Political observers in Latvia hailed on Sunday President Vaira Vike-Freiberga's unprecedented decision to block amendments to the Baltic state's national security laws, according to dpa. "This is amazing news. The president was always seen as being close to the political elite and oligarchs - at last she has come out against them," Lolita Cigane, public policy researcher at the NGO Providus, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. "It's going to be a showdown. This is the second time that the president has stopped these laws - it looks like she's going for broke," added Nils Muiznieks, head of political science at the University of Latvia. On Saturday, for the first time in her eight years in office, Vike-Freiberga invoked the constitution to freeze the amendments for two months - opening the way for a possible referendum. The amendments "open the door to very serious political manipulation... and, ultimately, influence by the so-called oligarchs, which would be very dangerous," Vike-Freiberga said. "I stand before you today to warn the nation directly, and to say that I invite both parliament and the government to consider their further actions carefully," she told journalists. The amendments were introduced by ministers during the parliamentary break under emergency legislation which allows the cabinet to pass laws without parliamentary consent in times of "urgent need." One amendment allows unnamed "individuals delegated by the national security council" to launch investigations into security service activities, while the other creates a new National Security Services Council staffed only by government ministers. The government said the urgency was necessary in the light of the precarious world security situation. Vike-Freiberga rejected the claim and refused to promulgate the laws.
