The objects seized during the search remind us of the crimes against humanity committed by the power of the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler. The owners of these cases are several Latvian shaveheads or skinheads, who were arrested when the VDD and VP cooperated to uncover crimes committed against people in Riga, Vērmanes garden.
“They told the men to praise Adolf Hitler. To do the Nazi Germany salute. They used violence against this person at that moment. And all of this was filmed on the phone, as well as published on social networks,” said inspector of the VP Criminal Police Department, Linda Mozebecker, about the detainee. “There are also attacks on dark-skinned people who, according to their subculture, are unwanted residents of the Republic of Latvia. Respectively, they believe that only white race residents can be in Latvia.”
Even one radicalized person can be dangerous
The signs of racist ideology left by skinheads can be seen in several places in Riga.
For example, the inscription “white power” or “white power”, which a passer-by tried to cover up, sending the Nazis to the same place as the Russian warships.
According to the police, skinheads come from different walks of life and include minors. One 15-year-old is also among the recently arrested. Neither the police nor the VDD revealed how many people in Latvia show an increased interest in right-wing extremism and share their views on communication platforms.
“Although the threat posed by such persons to the democratic system of our country is currently assessed as low, the tendency to increase the number of supporters of right-wing extremism creates risks for public safety,” VDD stated.
The VDD statement also reminds us how dangerous even one radicalized person can be and that a criminal trial was also started in Latvia last year on suspicion of justification of terrorism, recruitment and training in terrorism. Inspiration was drawn from right-wing extremists such as Anders Behring Breivik or Brenton Tarrant, whose acts of terror killed a large number of people.
President: The rise of extremism must be taken seriously
Both the VDD and the police, as well as the President, point to the importance of public involvement in mitigating extremism.
“It must be treated seriously. Of course, the Criminal Law and punishments are one thing, but another thing is a discussion in society, how to reduce this, how to reduce the soil of these extreme ideas in this very, very tense time. This is a joint work of all of us. Together with you, the media, politicians, must somehow try to understand what are the things that contribute to this and how to reduce them. You can’t completely prevent anything in any society,” said President Edgars Rinkēvičs in an interview with Latvian Television. .
VDD invitation
When identifying signs of radicalization in a fellow human being, first of all try to find out the reasons for changes in behavior or appearance through a calm conversation.
If the person is not focused on cooperation and shows increased aggressiveness, the VDD should be contacted immediately. You can contact the service by calling the 24-hour phone number 67208964 or writing to e-mail [email protected].
This year, the VDD has already conducted discussions on the signs and risks of youth radicalization in several hundred educational institutions in Latvia.
The most easily influenced by radicalization are 12 to 17-year-olds, the police admitted.
“I believe that every parent should pay attention to their children’s behavior at the moment. Maybe the child has shown a desire to dress in certain clothes, shows a specific interest in some kind of literature,” urged Mocebeker.
Informational materials on how to recognize the manifestations of right-wing and left-wing extremism and how to act to prevent them from developing into crimes are posted on the VDD website.
CONTEXT:
The State Security Service (VDD) warns of the tendency for the risks of right-wing extremism to grow in society, especially among young people. At the same time, the VDD emphasizes that the threat posed by right-wing extremists to Latvia’s democratic system is currently assessed as low.
Over the weekend, the State Police, in cooperation with the VDD, arrested several representatives of the subculture of shaved heads, or so-called “skinheads”, who are suspected of publicly glorifying the genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes against peace and war crimes carried out by Nazi Germany, as well as for carrying out actions that aimed at inciting racial hatred. The information obtained during the investigation shows that the detained persons had used physical violence against other persons under the influence of their radical views.
Tags: #15yearold youth among detained skinheads Calls limit expressions extremism society Article
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