First refugees to arrive in winter

Take note – story published 8 years ago

The first of the 250 refugees, whom Latvia agreed to admit voluntarily, could come here in winter, rather than autumn, Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis said to journalists after a meeting with president Raimonds Vējonis on Wednesday. A work group has been created to deal with the practicalities of refugee integration, and it will have to announce its findings on September 30.

The work group will have to observe the experiences of other states that have admitted refugees and to work out a program that is the most appropriate for Latvia.

The first refugees could arrive from Italy, as Greece is not ready for the process yet, said Kozlovskis.

The criteria according to which Latvia will review which refugees to admit will be known shortly. Kozlovskis said Latvia would prefer to take in refugees as families rather than as single individuals.

Meanwhile, Member of the European Parliament Iveta Grigule (Greens and Farmers Alliance - a coalition party that supported admitting refugees to Latvia), said Wednesday morning to Latvian Television that "250 refugees is just the beginning.

"Why aren't we asking the people's opinion?" asked Grigule.

On the other hand, president Raimonds Vējonis, after the meeting with Kozlovskis and PM Laimdota Straujuma, affirmed his support for admitting refugees, saying "It seems that the stereotypical Soviet thinking is still prevalent in the society and among politicians. However, our society should be open and based on common European values and principles in decision making."

"[..] We have to remember that we have chosen the EU and NATO, and we are full-fledged members of both. [..] All decisions are made on the basis of solidarity," said Vējonis.

The Latvian government at an extraordinary meeting in early July agreed that over two years Latvia would voluntary admit 250 refugees from Africa who need to be relocated within the EU. The Ministries of Interior, Welfare, Culture and Environmental Protection and Regional Development in collaboration with local authorities will have to work out a policy for their integration.

At a meeting Monday, EU ministers agreed to accept 32,000 refugees, mainly from war-torn Syria. the target fell short of the 40,000 figure previously agreed.

Of that figure, Latvia agreed to take 50 for "resettlement" and 200 for "relocation".

There have been heated debates within and without the coalition about the refugee matter, and MPs from National Alliance, along with several public organizations, have announced plans to picket against settling refugees. The picket will take place on August 4.

Seen a mistake?

Select text and press Ctrl+Enter to send a suggested correction to the editor

Select text and press Report a mistake to send a suggested correction to the editor

Related articles

More

Most important