Apr 13
AleksPolitics, Society
RIGA – “Where do I go sign up to protect the Russian schools,” a distraught voice of a teacher-friend of mine blasted into my ear. “Latvians now want to close all our schools. We want to protest.”
The All for Latvia party has spearheaded the effort to collect the first batch of signatures to amend the constitution, allowing state money to pay for education in Latvian only. The campaign took some convincing, particularly in the eastern region of Latvia. In 15 months, it had taken the party to collect more than 10,000 signatures required, only 91 came from Latgale.
It’s reminiscent of the 2004 school reform protests when thousands of Russian students flooded the streets in protest of the government’s decision to switch the language of instruction to Latvian for high school students. It was the largest minority demonstration in the country’s new history.
An ongoing push to amend the constitution effectively closing schools with a minority language of instruction resemble more of a badly written play on a political theater stage than any serious initiative that aims to boost the prestige of the Latvian language among the Russian-speaking minority and – most importantly – improves the quality of education in this country.
10,140 signatures has been collected at the Museum of the Occupation, countryside, schools and public places. The number of signatures gives the supporters access to public funding, but narrowing down the time limit whereby they have to collect signatures from the 10 percent of the voters. It’ll be a big surprise if the group succeeds getting more than 153,000 signatures required to submit the legislation to the parliament.
Public outrage over the language issues seems to outweigh the outrage over the fact that more than 10,000 students between ages 5 and 18 are not registered in any of learning institutions. Some may have immigrated with their parents. Others simply quit the mandatory education. We don’t worry about our country’s economic competitiveness, our country’s wealth, instead we worry about the language of instruction.
The proposed amendment violates even the spirit of the 1918 republic, in a country where historically, schools in minority languages have been funded by the state. The move resonates more with the 1934 anti-democratic coup, which paved the way to a wide-shouldered Ossetian to take over Latvia in 1940.
The constitutional amendment is not the aim of this enterprise. It’s public relations. Having no substance on economics and job creation, the party has this one issue it aims to keep in the public light. The evil russkies. A recent diatribe by the notorious Dr. Slucis (in English), who called from his comfy Minnesota job on Latvians to build a wall on the Russian border, prompted a counter-reaction.
Two extremist groups – the Osipov Party (the link is in Russian), led by the young struggling-to-speak-Latvian Evgeny Osipov and the January 13 movement, led by the Russian deportee Vladimir Ilych Linderman, a former member of the National Bolshevik Party, began collecting signatures and funding for a counterattack: to introduce Russian as a second state language.
Organizations on both sides of the issue are taking hostage the future generations of Latvians, whose education’s quality is somehow lost in the never-ending battle over languages.
Apr 12
AleksSociety
RIGA – After Pussylounge Bar, this Elizabetes street designer clothes store has one of the funniest names in the city. It takes its name from a 2001 movie “Blow” with Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz. The film – favored by the store’s owners – tells a story of George Jung, the man who established the American cocaine market in the 1970s. I heard a story over the weekend that the owners are planning to open a store for kids clothes in the same neighborhood. They wanted to call it “Blow for Kids” until someone had convinced them to change the name to something else. Now they call their kids clothes store “Yellow.”
Apr 11
AleksEconomy, Society, The Dombrovskis government
A sign in Russian reads: "Stop the genocide"
RIGA – Words are a powerful tool. They paint a picture. They persuade. They dissuade. They arose people to war. They declare peace.
They matter in a public discourse. They set the public mood and reveal the mindset of its leaders, who rely on words to persuade the armies of Joe Six-packs.
Sloppy word usage is destructive.
Mayor of the seaside town of Ventspils, Aivars Lembergs – described by a colleague as a miniature Silvio Berlusconi – compared the international bailout to the Auschwitz concentration camp, on the eve of the Auschwitz liberation anniversary this January.
“If you’re placed into the Auschwitz concentration camp against your will and you survive, then it makes sense to praise you for your perseverance and heroism. But if you yourself go to Auschwitz and sign up to live there, how can one praise you? One can only wonder about you, how stupid you really are. Latvian political leaders have led Latvia into Auschwitz and voluntarily forced the people to live there,” Lembergs said.
Last week, Lembergs urged to extend the time this country spends in Auschwitz.
Auschwitz is not the only overpowering metaphor used in the public discourse. Of all the ways to describe the economic crisis, the populists’ favorite word is genocide.
On a recent cold sunny spring day, several hundred people gathered outside the presidential castle to protest. The crowd – surrounded by banners from opportunistic marginals like globaisti.lv – had a slew of demands. Their main demand was to “stop genocide of the people of Latvia.”
