Last month, amendments to the Education Law came into force in Latvia, in which the 36th article now explicitly states "age-appropriate, systematic, and targeted measures to prevent violence and promote well-being." Recently, the family and school environment was discussed at the Saeima's Education, Science, and Culture Commission.
"Digital and emotional punishments are becoming common"
How often one is glad that both sons have already grown up. Otherwise, how to raise them in modern conditions? According to a report by the Ministry of Welfare, among parents in Latvia surveyed in 2025, more than 80% consider even non-violent methods of upbringing, such as name-calling, criticism, and yelling, to be wrong. More radical options – spanking and even beating with a belt – are also not acceptable for 4/5 of parents. The only thing that still remains in the parental arsenal is prohibitions and restrictions, which are applied by more than 50%.
The most effective method in our age of technology is limiting their use. Give the kids a detox from smartphones! As experts noted, physical punishments used by parents are decreasing, however, "digital and emotional punishments are becoming common, especially for younger children."
"Prolonged silence and ignoring are on the rise," the Ministry of Welfare report states.
Kindergarten police
But what if dad or mom decides to take the belt after all? One should not think that the public will ignore this: nearly one in five residents of Latvia, according to surveys, suspected physical violence against children (naturally, not their own) – and almost half of them intervened in the situation. Of those who intervened, 75% discussed the situation with the parents and 25% contacted institutions representing children's interests.
Police officers, upon arriving at the scene, in accordance with the Istanbul Convention aimed at eradicating domestic violence, will conduct detailed identification and documentation of the injuries, based on which orphan courts and social services will make a decision – most likely about placing the affected minor in a crisis "Children's Home."
However, for the functioning of such important institutions in Latvia, there is still a shortage of specialists: psychologists, psychiatrists, narcologists, and specialists in other addictions. Various municipalities provide unequal support.
Moreover, as the specialists of the Ministry of Welfare gallantly express, "there is a lack of acceptable services for children who themselves commit violence." Let’s read this phrase again to understand how high current social pedagogy has risen.
Non-violent intervention
Last year, 43 municipalities in Latvia received 200,000 euros for the aforementioned purpose. It seems that in the scale of the country and given the complexity of the problem, the amount is not large, but nevertheless, only 178.7 thousand euros were spent.
1,570 educators attended professional development courses, 2,002 workers participated in seminars and conferences, 420 educational and methodological tools were purchased, and 14 platforms or programs for reducing violence were acquired and maintained across the country.
For 2026, twice as much money has been allocated for these same purposes – the state will provide 300,000 euros to municipalities and 120,000 euros to vocational educational institutions.
In April of this year, the University of Latvia began a professional retraining course for youth workers (150 hours), focusing on forming children's "digital identity" – that is, how minors present themselves on social networks.
Caught in the nets
For today's Latvian schoolchildren, the leading trio of social networks – Instagram, TikTok, Facebook – is the minimum. Those who are older and more advanced create X for discussions, LinkedIn for careers, and Tinder for personal life... Naturally, the messengers WhatsApp and Telegram (more for Russian speakers).
By the way, it is precisely the digital environment that, unfortunately, becomes a place where the younger generation can encounter unacceptable sexual harassment with a high degree of probability. Although the risk exists offline as well – for example, the Latvian Football Federation (!) is conducting as many as 4 seminars this year on "safe sports for children." Not in the sense of not breaking an ankle, but – "How to protect from sexual exploitation." What is happening in Latvian football, where such seminars are in demand?
I must honestly say, in such a wild context, my wife and I never constructed thoughts when we first enrolled our son in judo and then in basketball. Well, there was nothing like that, except that in the team sport, initially, he was one of two non-titled players and often heard from other children the expression "Krievu okupants." We had to change clubs, and there the teenagers matured and learned to take responsibility for their words. Fortunately, it ended without a fight...
The Ministry of Health warns
The department of Hosam Abu Meri is also building its strategy for assistance – a Support Center for victims of sexual violence is being created at the Riga Eastern Clinical University Hospital (Gaiļezers). It will accept patients starting from 16 years old – and for the sake of anonymity, through a separate stream.
In addition to medical assistance, psychological support and forensic examination services will be provided there. Victims will not have to visit a whole range of institutions – it is expected that this will ease the consequences of the inflicted trauma.
The project budget has not yet been confirmed. So far, having united in a newly formed working group with the participation of the State Police, medical and social workers intend to adopt the experience of Estonia, where there are already 4 such centers.
Does this mean that our northern neighbors have such unfavorable conditions regarding violence? The question is debatable – most likely, the Estonians are simply fighting it more actively. Similarly, the conclusion about the happiest country in the world, Finland, in the context of the highest level of offenses in the family and children’s sphere does not hold. It’s just that in the land of Suomi, these incidents are meticulously recorded, while in our republic they still largely remain a latent phenomenon. So, until Latvia has a completely unspanked generation, there is still a long distance to cover.
TRANSMITTED BY INHERITANCE
Researchers have concluded that a person who encountered a certain method of upbringing in childhood is more likely to apply it to their own child. For example, punishment with a belt increases the likelihood of applying this method to one’s own children by 3.5 times.
