Members of the New Unity party have submitted amendments to the Saeima regarding the law on administrative penalties for violations in the areas of governance, public order, and the use of the state language, which provide for increased fines for disrespecting the state language.
"The Latvian language is the foundation of Latvia as a national state, and its protection and use are not only a matter of culture but also of security," said Edmunds Jurēvics, the leader of the New Unity faction, noting that the amendments are not merely a repressive tool but reflect the state's clear position on the importance of the state language.
In recent years, the State Language Center has recorded over 4,000 violations, including cases where the state language was not used in the performance of professional duties. The current fines were established in 2020 and no longer correspond to the economic situation and current language policy, the party notes.
The amendments provide for an increase in the amount of fines for almost all articles of the law regulating the use of the state language.
The law also proposes to include a new version of Article 20 on disrespect for the state language. Politicians propose to introduce a fine of 20 to 400 penalty monetary units for explicit disrespect for the state language, as well as for actions aimed at diminishing the status and significance of the state language.
One penalty monetary unit is 5 euros.
