A Latvian family from Germany will learn late this month whether their appeal of Latvia’s ban on dual citizenship—which the Constitutional Court recently ruled is legal—will be upheld by the country’s Supreme Court.

Baiba Lapiņa-Strunska and Viktors Strunskis appeared June 15 before the three-judge panel in Rīga to plead their case once more, this time suggesting the Constitutional Court’s May 13 ruling provides a previously unknown opening in their favor.

The couple in 2006 sued the Office of Migration and Citizenship Affairs (Pilsonības un migrācijas lietu pārvalde, or PMLP) after they were denied in their attempt to get a Latvian passport for their daughter, Rauna, who was born four days before Latvia reasserted its independence in 1990. Strunskis, who was born in Latvia, and Lapiņa-Strunskis, who was born in Germany, understood that they already were dual citizens of Germany and Latvia. Their Latvian passports were issued by the London legation of the Latvian government-in-exile.

However, PMLP officials told the couple those passports were invalid and that to become Latvian citizens they would first have to renounce their German citizenship. Once they would do that, then their daughter could be registered as a Latvian citizen.

The Latvian constitution forbids dual citizenship. Until July 1, 1995, persons who had held Latvian citizenship before the Soviet occupation could reclaim it without giving up citizenship in another country. This transitional rule also applied to descendants of pre-World War II citizens. Nearly 31,000 Latvians around the world were granted dual citizenship.

The Strunskis case ended up in the Supreme Court, which last year called the dual citizenship restriction a violation of human rights. But before it could decide on the case, the Supreme Court asked the Constitutional Court to weigh in on the legality of the transitional rule.

Although the Constitutional Court last month found no problem with the transitional rule, its opinion also noted that the question of dual citizenship is one that should be left up to the Saeima and the people of Latvia.

In addition, the attorney for the Strunskis family told the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court’s opinion revealed a new issue: The Latvian government in 1993 decided that passports issued by Latvian legations—such as the ones held by Baiba Lapiņa-Strunskis and Viktors Strunskis—would become invalid as of Jan. 1, 1994.

A country governed by the rule of law, attorney Guntars Precinieks told the court, would have informed its citizens of that little-known fact. As far as the Strunskis couple knew, their legation-issued passports were still valid and the July 2005 deadline was not a concern for them.

The Strunskis couple also presented the Supreme Court with a 20-page overview of their case, which PMLP attorney Arvīds Zahars dismissed as likely not having much bearing on the outcome.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to issue its ruling on June 28.

Eleven students, professors and professionals will be heading to the United States during the next academic years thanks to support from the Fulbright and Humphrey fellowships, the U.S. Embassy in Rīga has announced.

Four students and five scholars from Latvia will receive a Fulbright Fellowship to study and do research and two professionals will receive a Humphrey Fellowship for a year of professional development work in the United States.

Recipients of the Fulbright Foreign Student Fellowship will undertake graduate work at a U.S. university.  Recipients of the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Fellowship will conduct research and lecture in the United States.  Humphrey Fellowship recipients will participate in an internship program and develop their professional skills while based at a U.S. university.

Recipients of the Fulbright Student Fellowship include Zane Čulkstēna, director of the Latvian Contemporary Art Museum kim? (Kas ir māksla?), who will work towards her master’s degree in arts at Columbia University; Andris Rimša, who will study for a master’s degree at Harvard Law School; Baiba Bārene, who will work towards a doctorate in psychology at Purdue University; and Rihards Fedotovs, who will work towards his master’s degree in music at the University of the Arts.

Fulbright Visiting Scholars include Anatolijs Borodinecs, assistant professor of engineering at Rīga Technical University, who will conduct research at the Pennsylvania State University; Andris Sprūds, associate professor of political science at Rīga Stradiņš University, who will conduct research at Johns Hopkins University; Modris Dobelis, professor of engineering at Rīga Technical University, who will conduct research at North Carolina State University; Jurijs Dehtjars, professor of physics and astronomy at Rīga Technical University, who will conduct research at the Norwich University Applied Research Institute; and Zane Zeibote, researcher in economics, who will conduct research at Georgetown University.

The Fulbright Program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.  The Fulbright Program has provided more than 300,000 participants worldwide with the opportunity to exchange ideas and observe each other’s cultures and political and economic institutions.  Since 1992, the United States has offered Fulbright fellowships to 196 students, teachers, and senior educators from Latvia.

The Humphrey Fellowship recipients are Vineta Polatside, project coordinator of The International Organization for Migration in Latvia, who will study the prevention of trafficking in persons at the University of Minnesota, and Inga Sprinģe, investigative journalist and lecturer in journalism at the University of Latvia, who will study journalism at the University of Maryland.

The Humphrey Fellowships Program provides mid-career professionals an opportunity to enhance their professional capabilities through participation in a specialized year of graduate-level, non-degree academic course work and professional development activities at selected U.S. universities.  Since 2000, the United States has offered Humphrey Fellowships to six outstanding professionals in various fields from Latvia.

The 11 recipients and alumni of the programs were honored during a recent garden party at the embassy in Rīga.

The deadline for the Humphrey Fellowship Program and the Fulbright Student Fellowship this year is Sept. 7; the deadline for the Fulbright Scholars program is Nov. 24.  Application forms and more details are available by visiting riga.usembassy.gov or the U.S. Embassy’s Public Affairs Section at 7 Smilšu St., Rīga.

The 11 recipients of Fulbright and Humphrey fellowships pose for a photograph with U.S. Ambassador to Latvia Judith Garber (center, in red jacket). (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Embassy in Latvia)