Descendants of World War II refugees from Latvia could become dual citizens of their ancestral homeland under amendments proposed Jan. 24 by five members of the nationalist bloc in the Saeima.

This is the second attempt in the past several months to alter Latvia’s citizenship law, and apparently gets the jump on a plan by the government to propose its own amendments.

The amendments, proposed by MPs from the National Association (Nacionālā apvienība “Visu Latvijai!” – “Tēvzemei un Brīvībai/LNNK”), also would allow dual citizenship for citizens of European Union countries, Switzerland, Australia and Brazil, as well as of NATO defense alliance members, which would include Canada and the United States.

The amendments to Latvia’s citizenship law were introduced by Einārs Cilinskis, Imants Parādnieks, Dzintars Rasnačs, Visvaldis Lācis and Inese—all members of the National Association (Nacionālā apvienība “Visu Latvijai!” – “Tēvzemei un Brīvībai/LNNK”).

The amendments also would allow dual citizenship for children of whom at least one natural or adoptive parent is a Latvian citizen.

Allowing dual citizenship would foster people’s connection to their homeland, according to an explanatory note submitted with the proposed amendments. Few European countries, the note continues, today do not allow dual citizenship.

In October during the closing weeks of the 9th Saeima, members of the Unity (Vienotība) bloc also proposed a bill that would have allowed dual citizenship. That legislation, however, failed to get a hearing.

For exile organizations such as the World Federation of Free Latvians (Pasaules brīvo latviešu apvienība) changing the law to allow dual citizenship has become a key issue. Until July 1995, exiles and their descendants were able to register as Latvian citizens without having to give up the citizenship of their adopted country. However, since July 1995 dual citizenship has not been allowed.

The new coalition government led by Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis included in its declaration a promise to change the citizenship law to allow dual citizenship.

Foreign Minster Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis, during a Jan. 6 press conference in Rīga, said the government has been working on legislation that would soon be submitted to the Saeima.

Latvia is among new countries from which employers may temporarily bring workers to America under H-2A and H-2B visas, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced Jan. 14. The designation is valid for one year.

Under the H-2A program, employers are able to bring foreign nationals to the U.S. to fill temporary agricultural jobs. The H-2B program is for non-agricultural jobs.

Estonia and Lithuania also are on the list. Latvia and Estonia are among 15 countries added to the guest worker list for the first time this year, according to the USCIS announcement.

The additions were made by the Department of Homeland Security in consultation with the Department of State. In all, 53 countries are on the list for this year.

To qualify for the programs, according to USCIS, the job must be of a temporary or seasonal nature, the employer must show that not enough U.S. workers are available to do the work, and the employer has to show that employing foreign workers will not adversely affect wages of U.S. workers.

The count of persons from Latvia registering for new identification numbers in Ireland dropped nearly 25 percent from 2009 to 2010, suggesting that the flow of immigrants has slowed.

Data compiled by Ireland’s Department of Social Protection show that a total of 3,134 persons from Latvia last year obtained Personal Public Service Numbers (PPSN), substantially fewer than the 3,916 in 2009. However, the data are not a true measure of immigration to Ireland.

The PPSN is an identifier used by individuals in their dealings with various Irish state institutions.

Since 2000, a total of 45,836 PPSNs have been issued to persons from Latvia. During the four years from 2000-2003, the total PPSNs issued to persons from Latvia reached 6,837. After Latvia joined the European Union in 2004, easing travel restrictions for guest workers, the number of new PPSNs jumped significantly. In 2005 alone, residents of Latvia accounted for 9,328 of the new PPSNs issued that year.

From 2005-2008, a steady decline in new PPSNs was observed, although the number jumped 5 percent from 2008-2009 as the economic crisis in Latvia began to unfold.

In all, more than 154,000 persons obtained new PPSNs last year in Ireland, a 7 percent drop from 2009. Ireland, which for several years saw rapid economic growth that lured tens of thousands of new immigrants, also has suffered an economic decline.

Last year just 207 persons from Estonia sought PPSNs, a more than 50 percent drop from 2009. Meanwhile, 4,353 persons from Lithuania last year obtained the identification numbers, a 15 percent increase over 2009.