The Latvian Centre for Human Rights (LCHR) was established in 1993 with a view to promoting human rights and tolerance in Latvia through monitoring, research, advocacy, legal assistance and training activities. In recent years, LCHR main focus has been on two broad areas: human rights in closed institutions, and social integration, which includes all minority-related and tolerance issues, as they represent the most important problem areas of human rights in Latvia.

The LCHR collects and analyses diverse materials and phenomena related to its main area of expertise, and is regularly involves n collecting data and closely following legislative, policy and real case development in the human rights area and the social integration area. In addition, monitoring visits to closed institutions are being conducted, and our staff lawyer provides free-of-charge legal assistance to individuals with human rights cases.

The LCHR has published numerous reports, book chapters, papers and articles both locally and internationally. Every year the LCHR publishes a Human Rights Report about the main developments and problems of the previous year in Latvia, which attracts significant media and public attention at the presentation event. The LCHR also provides an electronically available daily press digest on integration issues.

The LCHR is frequently providing expert opinions both locally (to government, parliament, media, educational institutions, courts, prosecutors and lawyers), as well as internationally (to embassies’ and foreign ministries’ representatives of various countries, and to regional and international organisations, such as European Commission, OSCE, Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, ECRI, etc.). The LCHR has been also providing written expertise upon request to domestic prosecutors, security police, courts and lawyers (on incitement, hate speech, language restrictions in media, on Criminal Process Code requirements), as well as to the foreign lawyers and courts on refugee cases. 

Apart from collecting data, providing analysis and expertise, the LCHR has been actively involved in advocacy for change, ranging from raising public awareness to specific policy or legislative change. Different LCHR staff members have also at various times been invited to participate in policy/legislative work groups at the Ministries of Justice, Welfare, Interior, at the former Secretariat of the Special task Minister of Social Integration affairs, at the national Board of Television and Radio, and at the President’s work group. 

The LCHR since establishemnt has been member of the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights untill December 2007 when the Federation was closed. In May 1998, the LCHR has received the EU-US Democracy and Civil Society Award. In October 2003 the LCHR has been chosen by an international jury to receive the first Van der Stoel Prize (the award recognizes outstanding contributions towards the improvement of the situation of national minorities in the OSCE participating States) for being “an authoritative and objective source on human rights and inter-ethnic issues in Latvia”.