Nov 30
AleksUncategorized
RIGA – We’ve received an exclusive Santa schedule. So if you’re in town this weekend, stop by to see him.
Saturday 1 December
Vermanes Park 12:00 to 12:45
Hotel De Rome 13:00 to 13:45
Doma Laukums 14:00 to 14:30
Ratslaukums 14:45 to 15:30
Sunday 2 December
Ratslaukums 13:00 to 14:30
Kongress nams 15:30 to 16:30
Also, Riga’s Christmas trees will be lit on Sunday, starting at 16.00 at the Kongresu nams, followed by another two ceremonies at the Dome square and Ratslaukums.
Nov 29
AleksUncategorized
RIGA – Today, I’m turning 31.
Back in 1976, a slimy rosy, chunky person appeared to a screaming woman at a Riga hospital where most babies came from.
It just doesn’t feel like 31. It feels more like 27.
I was born in the year that saw the beginning of the new era of computer innovation, making to world a smaller place. Microsoft and Apple became registered trademarks in the U.S. British Queen Elizabeth II sent out her first royal email, surely mentioning the occasion of my birth.
I don’t remember much from my early years. My first memory, as a memory of every Soviet child at the time, was the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow. I cried like, well, a baby, when the giant bear named Misha, a mascot of the Olympic Games, was released into the air during the closing ceremony.
Americans missed that.
I was only 13 when the Soviet Union began to show the signs of cracks and people talked about Independent Latvia. A year later, I remember cheering when the Lenin statue in the city center was demolished, causing my grandfathers to frown. I remember getting my news from Voice of America and Radio Liberty with my grandfather’s shortwave transistor radio.
I remember empty shelves, angry customers, long lines for bread and vodka – two things a man need in this country. I remember being poor and not knowing about it. Growing up in a house in Sarkandaugava without central heating, hot water and indoor plumbing among the perpetually drunk people didn’t seem to bother me until I turned 15.
The world has changed dramatically in the last 31 years.
Let’s hope in the next 31 years, the world doesn’t fall apart and we’ll manage to mature.
Nov 29
AleksUncategorized
Yesterday’s one-man protest in Moscow against the detention of an opposition leader Garry Kasparov illustrates how absurd Russian politics can be.
In the English-language media, I couldn’t find a lot of detail of the one-man picket staged outside the jail where Kasparov was held.
So here’s the gist: leaders of the opposition took turns staging one-man picket. The one-man picket didn’t require the permission from the authorities. To arrest the lone protester, the police allegedly sent out two young men to stand near the protester with similar signs, creating an illegal organized demonstration.
The lone protester, Ilya Yashin, who is the leader of the liberal youth organization, was detained and later released.
What is the most puzzling, however, is the innate paranoia of the ruling elite and President Putin. He resorts to scare tactics to impact results of Sunday’s parliamentary elections, in which his party’s victory is a foregone conclusion.
The sign reads: Putin’s plan is working. Photo from Ezhednevniy Zhurnal.
Some commentators have suggested that Putin inherently fears the uncertainty of the election, which goes back to his St. Petersburg days.
Typically, dictators fear the people’s choice.
Watching the whole pre-electoral theater in the managed democracy, one cannot help but compare the Russia proper with the Baltic Russians under the so-called oppressive regimes of Latvia and Estonia.
When Russians fled the church reforms of the 17th century across the border, they’d settled in what is now eastern Latvia. They were mostly illiterate Old Believers who moved here and composed tight communities.
Okay, they’ve not sought liberty, equality, and fraternity.
But they just wanted to practice their religion as they wanted. Throughout centuries, they managed to preserve their culture and the Russian language. They survived minority policies in the inter-war Latvia, policies of the Soviet occupations, espousing atheism.
Today more of the Russian younger post-Soviet generation turn toward common European values – the rule of law and democracy – rather than the historically typical Russian values of “managed democracy” and a strong hand. These Russian values, for example, don’t allow the political elite to “cry and cry some more for Konstantin Pats, Lydia Koidula, and everyone in between,” as Justin put it.
This is one reason why Baltic Russians aren’t in a hurry to move back. It is evident in the failure of the Russian government’s program to resettle Russians from the “oppressive” Baltic “regimes.”
Since 2006 when the resettlement program was launched less than a dozen Russians from the Baltics have moved back to Russia. A total of 130 people decided to repatriate to Russia. And those who did move back complained about low-paid jobs outside their education and experience.
Journalists in Russian-language newspapers in the Baltics, for example, are glad that the Baltic countries don’t take the Russian approach to dealing with anti-government rhetoric and unfavorable coverage.
Pro-Russian groups in the Baltics use the laws of freedom of assembly and speech to protest against policies of the government.
Both would have been very difficult in Putin’s Russia. With just a couple of days before the election, the ruling elite there appears nervous, in spite of the utmost popularity of Putin.