“Everything is done to destroy the Latvian state. Why are we all working now? My children and my grandchildren would have to work to pay back to the International Monetary Fund?” said one Latvian protestor to TV-3 journalists.
The public perception – cynical it may be – is that the government is intentionally and systematically killing off its own people by raising taxes, hiking electricity rates, raising retirement age. It fits into the general narrative of the Latvian suffering in the 20th century, a cornerstone of the modern Latvian ethnic identity. Moscow and Berlin both raped these people, pillaged their homes, deported and killed their men, women and children. It is bound to leave scars on the psyche. It is the worst thing they can think of when they describe their dire conditions.
Ironically, the frequent use of the word “genocide” makes the actual genocide seem less terrible. With more days of mourning than of celebration on the country’s political calendar, the word “genocide” has devalued so much that today it means very little. In the future, perhaps, the word could be used to describe a rainbow of feelings – from sadness to extreme joy. Teenagers could embrace the word to use it to describe something they like. As in “Dude, that’s genocide.” Ok, Latvian teens don’t use the word “dude.” But nevertheless, no longer it’s a reference to the Holocaust, or even to the deportations of 1941 and 1949. It’s now a reference to the current government policies as if reincarnated Hitler’s henchmen run the government. I struggle to picture the finance minister Andris Vilks as Goebbels.
Some of the public grievances are legitimate. The times are tough and socially unfair. The highest-earning employee of the central bank had claimed 44,000 lats (US$88,000) in child benefits for his family last year as he continued to earn. It turned out to be perfectly legal. At the same time, a family in Riga lives on a disability and Ls 8 ($16) child benefit unable to find work in this crisis. Policy makers are more concerned with populist slogans than with social justice. It’s frustrating. But it’s hardly genocide.
Nov 11
AleksHistory, Personal, Society
RIGA – I discovered this picture in my family photo archive several days ago. The second from the left is my great uncle, my great-grandmother’s brother, Vasily. He is wearing the interwar Latvia’s uniform, though I don’t know where he served or what rank he held. Nor do I know who the other people in the photo are or where exactly the photo was taken. The two men on the far right are the most puzzling. Why are they holding hands?
The great-uncle comes from the family’s Old Believer side, who had lived in the region of Latgale for centuries. Vasily was born in 1920, so this photo must have been taken between 1938 – when he turned 18 – and 1940, the year when the Soviets dismantled the Latvian army along with the Latvian state. He went on to serve in the Red Army after the Latvian military units became part of the Soviet military force. During the war, he fought against the Nazi Germany. According to my grandmother, Vasily was wounded several times near Moscow, and, eventually, killed.
My photo discovery coincided with the Lāčplēša Diena or the Bear Slayer’s Day, a day when Latvia remembers all its soldiers who fought in all wars. Unlike the UK Remembrance Day, Latvia’s military holiday has no connection to the end of the First World War. It marks a day when the almost one-year-old Latvian republic chased the West Russian Volunteer Army out of Riga. “Riga is liberated,” hailed the Russian-language newspaper “Segodnya” in its November 19, 1919 edition. “The nightmare of the 30-day assault entered the pages of the heartless history,” its editorial said.
Today, Latvia is remembering the Bear Slayer’s Day with military parades, candle-light vigil, concerts and remembrance services in Pārdaugava, where the Latvian army defeated the enemy, awarding medals to those soldiers who died defending their country. Even a reenactment. One is reminded of Latvian soldiers serving in Afghanistan and three Latvian UN workers abducted in Sudan.
Today is a day free of historical interpretations. It lays diametrically opposite other days on Latvia’s political calendar such as May 9 or March 16. A motion to elevate this day to remember all fallen soldiers regardless whether they fought on the German or the Soviet side seemed to have failed as the people appear to prefer controversy over remembrance.
Nov 09
AleksNational Minorities, Politics, The Dombrovskis government
RIGA – The parliament today is likely to allow Foreign Minister Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis to keep his job. In the first week since his appointment, Kristovskis has come under fire after his emails exchange revealed his agreeing with xenophobic statements (some links are in Latvian) of a Latvian-American doctor, one of the party sponsors.
The incident illustrates the Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis’s Unity bloc as a disunited eclectic political force.
