Šuvajevs welcomes election gains but warns over human rights

Progressives leader Andris Šuvajevs welcomed his party’s improved result in Latvia’s 15th Saeima election but said he was concerned the new parliament could reverse course on human rights, LSM reported.

Preliminary results gave the party 7.83% of the vote, up from 6.8% four years ago. It won nine seats, one fewer than in the previous parliament. Šuvajevs said he believed the party’s voters had responded to its high standards rather than “empty, superficial promises.”

Šuvajevs congratulated the United List and its leader, Andris Kulbergs, on their strong result. He said there would be no 100-day grace period and that Kulbergs should present specific plans for implementing the party’s programme as early as next week.

The Progressives will seek clarity in coalition talks on the parties’ positions on human rights, including the possible denunciation of the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence in the family and the legal framework for partnerships. Šuvajevs said the United List’s position had remained unclear during the campaign, adding that many people would be waiting for an answer. He also pointed to the cost of living, heating bills and fuel prices as priorities, and said the party would critically review its campaign.