On Sunday, millions of Russian citizens, including some that live in Latvia and Estonia, will go to polling stations. They will cast their vote in a parliamentary election that some have dubbed as a referendum on Putin’s Russia.
On Monday, life will return back to mundane and normal. At least, as normal as Russia can get.
Nov 28
AleksUncategorized
Allaboutlatvia.com is the home of the first Latvia-related weblog in English.
The Author
I‘m Aleks, a 30-year-old product of a mixed marriage between a Russian and a Latvian. I had lived in the US for 10 years and in the summer of 2007, I decided to return to Riga, Latvia, where I was born.
Latvia
A small country, one of the three Baltic States, located on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. A NATO and EU member, Latvia is a country of 2.3 million people with its capital, Riga.
The Weblog
Created in 2003, allaboutlatvia.com has undergone several designs, re-designs and publishing platforms. Most of the pre-2005 writing is collecting dust in a personal computer. Since then, the Weblog received won the Satin Pajama Blog Award at Fistful of Euros. And then, it was no longer updated for personal reasons. In January 2007, the blog rose from the dead, following a move to a different server and another redesign.
During the move to the new server, all images posted on the site have been lost. Those responsible for the loss have been sacked.
The weblog is based on Textpattern platform, created by Dean Allen.
Nov 28
AleksUncategorized
PURNUSKES, Lithuania – Location of the Europe’s geographical center is as mysterious as its calculations.
In 1989, French scientists at the National French Institute of Ordnance Survey defined the borders of the European continent as the islands of Spitzbergen in the north, the Canary Islands in the south, the mountains of the Ural in the east and the islands of Azores in the west.
They forgot to include Novaya Zemlya, an island north of Russia, and Malta, an island nation in the Mediterranean.
Using these calculations, the French scientists pointed to a small village of Purnuskes, 26 kilometers north of Vilnius, as a geographical center of the European continent.
The inclusion of Malta would shift the center only about 100 meters, a sign outside the center read in several languages. It quickly adds that no matter how you slice the pie, the center will end up somewhere in Lithuania.
A Wikipedia entry tells a different story.
Being a geographical center of Europe claim at least five other places outside Lithuania. A point on the island of Saaremaa in Estonia is rumored to be one such place. Also, the list includes, the village of Krahule, near Kremnica in central Slovakia (seriously? Sl;ovakia?); the small town of Rakhiv, or the village of Dilove near Rakhiv, in western Ukraine; Suchowola, north of Bialystok, in north-eastern Poland; Babruysk or Vitebsk in Belarus;
Apparently, in finding out the center of Europe one need to consider political consequences.
A rock marks the center of Europe in Lithuania. It’s a lucky rock bestowing inexpensive luck because visitors tend leave small Lithuanian change on top of it.
I became 1 litas richer as I don’t believe in it.
A golden starry crown tops a giant granite column erected in the center to mark Lithuania’s entry into the European Union on May 1, 2004.
Near the column, a marble mosaic of a NATO logo marks Lithuania’s entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
A row of flags of nations who are members of the European Union weaves around a miniature amphitheater, making me wonder if there’s anything European outside the EU borders.
Photo courtesy of Baltic Features: Beam me Up, Scotty – I am near the center of Europe plus/minus 100 kilometers
Nov 19
AleksUncategorized
Under the Soviet occupation, Soviet police employed special volunteer police units, whose job on a usual day was to offer assistance the law enforcement agencies. Around Nov. 18, on the Latvian independence day, they were on standby with a simple task – to prevent a display of a white-striped burgundy Latvian flag in Latvian SSR.
On Nov. 18, when my father was just 12 years old. One of his friends’ grandfather gave them the Latvian flag and the three kids climbed on top of the Riga’s First Hospital, took down the flag of Latvian SSR and replaced it with the Latvian banner. My father said, no one had noticed a change in the flag for most of the day.
Since regaining independence, Nov. 18 has grown into a real holiday.
I watched a military parade celebrating Latvia’s 89th birthday on television, but decided to drop into town for the Sunday night fireworks over the river Daugava. Crowds moved in and out of the Old Town ahead of the president’s speech at the Freedom Monument a few minutes before the celebratory visual extravaganza.
It was unseasonably for this time of year: no rain or snow, temperatures hovering above zero.
Fathers carried their children on their shoulders to the 11. Novembra Krastmala. Mothers showed their kids the red, green lights appearing in the sky. Crowds that didn’t make to the krastmala before the show stopped on the street and looked up to the sky.
The mood was festive throughout the day. Store fronts decorated in national colors, people carrying around small burgundy-white flags, sometimes incorporating the colors into the whole dress ensemble, free concerts shown throughout the town.
