On the State Budget for 2026”and accompanying draft laws, including proposals related to the Society Integration Fund, will be decided by the Saeima in the first week of December.
A Challenge to Public Media Independence
On November 13 the Saeima majority voted against appointing Jānis Siksnis – the candidate nominated by the Non-Governmental Organizations and Government cooperation memorandum council and selected through an open, procedure — to the Public Electronic Mass Media Council (SEPLP). This is now the second time that parliament has refused to confirm the Memorandum Council’s nominee, even though the law explicitly requires that one of the SEPLP members be chosen from candidates put forward by civil society.
The law establishes a three-pillar model under which SEPLP members are nominated by the President, the Saeima, and the public, represented by the Memorandum Council. This balance was designed to protect the independence of public media and reduce the risk of political influence. The Memorandum Council’s selection process for the SEPLP position was fully open, transparent, and based on professional criteria.
“The Saeima’s decision to reject – for the second time – a candidate selected by the civil society in an open procedure is a dangerous sign. It shows that society’s voice is heard only when it is convenient. It also displays clear disrespect toward the Memorandum Council, the experts who served on the selection committee, and all candidates who invested their time and work to ensure public representation, as required by law,” emphasizes Elīna Grīnhofa, Head of the Civic Dialogue Programme at CAL.
As of now, the Memorandum Council has agreed to meet with the Saeima’s Human Rights and Public Affairs Committee, which invited the Council for discussions on the next steps in the SEPLP board member selection process.
[1] Thousands protest against Latvia’s potential withdrawal from Istanbul Convention | Euronews