Parliamentary election and referendum conducted professionally in Latvia

WARSAW, 5 October 1998 - The Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, Polish Foreign Minister Bronislaw Geremek, welcomes the preliminary conclusion from the ODIHR that both the Referendum and the Parliamentary Election of October 3 were conducted in a transparent and professional manner.

Minister Geremek particularly welcomes the Referendum results in Latvia, which has approved the amendments to the Citizenship Law.

The new legislation regarding the conferral of citizenship on children of stateless parents born in Latvia since restoration of independence means that Latvia is implementing its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Minister Geremek fully supports the Statement on this Referendum by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Mr. Max van der Stoel, and hopes that the Latvian authorities will continue to work toward solving inter-ethnic problems and promoting the process of integration. The results of the Referendum create an opportunity that European standards be better applied and observed in Latvia, and the OSCE community expects this to be the case.