Latvia's Foreign Minister Girts Valdis Kristovskis
It also suggests Kristovskis’ own seeming inability to lead the party bloc. His mishandling of a petty mini-scandal resembles the
Nasing Spešl scandal of the former finance minister Atis Slakteris, who went on to become a national joke. Insignificant in and of itself, the scandal marked the beginning of the end for the People’s Party, which swept the general elections four years ago. Kristovskis’ mishandling of the email revelation could also backfire and plummet the Unity popularity among the moderate voices, making it easier for the opposition to wreck havoc with the Unity agenda including a call for snap elections.
It also worth noting that the incident has coincided with the former member of the parliament Vaira Paegle‘s decision to quit politics. The former head of the NATO parliamentary committee, Paegle said she has been disappointed with the Latvia’s lie-infested political culture still in existence 20 years after the fall of the Soviet Union. She said the Unity party bloc reminded her of the People’s Party before its collapse. Even though she was offered a seat in the parliament, she declined. She quit the Civic Union. She decided to move back to the US to be with her family.
The Kristovskis scandal also shows the Unity’s seeming inability to manage public relations crises. Reasonable explanation has deteriorated to the point that the single enemy is to blame for all Latvia’s sins. Member of the European Parliament Sandra Kalniete’s hysterical press release over the weekend hinted between the lines that pro-Moscow forces and its allies in the parliament were to blame for the smear campaign – according to Kalniete it is one of 10 upcoming revelations – against the Unity and the Civic Union. It is as if Moscow was to blame for all Latvia’s ills, including the deepest economic recession in the world. The press release seem to suggest that one cannot assume that the Kristovskis’ email politesse in an attempt to raise money from abroad shifted his own political views closer to the diaspora Latvians, who wish to see Latvia Russian-free by any means possible.
It doesn’t help though that the Kristovskis’ own views remain a mystery. Perhaps, his views are conducive to the audience he is addressing. In most of Kristovskis’ public statements, it was impossible to learn what his views on integration and the Russian minority actually were. What was clear though that he attacked journalists for reporting it and his own fellow party members for leaking the correspondence.
Nov 04
AleksHistory, National Minorities, Parliament, Politics, The Dombrovskis government
Count Monte Kristo, Latvia's new foreign minister
RIGA – A presumably old foreign Latvian wished I had never been born.
“Too bad his mother did not abort him, nor Arajs plant him as a fertilizer for weeds,” said the anonymous poster, who goes under the name of Mr. L. L. on a website for the Latvian diaspora. The site’s admin deleted this portion of the post, which I didn’t really find offensive. I prefer not to take idiots seriously.
So unlike our new foreign minister, the leader of the Unity bloc, Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis. In search of glory and public appeasement he is willing to publicly communicate even with the radical wing of his own party. Last October, he had received a letter from a Latvian American doctor, complaining about the presence of many Russian-speakers in his native Latvia.
“Latvia is the only country in the world – including Russia – where Russians are marching forward,” Aivars Slucis said in an email published on a Latvian news web site this week. Slucis noted that as a doctor, he cannot return to Latvia because “I wouldn’t be able to treat Russians and Latvians equally in Latvia, which is not allowed. This is why I’m waiting.”
Kristovskis wrote a complete answer, filled with polite agreements. The letter began with words “I agree with your vision and evaluation” of the situation. The correspondence was made public yesterday after the parliament voted on a new government, effectively appointing Kristovskis a new foreign minister. Today, the opposition for calling for his dismissal. The opposition has called him a xenophobe who would not be a good candidate to represent Latvia internationally. When he arrived to the parliament this morning, he seemed nervous. Maybe it was because he was running; maybe for some other reason, but his hands were shaking as he read out loud passages from the email exchange. His political ambitions and sheer sloppiness got the best of him. He seemingly desires to be liked by everyone, including the members of his party so much so that he is unwilling to ignore anyone, including the most radical people in his party – the Civic Union.
For the Civic Union, the politics is a balancing act between the somber silent reasonable minority and the loud controversial majority. The current government would be wise to watch every step, double-check every move as it enjoys a mere slim majority in the 100-member parliament. It doesn’t bode well for Latvia’s political stability.
Update: The Mayo Clinic in the United States has launched an investigation into Dr. Slucis’ letter to Krisotvskis, written from Slucis’ work e-mail account.
Oct 05
AleksNational Minorities, Politics, The Dombrovskis government
RIGA – Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis’ Unity bloc has begun moving out of its campaign headquarters in central Riga, leaving behind an empty office space, folded posters, and cardboard chairs. With the coalition talks on the way, parties muffled their pre-election rhetoric and have set aside their principles until the next municipal elections in three years.
