Advertising, Latvia, Legislation, Markets and Companies

As reported, Unity has kicked off its municipal election campaign with a series of advertisements directed against current Riga Mayor Nils Usakovs, which reminds voters of his support for last year's language referendum.

One of the ads begins with the text: ''We could ignore the fact that Usakovs voted against the Latvian language, provides status reports to the Russian Embassy and meets with Russian spies. We can also choose not to believe the recent article by ''The Guardian'', which states that Latvia has become a playground for Russian business, politics and crime. Riga is our only capital – we lose Riga, we lose Latvia!''.

The ad then shows Usakovs addressing a May 9 rally by the Victory Monument, saying: ''For Victory Day in Riga!''.

The other ad speaks about attempts several Harmony Center members have made to topple state authority, bribing voters, as well as being involved in bribery scandals. The ad points to Riga Vice Mayor Andris Ameriks (Honor to Serve Riga) and his ''cronies'', who have squandered tens of millions of lats in Riga. ''Some of his comrades are already sitting behind bars, while Ameriks himself has become a millionaire during his 12-year stint at the Riga City Council,'' the advertisement points out.