Latvia’s Saeima, or Parliament, voted to forward to the Public Administration and Local Government Committee amendments to the law on construction which have been proposed by the Latvian Alliance of the Green Party and Farmers Union (ZZS). The amendments give local residents the right to take decisions on the construction of places of worship that are unconventional for Latvia.

The ZZS argues that each municipality should be allowed to organise a referendum on the construction of a new place of worship that does not comply with Latvian and Livonian traditions, the Latvian way of life, or Christian values. Local governments must also be instructed to take the results of such polls into account.

The party has also proposed that the law on local government referendums be amended to say that a referendum must be held before a building permit is issued for a new religious building that does not conform to the aforementioned values, as enshrined in Latvia’s constitution.

The ZZS is also calling for amendments to the law on construction to say that a construction permit may not be issued if a majority of local residents have rejected the plan to erect a new place of worship, doing so in a referendum that is organised by the relevant local government.

During debates on the matter, MP Andris Suvajevs, who is chairman of the Progressives faction in the Saeima, spoke out against the bill, declaring that he was ashamed at proposals which he sees as nothing other than pre-election populism.

MP Uldis Augulis (ZZS), for his part, argued that the point to the legislation was not to ban anything, instead providing citizens with an opportunity to decide for themselves on what goes on in their municipalities.

Augulis pointed to a survey done by the SKDS public research company which showed that people are calling for such a solution.

Source: BNS

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