Child Soldiers Global Report 2004 - Latvia
| Publisher | Child Soldiers International |
| Publication Date | 2004 |
| Cite as | Child Soldiers International, Child Soldiers Global Report 2004 - Latvia, 2004, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4988064a32.html [accessed 16 October 2022] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Republic of Latvia
Covers the period from April 2001 to March 2004.
Population: 2.3 million (0.5 million under 18)
Government armed forces: 4,880
Compulsory recruitment age: 19
Voluntary recruitment age: 18
Voting age: 18
Optional Protocol: signed 1 February 2002
Other treaties ratified (see glossary): CRC, GC AP I and II, ICC
There were no reports of under-18s in the armed forces.
Context
In 2003 the UN Human Rights Committee and the UN Committee against Torture expressed concern about alleged police ill-treatment, conditions in places of detention and imprisonment, and the excessive length of pre-trial detention. The Committee against Torture in addition raised concern that detainees were often prevented from contacting lawyers or family members. In 2002 a new law on alternative military service came into effect, but, at twice as long as military service, alternative service for conscientious objectors was of punitive length.1 On 29 March 2004 Latvia became a member of NATO.2 Latvian forces participated in international operations including in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iraq, and Kosovo.3
Government
National recruitment legislation and practice
The Mandatory Military Service Law and the Law on Conscript Service stipulate that all Latvian men are liable for conscription between the ages of 19 and 27. Male and female volunteers can enlist for military service from the age of 18. At 16, Latvian boys receive a draft notice.4 They must have health checks at a local conscription centre on the required date or before 31 January of the following year.5 Mandatory military service is for 12 months but exemption or deferment may be allowed in specified cases.6 Conscripts can also apply for alternative military service, of 24 months or 18 months for higher education graduates, under the Alternative Service Law, which came into effect on 1 July 2002.7
Approximately 1,600 service personnel are conscripted into the armed forces annually.8 The Ministry of Defence plans to phase out mandatory military service and move to an all-volunteer force by 2006.9 The paramilitary National Guard, which is a "militarized, public self-defence formation", accepts members on a voluntary basis from the age of 18.10
Military training and military schools
The minimum age for entering a military educational institution is 18.11 As part of its plan to phase out conscription, the Ministry of Defence aims to interest young people in professional military service through education and pre-military service training.12
This will be provided by the Youth Guard (Jaunsardze), a voluntary organization based in secondary schools throughout the country and managed by the Ministry of Defence. In early 2004, the Youth Guard had nearly 10,000 members. Children can be members of the Youth Guard Junior Group between the ages of 12 and 15, and the Senior Group from 16 to 18. School students may take Youth Guard education courses on military history, the structure and functions of the armed forces, the basics of military training or specialized technical training. Members of the Senior Group receive training similar to that of soldiers in the armed forces, and can obtain a diploma that gives them an advantage in entering military educational establishments and professional military service.13
1 Amnesty International Reports 2002, 2003 and 2004, http://web.amnesty.org/library/engindex.
2 NATO update, Seven new members join NATO, 29 March 2004, http://www.nato.int/docu/update/2004/03-march/e0329a.htm.
3 Information from Ministry of Defence, http://www.mod.gov.lv.
4 Mandatory Military Service Law, Chapter 1, Section 2, and Chapter 2, Section 18, at Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Regulatory Acts, Legislation).
5 Conscript Service Registration, at Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (National Armed Forces).
6 Mandatory Military Service Law, op. cit., Chapter 1, Section 3 and the section on Drafting.
7 Alternative Service Law, at Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Regulatory Acts, Legislation).
8 International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), The Military Balance 2003-2004, Oxford University Press, October 2003.
9 Defence Budget 2004, at Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Budget).
10 Law on the National Guard of the Republic of Latvia, Section 1, Part 1, at Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Regulatory Acts, Legislation).
11 Military Service Law, op. cit., Chapter 3, Section 18, Part 1.
12 Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Public affairs, Premilitary service training).
13 Ministry of Defence, op. cit. (Public affairs, Premilitary service training, Youth Guard).
