The Constitutional Court announces the third successive competition of pupils’ drawings and essays about the Satversme
Today, on 23 September, the Constitutional Court announced the third successive competition of pupils’ drawings and essays dedicated to the basic law of this country – the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia (hereinafter – the Satversme). The competition is organised to mark the 98th anniversary since the adoption of the Satversme.
The Constitutional Court invited teachers to register pupils of the 6th grades from institutions of general and special education for the competition of drawings “A Free Person in Independent Latvia”, whereas pupils of the 9th and the 12th grades of institutions of general, special and vocational education – for the competition of essays “Why my Fundamental Rights Included in the Satversme are Important for Latvia?”
President of the Constitutional Court Ineta Ziemele: “This autumn, the Court continues the initiated tradition and encourages adolescents to study the Satversme, to research fundamental rights and understand their content. This year, freedom and the state are the leitmotifs of the competition. The young generation needs to be aware that a free person and human dignity is in the centre of Latvia as a democratic state governed by the rule of law. I believe that an internally and externally free person is the main driving force of society and the state. The topic chosen for this competition urges pupils to think not only about themselves but also about Latvia. Have we reflected on the reasons why the Latvian people have set exactly this Satversme with these fundamental rights for itself, why is it important for our national development? We look forward to seeing how pupils will represent these topics in their work.”
According to the rules of the competition, participation must be registered by 18 October (including) of the current year. The deadline for submitting works – 6 December. As usual, all Justices of the Constitutional Court will be involved in evaluating the submissions. The winners of the competition, recipients of writs of appreciation and their teachers will be invited for the awards ceremony at the Constitutional Court on 17 February 2020.
The aim of the competition is to promote pupils’ loyalty to Latvia and the Satversme, reinforce awareness of the statehood and encourage pupils to be become involved in activities of the state as well as to promote interest and understanding of the Satversme and its importance among the younger generation, to introduce to pupils the Constitutional Court and explain its role in a democratic society.
The text of the Satversme and description of the competition’s assessment criteria are annexed to the rules, several informative educational materials that will be useful to pupils and all interested parties in studying the Satversme are also provided.
Rules of the competition are available here.
The annexes to the rules, information about deadlines, etc. are available on the homepage of the Constitutional Court, section “Competition”.
As reported previously, 82 schools, from all regions of Latvia, registered for participation in the competition announced by the Constitutional Court last year, and 307 pupils’ works were submitted. The works of the winners were included in a travelling exhibition “The Satversme as Seen by Pupils”, which will be on until 3 October at the municipal library of Rūjiena. Afterwards, the exhibition will travel to the regional library of Sigulda where it will be open to visitors from 7 October.