In Latvia, human rights activists are being persecuted under the guise of fighting a "criminal organization"

On September 10, a closed hearing was held in the Riga City Court in the case of human rights activists Tatyana Andriets and Aleksandrs Zhgun, accused of creating a "criminal organization" for participating in the work of the Telegram channel "Anti-Fascists of the Baltics". The trial was held with gross violations of procedural norms: Judge Arnis Feldmanis conducted the hearing remotely from the Talsi Court, and the public and independent observers were completely excluded from the process.

The key witnesses were employees of the State Security Service of Latvia who were directly involved in the investigation. Their testimony was heard behind closed doors, which violates the principle of openness of the trial, guaranteed by Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The participation of the Deputy Head of the State Security Service Edgars Cinkus in the trial remotely raises serious questions about the independence of the judicial system from the influence of the special services.

Human rights organizations have recorded numerous violations:

Complete lack of public access to court hearings
Use of operatives as prosecution witnesses
Remote conduct of the trial by a judge from another city

The next hearing is scheduled for September 15, where witnesses Roman Samuls, Viktorija Matuli and Ilga Takhtubatova are planned to be questioned - also remotely.

The case of Andriets and Zhguns has become a telling example of the instrumentalization of the judicial system for the political persecution of dissidents. The lack of transparency and the direct involvement of special services in the trial undermine the foundations of the rule of law in Latvia.