The influential international human rights organization Amnesty International falsely accuses the Republic of Latvia of a lack of kindness towards those migrants who try to enter our country through the mafia and the Belarusian regime, and demands that all those who want to be granted asylum in Latvia be given the right to do so. Given that Belarus is an ally of Russia in its war against Ukraine and in its hatred of the civilized world, this would be an extremely dangerous act.
The proposal itself is blatantly provocative - to allow into Latvia thousands of people of unknown origin, who have travelled some 3000 kilometers from Iraq for unknown purposes, first to enter Belarus with the help of criminals while posing as tourists, and then to commit a serious crime by illegally crossing the green border of Latvia with the support of Belarusian power structures. The Criminal Law provides for a prison sentence of up to two years, and up to eight years in organized groups.
With the start of Russia's re-invasion of Ukraine, the flow of hybrid migrants from Belarus stopped and it became clear that its real purpose was to prepare a hostile reception for refugees from Ukraine, mainly women, children and orphans. This failed because Latvian society is able to distinguish between hybrid migrants recruited by the Belarusian regime - mostly men in their prime - and genuine war refugees. Despite the fact that enthusiasm for overcoming Latvia's rolls of barbed wire has now dwindled to nothing, various non-governmental organizations are spreading false messages about Latvia's management of the migration crisis and demanding that the country be turned into a gateway with open doors. First, a fabricated "study" by a London-educated researcher circulated in the public domain about the massive torture allegedly inflicted on migrants by Latvian border guards and soldiers, in contrast to the kind and helpful Belarusian staff. The Soros Foundation-founded think tank Providus then picked up the baton, teaching that the Latvian state should have taken in all those thousands of migrants sent by Belarus and allowed them to start the asylum procedure individually. Now London has again joined in the lecturing of Latvia.
Lukashenko and Putin's hybrid war is served by the influential human rights organization Amnesty International, which spreads the narrative of the poor from the violent East being kept out by the violent West. Moreover, the comparison with Ukrainian war refugees is again being used in a tendentious manner. Here are a few sentences to illustrate the whines of Amnesty International:
" As Latvia welcomed more than 34,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine, migrants and refugees at the Belarus border - mainly from Iraq and Afghanistan - including children, were left to fend for themselves in freezing temperatures in the forest. Latvia has exposed people at the Belarus border to ill-treatment and even torture, holding them in the forest for months." And then there is the demand, which also answers the question of why the organization is now making statements discrediting Latvia:
"Latvian authorities must NOT renew the state of emergency and should instead urgently withdraw it and restore the right to asylum in the country for everyone seeking safety, irrespective of who they are or how they crossed the borders!" Assuming in good faith that human rights organization Amnesty International is being misled about the true circumstances of the migration crisis and its management, Neatkarīgā has contacted the organization to ask it to clarify the sources of its information. Perhaps they will reply.
The state of emergency currently in force in the border municipalities is valid until August 10. The government will shortly consider a further report from the Ministry of the Interior on the situation on Latvia's eastern border and a request to extend the state of emergency until November 10. It is expected that there will be a wider debate on this issue, as the pressure of illegal migration at the border has eased considerably, but could resume at any time. Dozens of migrants are still trying to cross the Lithuanian border from Belarus every day and, for example, yesterday half a hundred attackers were driven away. They can come back to us, but the special regime allows the border guards to use the pushback protocol against them. Rather than take these criminals, try them and put them in prison, we simply keep them out of the Latvian state. Anyone involved in this crime might be linked to terrorism, anyone might be linked to the Belarusian and Russian secret services. And in this way, militants can also infiltrate Latvian territory. Therefore, entry into Latvia from third countries should be restricted to the legal route through embassies, checking anyone who wishes to enter from a hostile neighboring country, rather than legalizing the illegal route across the green border, as demanded by Providus or Amnesty International and other supporters of the open-door policy.
***
MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR:
"Taking into account the existing threats of a possible renewed hybrid attack organised by the Belarusian regime and Belarus' support for Russia's war in Ukraine, the Ministry of the Interior will submit to the government for consideration a report on the extension of the state of emergency on the Latvian-Belarusian border.
Since the construction of the permanent fence in Latvia is ongoing, while in Poland it has been completed, and in Lithuania the fence is under construction and a state of emergency has been declared until September 15, there is a risk of an organised increase in the influx of migrants from the Belarusian side. Political discussions will continue on this issue and the Minister of the Interior will call for this issue to be taken up at the next Cooperation Meeting."