STOP NATO: �NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------- ListBot Sponsor -------------------------- Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [A third of the population of Latvia are non-Latvian ethnics, but "90 percent of the people agree" that all Untermenschen should be expelled...or worse. Curious arithmetic. This is the same regime that everyone from Vaclav Havel to George Bush advocate "fast-tracking" into NATO.] Saturday July 14, 11:30 AM Xenophobic student essays draw attention to Latvia's ethnic woes RIGA, July 14 (AFP) - A book of essays written by Latvian students calling for the expulsion of the country's large Russian-speaking population has sparked international scrutiny of the country's often simmering ethnic relations. Released in April by the fringe publisher Vieda, the book, entitled "We Will Give Latvia to No One," contains 75 essays from college and secondary school students addressing topics such as "Why integration in Latvia is absurd" and "Why colonists should leave the territory of Latvia to avoid ethnic conflicts". "We are practically still colonized and the colonizers must go home," Vieda director Aivars Garda told AFP. About a third of Latvia's population of 2.5 million people are ethnic Russians, Ukranians or Belarusians, many of whom settled in Latvia when it was part of the former Soviet Union. Here in the country's capital and in other urban areas, Russian speakers outnumber ethnic Latvians. Vieda offered cash rewards for what it judged to be the best essays. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe are monitoring fallout from the book, which included a small explosion at the publisher's office last month caused by what police say was a small amount of TNT. Garda said that the book's first print run of 3,000 sold out quickly from a handful of bookstores in Riga and that another printing will begin later this month. Latvia's Foreign Ministry and Prime Minister Andris Berzins have condemned the book, saying it does not reflect the attitudes of most Latvians. In a statement Tuesday, law enforcement officials said the book is "not far from inciting national discord". Inciting racial hatred is a crime in Latvia, but authorities ruled that the book falls within the bounds of free speech. Most human rights campaigners here agree. The Russian Foreign Ministry lashed out at the book earlier this week in a statement, labeling it a call for ethnic cleansing and "an openly hateful, russophobic campaign spread in a country which already has enough problems respecting human rights and ethnic minority rights". Moscow called for the OSCE and the Council of Europe to react. This spring Latvia finished its first presidency of the Council of Europe. The OSCE criticized the book while applauding Latvia's ongoing integration policy. "Any sensible person would find the contents of this book offensive, but you should not over-emphasise its importance," said Peter Semneby, head of the OSCE office in Latvia. "Minority integration is now a clear priority of the government." Council of Europe Secretary General Walter Schwimmer has called for further investigation of the book and its effect on ethnic relations, according to a Council spokesman. Garda, who is closely linked to fringe nationalist groups, believes his views echo those of a silent majority of Latvians. "I am absolutely convinced that 90 percent of people feel this way but are afraid to talk about it because it does not agree with the point of view of some officials and international organizations," Garda said. Russian-speaking MP Boris Tsilevich says that Garda's views are not much different from what he sometimes hears in Parliament. "What Mr. Garda is saying is not that much different from what MPs from the ruling coalition here say quite often," he said. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