I took a trolleybus, filled with Russian-speaking teens, speaking loudly, laughing, drinking Coke with some kind of alcoholic beverage. They were on their way to see the fireworks. Probably, not out of the patriotic sentiments. However, it seems that shiny lights in the sky under the crowd’s ooohs and aaahs, free public transportation for a day, and an extra day-off actually can unite people.
Nov 16
AleksUncategorized
From the Economist:
Supposedly passive Latvians have successfully defended one of the country’s strongest independent institutions, an anti-corruption agency known by the acronym KNAB (which stands for Corruption Prevention and Combating bureau). The business-friendly coalition government of Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis had tried to sack KNAB’s director, Aleksejs Loskutovs, ostensibly because of trivial book-keeping irregularities. The real reason seems to be KNAB’s success in investigating campaign-finance abuses that it says involve Mr Kalvitis’s party.
Nov 14
AleksUncategorized
When Latvia restored its independence in 1990, a bit more than 10 per cent of ethnic non-Latvians could speak Latvian. By now, the number of Latvian-speakers among those who don’t consider themselves Latvians has risen significantly.
Thanks, in part, to the article of the Constitution that declared Latvian as the sole state language in the Republic of Latvia.
Earlier this week, however, Ina Druviete, a woman who worked on elevating Latvian to the status of a state language, declared in the future, Latvia may grant the Russian language a status of minority language.
I see it as a compromise solution to eliminate the Russian hard-liners who demand the Russian be given status of the state language.
On the other hand, this suggestion appears very pragmatic — Russian is widely used here already. And a simple recognition as a minority language in Latvia is a statement of fact.
A few years back, the government started relaxing rules regarding the use of Russian in public. The court ruled that broadcast quotas, requiring a broadcaster to broadcast a certain portion of its programming in Latvian, were deemed unconstitutional. The government also allowed signs, not business names, to be posted in Russian and there are plenty of them in Riga at least.
All pointing out that the purity and development of the Latvian language is no longer threatened by the presence of the Russian language, or even English.
The picture of a sugar packet above was taken at a typical Latvian hangout beautifully called Salt’N'Pepper. That’s right – it’s in English, or Ebonics, not sure. If language police really wanted to protect the language, they’d impose stricter rules against all foreign languages like the French.
But no, our language laws are targeted at one language only. The one with weird letters. Of course, it’s because of our historical baggage, which will take a few generations to overcome.
But for now, this is a pleasant sign of some kind unity from a person who supports the development of Latvian: the mere acknowledgment that Russian is a language of a minority.
Nov 13
AleksUncategorized
RIGA – Maybe this is the time to draw preliminary conclusions of The Subdued Revolution of Nov. 3.
On one hand, the revolution has succeeded – people demanded the government’s resignation and its adherence to the rule of law. They’ve got it.
The embattled Aleksejs Loskutovs has been reinstated as the head of the anti-corruption agency after he has been unlawfully suspended.
Citing some work to do, the government led by Aigars Kalvitis penciled in a resignation on Dec. 5, five days after the Constitutional Court is due to make a decision whether the ratified Latvian-Russian border treaty contradicts our Constitution.
The unions, who didn’t get what they wanted out of the budget, are continuing their efforts to collect enough signatures to dissolve the parliament.
Maybe I wasn’t right in calling the November revolution “subdued.” I wasn’t expecting a Georgia scenario by any means, but I was expecting a bit more emotion.
On the other hand, it still unclear what has really changed since that day.
The system remains the same, worse yet, the current government led by the People’s Party is mulling over the next prime minister, even though it’s president’s job to pick the prime minister.
Besides, chances are very high that the next government will be almost exactly the same as the previous government even though the current coalition partners has asked the opposition new Era party to participate.
The reason is rather simple: a lack of alternative.
With all the recent hullabaloo about the opposition Harmony Centre, a relatively mild pro-Russian party, joining in the government, one can be quite certain that it won’t happen.
No one’s truly considering letting Russians in government.
We’re not ready for it, yet. There’s plenty of paranoia among some Latvians that a Russian party will abolish the language laws, recall the education reform and will call to join in with Russia into the obscure union known as the Commonwealth of the Independent States.
The other reason is -communists- socialists, which joined in with the Harmony Centre and are represented in the parliament. They used to be communists, you see, and Latvian voters still have a bad aftertaste 17 years since they were last in power.
With communists or without, the current system of forming the government is broken; it’s flawed. It doesn’t offer any alternatives to the current ruling parties. This is why the parties that rule can afford to form new governments. This is why Kalvitis can have a certain arrogance about him because he knows that even if he resigns, his party will form the next government, and maybe even the government after that.
No elections would really stand in the way because Latvian voters will generally vote for right parties, while Russian voters will vote for the left.
The only way the system will change if we bury the hatchet and seriously consider creating a healthy parliamentary republic with a healthy opposition parties receiving a healthy amount of votes and offering healthy alternatives to governing.
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