Sensitive family data is collected on behalf of foreign countries

Several Latvian non-governmental organizations, on behalf of some foreign institution, have tried to collect data on the sexual orientation of Latvian students without coordinating it with their parents and the management of educational institutions. It is not clear for what purposes this sensitive information is intended to be used, but it could be dangerous if it were to fall into the wrong hands. Currently, the survey in Latvia has been suspended due to parental objections but it is continuing in other European countries.

"Participate in an international project that seeks to identify high school students' reflections and direct or indirect experiences related to sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Your participation in this survey is very important and will allow professionals to better understand how to ensure the well-being and academic achievements of all high school students. Please share this survey with your friends and acquaintances so that it reaches as many high school students in Latvia as possible.” Such an invitation was distributed in March by Latvian organizations related to the LGBT community.

Children, do not trust your parents!

Apparently, the young people responded and also told their parents about this questionnaire, because the questionnaires also asked private questions about parent no. 1 and parent no. 2. Asked about their nationality, material status, religious affiliation. And many parents did not like it at all, so they have turned to the highest officials of the state and the institutions responsible for the protection of children's data. Why should someone abroad know the sexual orientation of Latvian children, their views on gender and possible gender reassignment? Why would they need to know the exact school where the respondent is located, and how many heterosexual children there are in that school, and how many with different sexual orientations? And why should the child be asked a question - with which of the eight (!) genders does the respondent associate themselves? For some reason, the questionnaire also included the question of whether the respondent and a member of their family had been tested positive for Covid. How exactly can the gathered information contribute to "academic achievements"? The craziest thing is that the interviewers specifically stated in the foreword of the questionnaire that children do not have to ask their parents for permission to participate in the survey, as this could lead to "forced outing" and encourage "verbal or physical violence". That is, children, do not trust their non-gendered parents, trust us.

Data is sent to Belgium

Mozaīka, the leading organization in the LGBT community that advertised the survey, does not assume responsibility for it. Even though the respondents were asked to contact Mozaīka with questions about the content of the questionnaire. The head of the organization Kaspars Zālītis explains the following:

“The project and research are coordinated by Ghent University. This research methodology has been developed, evaluated and monitored by scientists in the field. Ghent University is a recognized scientific institution in Europe and stores research data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation. Ghent University is fully responsible for the content of the study and the processing of the results. Mozaīka has provided voluntary support to the Ghent University study by reviewing the survey questions and posting information on social networks. Mozaīka does not have access to the study data and will only have access to the final results of the study."

Thus, a foreign institution based in Belgium has requested the provision of particularly sensitive data, and a group of Latvian organizations do so without the coordination of either the children's parents or the Latvian state institutions. In addition, without taking any responsibility for the further storage and use of this data.

Parents turn to the authorities

Concerns about the illegal collection of such information were expressed by a group of parents in an open letter "On questionnaires distributed in the public space in which data on minors is collected." The letter was sent to the State Inspectorate for Protection of Children's Rights, the Ombudsman, the President of Latvia Egils Levits, the Minister of Welfare Ramona Petraviča, the Minister of the Interior Sandis Ģirģens, the National Centre for Education. It explains the dangers of collecting particularly sensitive information and sending it abroad. In conclusion, the call is made:

“We ask the Ministry of Welfare and the State Inspectorate for Protection of Children's Rights, within the scope of their competence, to prevent the possible further harm and danger caused by this survey to children, their families and society in general! Based on the rights and duties of parents to take care of their child and their property, as well as to ensure the moral development of the child, please take the necessary steps to evaluate the actions of the survey organizers in accordance with regulatory documents and general ethics." The application has been signed by dozens of parents - employees of the field of culture and education, lawyers.

Violation of the GDPR

A separate letter was also sent to the Data State Inspectorate, paying special attention to the form of informed consent at the beginning of the survey:

"The survey collects personal information about the survey participants, but there is no data processing agreement and confirmation, which leads to the conclusion that the surveyors do not take responsibility for data security, but the survey participant must confirm that he trusts that all information will be confidential and private. There are no security guarantees against information leakage, nor are there clear purposes of how the information is used." The applicants call on the Data State Inspectorate to assess the lawfulness of the data processing, as Article 9 (1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) relating to processing special categories of personal data states:

"Processing of personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, and the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person's sex life or sexual orientation shall be prohibited." Although certain exceptions apply to these data, in that case, they should be legally justified and presented, which is not the case here.

Their goal is to get to children

Parents' letters to the supervisory authorities have not gone unnoticed and have also reached the self-appointed child sexuality researchers. After Mozaīka received the letter, the link to the Latvian version of the survey has become inactive. On the other hand, entering the research page directly, the only inactive national flag is for Latvia. Parents in other countries may not have realized that the subject of the study on "how to ensure the well-being and academic achievements for all high school students" is in fact a false excuse for accessing sensitive data on children's sexuality, family situations and attitudes towards LGBT ideology. It is likely that LGBT ideologues will use these data to try to reach minors more actively when they are out of the sight of their parents. This is unacceptable and dangerous. This is also concluded in the parents' open letter:

"Assessing the questions included in the survey and the possible answers, it is clear that the aim of the survey is not to find out about a problem in general and ways to solve it, but to promote LGBT ideological views and attract young people to LGBT organizations."

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