Latvia Moves to Buck Globalist Istanbul Convention, Signaling Growing Populist Traction
Latvia is making significant moves to exit the Istanbul Convention, a product of the Council of Europe. If they succeed, the Baltic nation would become the second country — Turkey withdrew in 2021 — to leave the convention, marking another win for the anti-globalist movement.
Ratified in 2011, the convention’s alleged purpose is to “protect women against all forms of violence, and prevent, prosecute and eliminate violence against women and domestic violence.” By design, however, the convention erodes national sovereignty and imposes leftist gender ideology on signatory nations.
Latvia’s Attempt to Exit
The initial Latvian withdrawal effort was passed in the 100-seat Parliament with a 56-vote majority. But on November 5, the Parliament voted to postpone the withdrawal to an unknown date.
“Latvian parliament has voted to indefinitely postpone the withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention,” Prime Minister Evika Siliņa said in a post on X. “I welcome this vote. It is a victory of democracy, rule of law and women’s rights.”
Parliament can still execute the withdrawal with another vote, which observers are speculating will take place after next year’s election.
OSCE Condemns Attempt to Exit
The globalist Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) reprimanded the Latvians for daring to follow their own laws to protect women: “Latvia’s proposed withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention is a serious setback to the protection and rights of the country’s women and girls…. Not only does it weaken survivors’ trust in the system as a whole, but it also makes women solely reliant on national authorities without the international guidance.”
Despite the setback, the right-wing populist Latvia First Party is continuing to push for leaving the convention.
“This will not influence domestic violence in any way,” Gunars Gutris, a member of Parliament from the Greens and Farmers Union, told the press. “Protections against domestic violence were in Latvian law even before the Istanbul Convention.”
And Linda Liepina, a lawmaker from the Latvia First party, told Parliament, “What I see is how a foreign ideology is creeping into our everyday lives.”
In a statement to Euronews, Latvia First doubled down on their desire to exit the convention, saying, “The Istanbul Convention is a product of radical feminism based on the ideology of gender.”
While the outcome of withdrawal efforts remains to be seen, the growing hunger for nationalist policies is spreading across Europe. This should be celebrated by all freedom-loving people.
