Oct 21
AleksPolitics, Soviet Past
Mayor of Riga, Nils Ušakovs from Harmony Centre and Prime Minister of Latvia Valdis Dombrovskis from Unity party bloc. Photo courtesy of the State Chancellery.
RIGA – Just a week ago, it appeared as though Latvia was on the verge of making a step forward. For the first time since Latvia’s restored independence almost 20 years ago, the pro-Russian political party came close to forming the country’s next 16th cabinet. Even if the government with Harmony Centre would have lasted for a week or a month, it would have done more to consolidate the society than 20 years of the state integration policy.
The talks, however, failed before they even started because of a debate related to the country’s Soviet past. Specifically, it relates to the event of June 17, 1940, when the Soviet tanks rolled in after Moscow claimed Latvia violated the terms of the 1939 Soviet-Latvian cooperation pact. Even more specifically, it relates to the term “occupation.” For the record, I don’t have a problem acknowledging the fact of the occupation. But now the term “occupation” has evolved into something distant from the 1940 events.
Since it emerged in Latvia back in the late 1980s, the term, it appears, has evolved into a loyalty test for non-Latvians, even those who are naturalized citizens of this country. The political debates go something like this:
Translation: Dale Carnegy: How to forget the occupation and start living a happy life." Source: satori.lv
“Tell me, do you believe that the Soviet Union occupied Latvia in 1940?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you really?”
“Yes.”
“Say it like you mean it.”
“I mean it.”
“Let me hear you say it.”
“The Soviet Union occupied Latvia in 1940.”
“Was Hitler as bad as Stalin?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t believe you.”
I understand that this is an oversimplification. Yet, it appears some folks will never ever ever let it go. To them, every ethnic non-Latvian will always be an occupier, who is always serving his master in the Kremlin and never actually adapted to the independent democratic republic of Latvia. It appears though as Latvians themselves have to come to terms with their own past.
I stumbled across this quote from a member of the Latvian Popular Front, Mavriks Vulfsons, written in the distant 1989 in the newspaper Atmoda, the Awakening.
Genuinely looking into history’s eyes, we have to name all that happened in the past by their true names. There was violence against the sovereign Latvian state, and there was dissatisfaction with the Ulmanis regime. There were brave and honest fighters for democracy and socialism in Latvia, and there were the Stalinist repressions. There was a no less bloody occupation period. There were Hitlerite henchmen and Latvian soldiers on the front’s both sides. There was the Victory and repeated repressions. (…) There was one historical injustice, which one should never forget, but it belongs to the past and it is irreversible. But still – without a 100-percent honest evaluation of the past, it will be difficult to forge our future according to those demands, which is given to us by our people, party, and time.
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 18
AleksPolitics
RIGA – A homeless man with a dark long beard was sleeping on a tiny bench at a bus stop when my bus arrived. Underneath the bench, his faithful companion, a white dog was also sleeping. By his bench a political poster read: viss būs labi, or everything is going to be well.
"Everything is going to be well," is a slogan for Harmony Centre
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."
Sep 11
AleksHistory, Identity, National Minorities, Society
National Poet of Latvia, Rainis
RIGA – Latvian poet, translator, social democratic journalist and politician Rainis, died on September 12, 1929. Hours before his death, Rainis penned an article in Russian called “Латвийцы”, or Latvians. It was published in the Russian-language newspaper Сегодня/Segodnya on September 29, 1929, in an edition devoted to the 10th anniversary of the newspaper. The article is often quoted by the Russian political groups, who misinterpret it and take it out of context.
A little needs to be said about the title. English is somewhat vague using the term Latvians. It could refer to either an ethnic group of Latvians, or it could refer to the citizens of Latvia. And the two do not often mean the same thing. There is an archaic English word: “Letts,” which refers to ethnic Latvians. Consequently, Lettish is a derivative adjective. It is used in this text to mean the same thing, even though the word is hardly in use any more. The following in my translation of the article from the original Russian into English:
When I am asked a question about literature as a means of convergence between the Russian and Latvian peoples, I first and foremost am reminded of the conditions for the existence of the minorities in Latvia. The conditions undoubtedly are favorable. Cultural autonomy forged a gratifying soil for mutual understanding.
But there are few fruits yet. What especially attracts my attention is that this aspiration to converge is first exhibited by the Jews. Significantly less frequent attempts are made by the Russian minority, and even less by the German minority. The reasons as I see are that Russians and Germans considering themselves peoples with ancient great culture are unwilling to make first steps towards the convergence.
The text of the article
But, by the way, that convergence is extremely necessary and it ought to take place best of all through the mutual exchange of literary works.
