On Thursday, 2 December, the Saeima appointed the heads and members of Latvian delegations to several international organisations. 

The Latvian national group in the Inter-Parliamentary Union will be headed by Mr. Gundars Daudze, and the group will include Mrs. Solvita Āboltiņa (Unity), Mr. Gaidis Bērziņš (national alliance of All for Latvia and For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK), Mr. Sergejs Mirskis (Concord Centre) and Mr. Guntis Ulmanis (For a Good Latvia). The Inter-Parliamentary Union is the oldest parliamentary organisation in the world, and it has observer status at the United Nations. The spheres of activity of the Inter-Parliamentary Union include promoting development of democracy, increasing awareness of human rights and their protection, promoting gender equality issues and preservation of the world’s cultural heritage, as well as dealing with current political issues and „hot” spots and preventing conflicts through parliamentary diplomacy. 

Today the Saeima also appointed Mrs. Ingrīda Circene (Unity) as the head of the Latvian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). At the beginning of November, the Saeima had already appointed Mr. Andris Bērziņš (Union of Greens and Farmers, Zemgale constituency) and Mr. Boriss Cilēvičs (Concord Centre) as permanent members of the delegation, and Mr. Jānis Dombrava (national alliance of All for Latvia and For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK), Mrs. Lolita Čigāne (Unity) and Mrs. Rita Strode (For a Good Latvia) as substitute members of the delegation. PACE is a statutory organ of the Council of Europe which deals with issues such as protecting human rights, pluralistic democracy and the rule of law, promoting the awareness and development of European cultural identity and its diversity, solving of social issues in Europe, as well as strengthening the stability of democracy by supporting political, legislative and constitutional reforms.

Mrs. Ina Druviete (Unity), Mrs. Iveta Grigule (Union of Greens and Farmers) and Mr. Andrejs Klementjevs (Concord Centre) were appointed as members of the Latvian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). OSCE is an organisation whose activities are aimed at promoting the development of democracy, strengthening of democratic institutions in OSCE member states and promoting the observance of democratic standards by the international community. OSCE monitors the implementation and observance of its requirements by individual member states, provides mechanisms for preventing conflicts and eliminating their consequences; it also observes elections. 

Press Service