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Regina LocmeleLatvian journalist, public figure, member of parliament
Date of Birth: 19.11.1966
Country:  Latvia |
Content:
Early Life and Education
Regina Ločmele-Luņova was born in 1966 in Sevastopol, Ukraine, into a family of a Black Sea Fleet officer, Janis Ločmelis, and his wife, Larisa. In the 1970s, she moved to Riga with her parents and younger sister, Julija. She graduated from high school in 1983 and went on to study journalism at the University of Latvia, graduating in 1988.
Career in Journalism and Business
Ločmele-Luņova worked as a journalist for Latvian Television, hosting news programs and working on radio. After Latvia regained independence, she obtained a master's degree in social sciences from the University of Latvia in 2007. From 1997 to 2007, she was the executive director of the concert organization "VIP-Promotion" and served on the board of the security company "Jaguar" from 2003 to 2008.
Political Career
In 2014, Ločmele-Luņova was elected to the Saeima, the Latvian Parliament, on the "Harmony" party list. In 2015, she was charged with tax evasion and money laundering, but the charges were later dropped for lack of evidence. She resigned from the Saeima and was re-elected to the parliament in 2018. She currently serves as the chairperson of the Housing Subcommittee of the State Administration and Local Government Committee.
Public Activism
After the collapse of a supermarket in Riga's Zolitūde district in 2013, which killed 54 people and orphaned 23 children, Ločmele-Luņova actively assisted the victims and their families. She established the "Zolitūde 21.11" association, which represented the victims in court and government agencies. In 2015, she published a book, "Remember Zolitūde," in memory of the victims.
In 2017, Ločmele-Luņova was elected to the board of the "People Against Land Barons" association, which advocates for the rights of apartment owners in cases where land under apartment buildings has been privatized and subject to forced rental payments. The organization has filed several lawsuits against the collection of backdated land rental fees.
