Latvia: Welfare Minister submits Istanbul Convention for approval

Latvia’s Ministry of Welfare has submitted the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention on violence against women and domestic violence for approval to the government, LETA reports. Under the draft law, ratification would include a reservation that Latvia would implement the convention in line with “the values, principles, and norms enshrined in the Constitution,” which stipulates that the state shall protect and support marriage as a “union between a man and a woman.” The Istanbul Convention aims to prevent and eliminate violence against women and domestic violence through a comprehensive legal framework. Latvia signed the convention in 2016, but has so far failed to ratify the document due to parliamentary opposition.