LETA news agency, 13 May 2009

Grīnbergs: No Legal Reason to Take Repeat Decision on Gay, Lesbian March in Vērmaņdārzs Park

Author not indicated

When it comes to the march which Mozaīka, an organisation of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered persons, is planning to hold in the Vērmaņdārzs park, the Rīga local government gave its approval strictly in line with the requirements of the law, and so there is no reason to bring the relevant commission together again, says the executive director of the city, Andris Grīnbergs.

Commenting a request from members of the City Council to reassemble the Committee on Meetings, Marches and Demonstrations to take a decision on banning the event that is planned for Vērmaņdārzs, Grīnbergs said that the local government has and will continue to act strictly in line with legal norms.

The executive director recalled that the law on meetings, marches and demonstrations does not say that a permit given to organisers of a specific event is an administrative act. Furthermore, a ban must be based on public security threats that are formulated in the law, and such a ban may be issued by the local government no later than five days before the planned events.

In exceptional cases, if new information during those five days is received about public security threats, the law does allow the local government to think again about the specific event. The executive director has no information of that kind, and so there is no reason to reassemble the commission for another meeting, said Grīnbergs.

LETA reported in the past that more than half of the members of the Rīga City Council – 34 in all – signed a letter today to the executive director of the city, Andris Grīnbergs, calling on him to repeal the permission that was given to Mozaīka, the association of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transsexuals and their friends, to hold a parade in the Vērmaņdārzs Park on May 16. The initiators of the letter were deputy mayor Almers Ludviks (First Party of Latvia), as well as Council members Aina Krūkle (First Party of Latvia) and Helmī Stalte (For the Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK), LETA was told by Ludviks’ press secretary, Kitija Grīnšteina.

“It will be interesting to see whether bureaucrats will continue to act as an executive branch while ignoring members of the Council even after signatures are collected? For the time being, bureaucrats do not see the threat against morality and security in the city, but members of the Council do,” said Ludviks.

“The decision taken by the commission is in violation not only of the normative acts that are listed in the letter, but also of the interests of people in Rīga which they have expressed in letters that have been sent against the Pride march and the organisation of a meeting in the city of Rīga. We demand that the commission meet again and repeal the agreement for the march that has been announced for May 16 for the march in the streets of Rīga and the meeting in the Vērmaņdārzs Park because of a real threat against public security and morality,” says the letter.

LETA reported in the past that the Rīga City Council’s Commission on Meetings, Marches and demonstrations decided on May 8 to allow Mozaīka to organise the march in Vērmaņdārzs Park. A compromise decision was to allow participants to march out of the park onto Elizabetes and then Tērbatas Streets before returning to Vērmaņdārzs.

Representatives of Mozaīka did not agree to the first offer from executive director Andris Grīnbergs – to organise the march on the 11^th November Shoreline, as was the case last year. Representatives of the local government and the police, for their part, did not agree to a longer march in the streets.

In taking the decision, commission members differed, with five members voting in favour and two against.

As has been reported, Friendship Days events will be held in Rīga this weekend, from May 15 to May 17, LETA was told by Mozaīka representatives. The march in Vērmaņdārzs Park is planned for May 16.