More than 10,000 people gathered in the Latvian capital on Thursday night to protest a bill that would see the country exit the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty aimed at combating violence against women. The demonstration went ahead even after President Edgars Rinkēvičs refused to the sign the bill and parliament tabled it upon reconsideration. Meduza visited the demonstration and asked participants why they decided to protest even after lawmakers backed down.

On October 30, Latvia’s parliament voted to exit the Istanbul Convention, a landmark treaty aimed at preventing violence against women. The move came despite a major protest against the bill the previous evening, and immediately after the vote, activists announced a new protest for the following week.

Three days after the bill’s passage, Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs announced he would not sign it and sent the legislation back to lawmakers for review. Upon reconsideration, the Saeima opted to postpone the vote until after the 2026 parliamentary elections next October.

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Although the immediate risk of Latvia withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention had receded, public outcry had not. The second protest went ahead on November 6, despite the postponed vote, drawing a crowd of more than 10,000, according to local police. The demonstration ended up being roughly twice the size of the first protest.

“I decided to come today because even though they made the decision to postpone [the withdrawal vote, lawmakers] need to know we won’t let it pass,” one protester told Meduza. “We’ll keep coming out, even a year from now.”

Many participants carried homemade signs featuring Riga’s 140-foot Freedom Monument, a symbol of Latvia featuring a female figure affectionately nicknamed “Milda.” “My sign says ‘The daughters of Milda are crying — protect them,” said one woman who runs a nonprofit that supports children in foster care. “I work with a lot of young adults who have experienced [domestic violence], and it’s really important to me that they have protections.”

Latvia has the highest rate of femicide per capita in Europe, outpacing even Russia. According to protest organizer Beata Jonite, who works at the leading Latvian women’s rights organization MARTA Center, in the two years since the Istanbul Convention’s ratification, the treaty has facilitated the passage of multiple pieces of landmark legislation aimed at decreasing gender-based violence and protecting victims.

Latvia and the Istanbul Convention

• ‘Cynical and completely reckless’ Latvia has the highest femicide rate in Europe — including Russia. Its parliament just voted to exit a treaty protecting women from violence.

Several protesters said they believe lawmakers’ initial vote to pass the withdrawal bill was a cynical act of political maneuvering that does not reflect the will of the Latvian people. “I think it was a political game meant to split our government and society,” one man attending the protest told Meduza. “And I would say they succeeded, but you can see how many people are here today — maybe they didn’t succeed.”

Still, some participants noted that there are ordinary Latvians who support exiting the convention. “Unfortunately, I do [know such people],” one person said. “Especially in the older generation.”

They’re really scared that we’re going to lose the traditional family. They’re afraid of the whole “gender” topic. They think this is all LGBTQ+ propaganda. So basically, all of these politicians that are against [the Istanbul Convention] are using this wrong interpretation. And we’re really angry about it.

As Jonite told Meduza earlier this week, the narrative that the Istanbul Convention is a “Trojan horse” for pro-LGBTQ+ propaganda echoes narratives commonly pushed by the Kremlin. The idea that withdrawing from the treaty would mark a symbolic turn away from the E.U. and towards Moscow was voiced by multiple speakers and protesters at Thursday’s demonstration.

“We want to live in Europe,” said a woman who was holding her five-year-old daughter. “Not Russia.”