My Russian-speaking phone rang: 2/3 of the population are disappointed with cohesion 0 15

Sociologists studied the opinions of respondents — how kindly they view a "national, solidary, open, and civically active society, the foundation of which is democratic values and human rights enshrined in the Constitution, the Latvian language, and the Latvian cultural space."

Shake, but don’t mix

Only in 2021-2024, 30 million euros were spent on the implementation of the Main Directions. More than 50 projects are being implemented by 12 responsible institutions plus 18 that assist them.

Let us recall the plans set before our republic:

"Strengthen the sense of statehood and belonging to Latvia. Promote the strengthening of the Latvian language as a unifying foundation of society in everyday communication. Promote the development of understanding of social memory in society. Facilitate the acquisition of democratic skills and knowledge by citizens. Strengthen the development and resilience of civil society. Create a high-quality, safe, and inclusive space for democratic participation and information. Promote the integration of foreign citizens living in Latvia into society. Foster understanding of the diversity of society among the population, reducing negative stereotypical attitudes towards various population groups."

Starting from the end, of course, the clip in which a Roma boy is given the right to speak on the phone with his parents in his native language is a great step towards inclusivity. However, it was, so to speak, received ambiguously, many did not understand. As for foreign citizens residing here, just recently, the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs reported that over the past 4 years, the number of Russian citizens with residence permits in Latvia has decreased by 11,800, among them 2,600 "voluntarily departed." The rest, it can be assumed, found other ways to ensure a "national, solidary, open, and civically active society..."

The report by Civitta identified "detaining and facilitating factors" — a lack of human and financial resources (the availability of funds is "fragmented"); shortcomings in mastering the state language ("there is no unified, coordinated system of education"); as well as global events and changes in the geopolitical situation. In the latter, however, positives can be found: "The positive influence was associated with a focus on the importance of the Latvian language, voluntary work, and donations."

Sociological Sensation

However, a survey covering 1,007 residents of Latvia indicated alarming trends. 67% of respondents believe that society has not become more cohesive over the past 5 years. Only 1% fully agree that such cohesion exists, and another 17% "somewhat agree."

Separate, focused interviews were also conducted. Residents of the country, who were added to the community, as it is pleasantly said, of "Russian speakers" (presumably, to avoid using the unpleasant word krievs, which is constantly mentioned in the news — as if they bombed something, or, conversely, so many of them were killed on the battlefield) complained that "there are no systematic and targeted measures that would facilitate the inclusion of this group of people into the Latvian cultural space, taking into account the restrictions and initiatives introduced to reduce the presence of the Russian language in the public space."

At the same time, "pride in belonging to Latvia" is felt by 77% of the population. It should be noted that very close to this — 77.3% — is the level of those adult residents who speak the Latvian language, although it is not their native language.

50% of respondents across Latvia believe that current relations in society motivate more use of the state language in practice, but 34% disagree. If we survey those who speak another language at home (rhymed today with the word "magnetophone"), it turns out that the environment promotes language integration for 33%, while 48% feel repulsion.

The researchers' preliminary conclusions are as follows: "Strengthening knowledge of the Latvian language is aimed at new immigrants (citizens of Ukraine); more attention needs to be paid to representatives of ethnic minorities, including Russian-speaking residents."

Organization nekur

Such an answer — where do you personally participate in public life? — was given by 74.7 percent of respondents. In reality, of course, three-quarters of completely isolated individuals from society is an exaggeration. Both sociologists and the surveyed people likely do not realize that community housing arrangements or, at the very least, a household chat is also a form of participation. "The informal participation of residents (community activity, outskirts) is currently developing rapidly, and tracking its activities is difficult," the researchers shrugged.

But this is indeed a manifestation, so to speak, of grassroots democracy, of which only 34.8% are satisfied overall. As for residents' perception of their ability to change policy, it is, so to speak, below the plinth — the Cabinet of Ministers is trusted by 27.9%, the Saeima by 25.4%, and political parties by 12.9%.

As for the regrettable phenomenon of discrimination — unfortunately, 13.6% of respondents admitted that they have experienced it. When asked — has our society become more tolerant of various ethnic groups over the past 5 years? — only 1 percent answered confidently "yes," and another 20% "somewhat agree." Among those who do not speak the state language at home, 78% are convinced that tolerance has, on the contrary, decreased.

"It is necessary to ensure broader access to Latvian language courses and integration for immigrants, as well as to expand the diversity of learning formats. There is a conflict of views between Latvians and Russian-speaking residents regarding the Russian language and the consumption of Russian culture, which intensifies the feeling of discrimination among Russian-speaking residents. As immigration trends grow, the sense of community in society weakens."

Again — great! And yet, for several years, a half-joking, half-serious viewpoint was expressed: that Latvians and Russians would understand each other better when we have, in abundance, newcomers from Asia and Africa. But no, we just received new problems in addition to the old ones. In the Latvian cocktail, which is being shaken and stirred, an exotic layer has appeared.

— It is a good practice for European states to conduct independent research, — evaluated the work done Elena Shaicāne, director of the Department of Cohesive Society Policy at the Ministry of Culture. By the way, this agency is precisely what Civitas proposes to continue the main work in the field of cohesion. As has been done since 2013, when a representative of the National Alliance, Dace Melbārde, first headed the agency, and everything went along known tracks. Today, the Ministry of Culture is led by the "Progressives" — and the cart is still there! Well, as for the fact that krievs has now become rusofons, that is just a matter of terminology. As they say, you can call it a pot, just don’t put it in the oven!