According to Alexander Kazakov representing the HQ, the congress is convened to adopt a concept of further development of Russian schools in Latvia. This concept is to counterbalance the reform of Russian schools announced by the republic's authorities. According to the reform, 60% of subjects are to be taught in Latvian from September 1, 2004. The congress will also elect a delegation to negotiate this issue with the government.
Besides, the participants in the congress are going to adopt a decision in defence of Russian schools. In particular, mass protests of Russian-speaking population and a large-scale strike in Russian schools are to be arranged this spring.
One third of secondary schools in Latvia are Russian. They are training over 100,000 children. Russian-speaking residents of Latvia account for about 900,000 people, which over 40% of the population.