02 June 2004 22:54
Latvian official indignant over Moscow mayor`s statements
A Latvian official has denounced statements by Moscow's mayor on the alleged discrimination against Russian
speakers in Latvia and his posing for photographers with the insignia of opponents of the education reform. The head of
the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Commission also suggested the Russian official should have gone to the Occupation
Museum to understand modern Latvia better. The following is the text of the article by Irina Yesina, entitled
"Yuriy Luzhkov was denounced" and published in the newspaper Telegraf on 1 June:
The head of the Saeima [parliament] Foreign Affairs Commission, Artis Pabriks (People's Party) yesterday
expressed his indignation with the behaviour of the Mayor of Moscow, Yuriy Luzhkov, who had ventured to remind people
about the discrimination against Russian speakers in Latvia.
The statement distributed by Pabriks says that "Luzhkov allowed himself to express the repeatedly voiced
criticism about the discrimination against Russian-speaking residents and also to make statements offensive to our state
and the leaders of the government\… [ellipsis as published] Luzhkov is still demonstrating his lack of knowledge of the
fact that Latvia complies with the Copenhagen criteria and that the situation in the sphere of human rights protection
is at a much higher level here than in Russia."
Artis Pabriks was also amazed by the fact that the mayor of the Russian capital allowed himself to take a political
position on Latvia's internal affairs - specifically, by posing for photographers in the education reform
opponents' cap - which is unacceptable for a foreign guest. Pabriks is certain that if Luzhkov were to swap in his
itinerary the visit to the Liberation monument [from World War II] for a visit to the Occupation Museum, he would return
to Russia much better informed about what is happening in our country.
[Telegraf] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
