Latvia’s honorary consulate in Peru joins list of those with websites

Andris Straumanis | 

Latvians who find themselves in Peru and need help from their country’s honorary consulate now have a website they can visit for basic information, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The consulate, which began operation in Lima in 2005, is run by Honorary Consul Raul Santiago Lozano Merino. The consul, according to an April 13 press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been active in promoting Latvia in Peru, as well as defending the interests of Latvian residents in the country.

The website, available in Spanish and English, is at www.consuladoletonialima.com. The site includes information about the consulate, about relations between Peru and Latvia, and about things travelers from Latvia should know about the South American country.

Thanks to the efforts of the honorary consulate, a park named for Latvia was dedicated in 2008 during President Valdis Zatlers’s trip to Peru, according to the foreign ministry. The park is in Miraflores, a suburb of Lima.

The honorary consul also has kept busy helping Latvian citizens who have gotten into trouble with the law. The number of Latvian citizens who have been jailed in Peru for trying to transport narcotics has increased, according to the foreign ministry.

Besides the one in Peru, other Latvian consulates and honorary consulates with their own websites include representatives in Greece, Indonesia, Lebanon, Luxembourg and, in the United States, Florida and New York.

Website for Peru honorary consulate

The new website for Latvia’s honorary consulate in Lima, Peru, provides information in Spanish and English.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.

Pavasara notikumi latviešu bērniem Šveicē

Latvians Online | 

Šveicē šī gada 24. aprīlī latviešu bērni Tičino svin Lieldienas. Nodarbība notiks Caslano pulksten 13.30-15.00 un to vadīs divi zaķi ar pedagoģisko izglītību, ziņo Cīrihes latviešu valodas un kultūras skolas “Auseklis” pārzine Ilze Schorderet. Pēc tam līdz 16.30 turpat Caslano bērni apmeklēs Šokolādes muzeju.

Aicināti piedalīties latviešu bērni no Šveices un Itālijas vecumā no 4-10 gadiem. Programmā būs Lieldienu pasaku lasīšana, olu ripināšana, olu meklēšana, rotaļas, šūpošanās un dažādi joki. Dalības maksa ir CHF 30 un līdzi jāņem viena krāsota ola. Vecākiem no 13.30-15.00 ir piedāvājums apmeklēt zvejniecības muzeju Caslano.

Pieteikumus lūdz sūtīt skolas pārzinei Schorderet, schorderet@inbox.lv.

Sestdien, 28. maijā, no plkst. 12.15-14.00 skolā notiks Atvērto durvju diena latviešu un divvalodīgiem (arī daudzvalodīgiem) bērniem vecumā no 2-14 gadiem. Skoliņa aicina ikkatru latviešu, krievu un daudzvalodīgu ģimeni, kas dzīvo Cīrihes apkaimē, apciemot skolu. Tur viesi gūs ieskatu par skolas darbību, kā arī saņems papildinformāciju par latviešu valodas apguves iespējām Šveicē un Latvijā. Bērniem būs iespēja spēlēt dažādas valodu spēles, kā arī iet rotaļās.

Pieteikumus lūdz sūtīt līdz 19. maijam uz skolas biroja adresi Mutschellenstrasse 37, CH-8002 Zürich, vai uz pārzines e-pastu, schorderet@inbox.lv.

Latviešu valodas un kultūras skola “Auseklis” Cīrihē atrodas Hull School, Falkenstrasse 28A. Sīkaku informāciju par skolu var iegūt interneta lapā latvia.yourworld.ch.

Commission OKs signature drive for amendment on school language

Andris Straumanis | 

A signature campaign is set to begin May 11 that could lead to a constitutional amendment making Latvian the only language to be used in government-sponsored schools in the country, the Central Election Commission has announced in Rīga.

The campaign follows confirmation April 11 by the election commission that a petition drive organized by the conservative National Alliance had garnered at least 10,000 signatures, setting into motion the process that could result in the constitutional amendment.

If approved, the constitutional amendment would require that beginning with the 2012 school year, instruction from the first grade up in state- and municipal-sponsored schools could only occur in the state language. Under the constitution, the state language is Latvian.

The National Alliance (Nacionālā apvienība “Visu Latvijai!” – “Tēvzemei un Brīvībai/LNNK”) started the petition drive last year, gathering 10,140 signatures.

Now at least 10 percent of the number of voters in the last parliamentary election, a total 153,232 persons, have to sign a new petition organized by the election commission. If that number is reached by June 9, the proposed amendment will have to be considered by the Saeima.

If the Saeima rejects or amends a citizen-backed amendment, then a national referendum would be organized.

It will be up to local governments to determine where the signature drive will take place. Under the law, local governments must guarantee that at least one location is designated for each 10,000 persons in their jurisdiction.

For Latvian citizens abroad, it is expected that locations will be announced to include embassies and consulates, election commission spokeswoman Kristīne Bērziņa told Latvians Online in an email. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will determine where those locations will be.

While the National Alliance’s effort has moved ahead, another petition drive run by the “Dzimtā valoda” organization seeks to recognize Russian as a second state language. The organization was formed by Vladimirs Lindermans, head of the Jan. 13 Movement (13. janvāra kustība), and Osipov Party leader Jevgēņijs Osipovs, according to media reports.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.