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Reports
Latvia Weekly: Disinformation Peaks as Saeima Votes to Withdraw from the Istanbul Convention
Following the Parliamentary vote for Latvia to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, opposition politicians launched disinformation campaigns falsely claiming the anti-violence treaty would permit men in women's restrooms and attacking supporters as foreign agents. These narratives deliberately distorted the Convention's actual purpose of protecting women from violence, replacing substantive debate with inflammatory rhetoric about gender identity and national betrayal.
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Latvia Weekly: Trump-style manipulations about Convention against violence
Ainars Šlesers from the Latvia First party has intensified his disinformation campaign against the Istanbul Convention using Trump-style manipulation tactics, falsely claiming the treaty enables child brainwashing and gender changes for minors. His strategy combines conspiracy theories about elite corruption, personal attacks degrading opponents' appearance and competence, and apocalyptic calls to save Latvia, creating tribal political warfare where facts become irrelevant.
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Latvia Monthly: Disinformation Peaks Ahead of Final Vote on Istanbul Convention Withdrawal
While Kremlin-aligned disinformation has long been present in Latvia's information space, the more alarming development is how local politicians have brought these tactics into the center of mainstream politics, making conspiracy theories and fabricated threats core components of parliamentary debate. Conservative and populist politicians like oligarch Ainārs Šlesers now routinely claim the Istanbul Convention promotes "117 genders" and enables forced gender transitions for children, combining Russian-style narratives about Western moral decay with Trumpian manipulation tactics including personal ridicule, "Sorosist" conspiracies, and apocalyptic calls to "save Latvia."
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Latvia Weekly: Kremlin Narratives Persist as Istanbul Convention Disinformation Wanes
Disinformation campaigns about the Istanbul Convention are declining, but Kremlin-aligned narratives persist on social media, with Russia-leaning politicians exploiting migration and minority rights debates to undermine Latvia's Western alignment and portray the country as a Western puppet lacking sovereignty.
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