In many ways, the Saturday general election was a historic one and Latvians must be proud of their parliamentary democracy. For the first time ever in Latvia’s history, the least number of political blocs will be represented in the next parliament. Only five. Consolidated parliament means the country is maturing in the ways of the true parliamentary democracy.
For the first time in Latvia’s history and – perhaps Europe’s – voters gave a sound mandate to the same government that raised their taxes and cut public wages. It shows the intelligence of the Latvian voters who didn’t buy the aggressive expensive populist campaign of the bloc For a Good Latvia, which won only 8 seats. According to the recent calculations, each seat cost the bloc more than 100,000 lats (200,000 USD) – unheard of by Latvian standards. It also shows that people understand the clear message that no magic solutions exist. One must get one’s financial house in order by making tough decisions on the budget consolidation. Call it the Latvian realism.
The key here was definitely Dombrovskis himself. As someone described him, “an honest, competent clerk,” who earned credibility with the Latvian public. The global crisis has made it possible to craft the lean mean government machine that would stop wasting the taxpayer money. It is an opportunity to create a better Latvia.
For the first time in Latvia’s history, a real possibility of forging a coalition with Harmony Centre exists. A perpetual opposition party bloc, Harmony Centre represents the Russian-speaking minority, 27 percent of the 2.2 million people. In part, thanks to the crisis, the sensitive issues of the language and citizenship have taken the back seat, focusing the debates on economic policies.
With the elections behind us, now comes the time for realpolitik and compromises. Who wants to take the sole responsibility for making tough calls on budget spending and taxes? In this case, it is best to forge a rainbow coalition to be able to share the responsibility for the future tax hikes and salary cuts. It would also halt any future drum for the public support to call for the snap general elections. In an ironic twist, the Unity sponsored the measure in the outgoing parliament.
The realpolitik makes for strange bedfellows. A newly elected member of parliament, Lolita Čīgane may end up working in the same government as the Union of Greens and Farmers, the party bloc, representing interests of the Latvia’s charming minigarch, Aivars Lembergs. Ēlerte has spent the last 15 years fighting the government corruption as the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Diena. The Latvian nationalist Ina Druviete may crawl into bed with the likes of Nikolajs Kabanovs, who at one time has wiped his face on the flag of Latvia. As the minister of education in 2004, Druviete oversaw the completion of the education language reform in the minority schools, which caused huge protests from the Russian-speaking minority.
Of course, the ethnic division has not disappeared. Many Latvians fear the Moscow’s long arm. Many Russians struck off the Latvian names from the Harmony Centre party list. Two groups of young people from the Latvian and Russian communities broke into a fight on the election night in the Old Town. Clearly, there is plenty to do.
The first positive steps toward a better Latvia have been taken on the election day. It is shared responsibility for the future of the country with the group that has been shunned from political decision-making since the restored independence in 1991. And the consolidated society and the good governance could withstand any future crises. It will be all residents of Latvia who will reap the benefits.
Sep 17
AleksSociety
Nothing Special became the theme of the anti-crisis protests in 2008 and 2009.
RIGA – Speaking to LNT TV Thursday morning (some links are in Latvian), Ainars Šlesers said the government signed a secret agreement with the lenders regarding the sale of state-owned enterprises to pay the international loan in full in 2012.
“[Paying off the loan] is only possible with the sale of state-owned companies,” Šlesers said. The secret agreement metaphor is the obvious reference to the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact, a 1939 deal that divided Europe between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. Not so long ago, Šlesers called the €7.5 billion agreement with the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission, “a financial occupation,” in a reference to 50 years of the Soviet occupation, which followed the signing of the pact.
Many people believe that the government is killing off its people on purpose by implementing the terms of the agreement with the lenders, who pay for Latvia’s budget deficit. Many people draw an equal sign between Latvians boarding Ryanair for Dublin and Stalin forcing men and women in the middle of the night to leave for Siberia. The Latvian Pensioners Association at its recent meeting distributed fliers with names of members of parliament who voted last June to cut pensions (the measure was ruled unconstitutional). The leaflet’s title is “They voted for genocide.”
The presentday political narrative is being written with familiar undertones of national victimhood of the past. For if Latvians aren’t the victims of things they cannot control, they ought to take the responsibility for what is happening in their country. In this context, it is not surprising then that 65 percent of Latvian voters believe that the upcoming elections could be fraudulent.
Sep 16
AleksSociety
A sign in a minibus reads in two languages "The more quietly you speak, the father you will go."
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