“I cannot currently speak about things that have not yet been discussed in the Saeima and adopted in the relevant readings. I understand that work is currently being done to prevent a different approach to two different groups of Russian citizens, which, in my opinion, is the right approach. It is difficult for me to comment on the promulgation of the draft law or non-announcement until it has been adopted,” the President emphasized.
He referred to the Constitution, which stipulates that if the draft law is adopted by two-thirds of the votes of the members of the Saeima, urgency is determined and the president signs the law within three days. Rinkevičs said that the Constitutional Court (SC) has also evaluated the different approach, why one group of Russian citizens is treated one way, and another is treated differently.
“We must treat Russian citizens equally. If the bill passed by the Saeima is reasonable and follows these principles, I think the assessment will be positive,” said the President.
As reported, the amendments to the Immigration Law were submitted by MPs Edmunds Jurēvics (JV), Harijs Rokpelnis (ZZS), Andris Šuvajevs (P), Agnese Krasta (JV) and Rajevs. Similar amendments were previously pushed by the National Association.
The amendments would apply to some Russian citizens who were not required to know the national language until now. This group includes more than 3,100 persons under the age of 75. Also, these amendments could be advanced with the current approach, that knowledge of the language is required for persons aged up to 75 years.
This smaller group also includes retired Russian military personnel and their family members.
Tags: Conceptually supports amendments require knowledge state language thousand Russian citizens
