INTRODUCTION 1 1. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Mr Nils Muižnieks (the Commissioner), carried out a visit to Latvia from 5 to 9 September 2016.1 The visit focused on three sets of issues: gender equality and women’s rights, with a focus on the issue of violence against women; the human rights of children with reference to stateless children, alternative care, the process of deinstitutionalisation, and the rights of children with disabilities to inclusive education; and, lastly, the rights of LGBTI persons, having regard to the country’s anti-discrimination framework and educational policies. 2. In Riga, the Commissioner met with Mr Māris Kučinskis, the Prime Minister of Latvia; Mr Rihards Kozlovskis, the Minister of the Interior; Mr Kārlis Šadurskis, the Minister of Education and Science; Mr Edgars Rinkēvičs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr Ēriks Kalnmeiers, the Prosecutor General; Ms Karīna Ploka, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Welfare; Mr Raivis Kronbergs, State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice; Ms Anita Gotharde, the Deputy Head of the State Inspectorate for Protection of Children’s Rights; and Mr Juris Radzēvičs, Executive Director of the City of Riga and other Riga City Council officials. In the Saeima (Parliament), he met with representatives of different parliamentary factions. In addition, the Commissioner held discussions with the Ombudsman, Mr Juris Jansons, and representatives of civil society. 3. The Commissioner went to two sites of human rights relevance: the Milgravis family crisis centre in Riga and the Baldone branch of the Riga State Social Care Centre, which is located in the municipality of Baldone. 4. The Commissioner would like to thank the Latvian authorities in Strasbourg and Riga for their assistance in facilitating the visit. He is also grateful for the assistance provided by the Ombudsman and wishes to thank all his interlocutors for sharing their knowledge and insights with him. WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUALITY 1.1 LEGAL AND POLICY FRAMEWORK FOR GENDER EQUALITY 5. Latvia is bound by several international human rights instruments on the protection of women’s rights and the elimination of discrimination against women. At the global level, Latvia is a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which provide for a duty to ensure equal rights of women and men as regards the enjoyment of economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights. In 1992, Latvia joined the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. However, it has neither signed nor ratified its Optional Protocol that would recognise the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women - the body that monitors compliance with that Convention - to receive complaints from individuals or groups. 6. At the European level, the relevant standards applicable to Latvia include the European Convention on Human Rights and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights; the Revised European Social Charter; and the relevant recommendations of the Committee of Ministers to Council of Europe member states.2 7. The Latvian Constitution provides for the principle of equality and non-discrimination for “all human beings […] before the law and the courts”,3 which, according to the government, entails the principle of gender equality.4 While there is no comprehensive law on gender equality, sectorial laws prohibit 1 The Commissioner was accompanied by Ms Bojana Urumova, Deputy to the Director of his Office, and Mr Vahagn Muradyan, Adviser. 2 Recommendations of the Committee of Ministers. 3 The Constitution of the Republic of Latvia. 4 Latvia, National report on the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action (1995) and the results of the 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly (2000), July 2014. 4