When it comes to the Russian literature, we, the Letts, have always been interested in it, have learned from great Russian writers. It’s true that Russians showed little interest in the Latvian literature, they rarely noticed it. I must note, however, this one comforting exception. Your newspaper more than other minority publications always promoted the need for cultural convergence. I didn’t have an opportunity to follow Segodnya regularly because I spent a lot of time traveling, but in the previous years, and by those issues that I did read in the last few months I was convinced that this is one of those few newspapers, which often presents their readers with examples of translated works of the best Lettish authors, follows the work of our theaters, and shows interest in the new Lettish literature and works of the Lettish artists.
All of that, of course, impacts the drive toward the convergence of the two people. The fact that Segodnya broadly informs readers about the successes of the Lettish artists and actors abroad as well as the cultural initiatives of the Letts, I am ready to credit as an accomplishment of the minority leaders, who attempt to establish cultural connection with Latvians. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same about the Germans. But even more than Russians, the convergence with Letts occupies, as it is seen, the Jews and the Poles, often underscoring their interest in the Lettish culture.
Convergence of the people has to start, of course, in schools. Up until now, the convergence of the young generation has not taken place systemically. Detachment is detrimental not only to Letts, but also to the minorities themselves. This occurrence is unhealthy and inappropriate. The Germans, for example, uselessly disassociate themselves from the Letts, often forgetting that they are not going the same way as the foreign Germans. The ideology of the Latvian Germans and proper Germans is significantly different. The Russian youth rarely adopts the need for the cultural convergence. As I have already mentioned, predominantly Jewish youth, who well-mastered the Latvian language, makes a pleasant exception.
I would like to point out to Switzerland as an example of a country where peacefully co-exist three peoples. Each Swiss – be it a German, a French or an Italian – has only one motherland. It is Switzerland. And everywhere they call themselves Swiss. Latvia is too far from the ideal brotherhood of the peoples.
We, in the Lettish language, don’t even have a special word, signifying a Latvian [resident of Latvia], corresponding to the Russian word “россиянин” [resident of Russia] in Russian. I supported the need for introduction of a word which could denote all peoples residing in Latvia. I offered the word “latvijetis”, in Russian латвиец. But my proposition didn’t find supporters. Latvia’s Russian, a German or a Jew finding himself outside of Latvia will definitely say that he is a Russian from Latvia; a German from Latvia; a Jew from Latvia. A foreigner doesn’t understand this. Being in Palestine, I was often asked what the state language of Latvia was, what the languages of minorities were. I answered that our minorities didn’t assimilate to majority and they all speak their own language. But my interviewers weren’t satisfied.
“Why is it that all Latvian citizens don’t think of themselves as Latvians, but think of themselves as Russians, Germans and Jews?”
I ran into three Jewish students in Brussels. Many times I have told them who I was and I asked them in German which nationality they were.
The answer followed: “Wir sind lettlender.” It turned out that they speak Lettish well and present themselves as Latvians (латвиец)/
This was a very comforting phenomenon, and it characterizes the mood of the new Latvian youth-minority, a new generation of Latvians.
At one time I was asked by two young beginner writers, both Jewish. They were asking me for help in publishing their works, written in Lettish.
As you can see the young generation of Latvians is predisposed to the process of convergence. At first, it has been done by the Jews, now it’s time for others, a few timid (when it comes to that kind of convergence) peoples, but even here, the new beginnings are being shown and it makes me happy and excited.
Sep 01
AleksSociety
RIGA – Suited boys and dolled up dolls with bows on their young heads flooded the central Rīga this morning tens of thousands of students begin their academic year. The attention is on education, which has been in deep trouble even since Latvia became a free independent country 20 years ago.
Young graduates don’t seem to line up to master the art of teaching. And who could blame them? Who’d want to teach students for 255 lats a month ($500) at the time when the government is gearing for another round of slashing wages and public sector optimization? Meanwhile, the old guard is being laid off, creating a shortage of teachers. Rīga alone lacks 145 teachers.
Meanwhile, students are likely to start their school year roaming the streets with an open alcohol container.
Two years ago, I mentioned the booze that pours into the stomachs of young students on this day. Statistically, 20 per cent of 13- and 14-year-olds use alcohol at least once a week. By the time they reach 17-18, almost half of students use alcohol. Some have even started drinking last night. In an effort to combat youth consuming plenty of alcohol, the parliament adopted and then repealed a ban on alcohol sales on September 1. So much for effective government…
Aug 12
AleksUncategorized
In Latvia, one could still send a telegram at a post office. The authorities say the service is popular and they don't intend to eliminate it any time soon.
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