Posted on 02/18/2012 9:06:45 PM PST by DeaconBenjamin
Latvian voters resoundingly rejected a proposal to give official status to Russian, the mother tongue of their former Soviet occupiers.
For ethnic Latvians the referendum attempted to encroach on Latvia's independence, restored two decades ago after half a century of occupation by the Soviet Union.
Many Latvians mistrust Russia and worry that Moscow attempts to wield influence in Latvia through the ethnic Russian minority.
With more than 93% of ballots counted, 75% of voters said they were against Russian as a national language, according to the national election commission.
"Society is divided into two classes – one half has full rights and the other half's rights are violated," said Aleksejs Yevdokimovs, 36. "The Latvian half always employs a presumption of guilt toward the Russian half, so that we have to prove things that shouldn't need to be proven."
More than 70% of registered voters cast ballots, considerably more than in previous elections and referendums. Long lines were seen at many precincts both in Latvia and abroad, with voters in London reportedly braving a three-hour wait.
Though the Russians who spearheaded the referendum admitted they had no chance at winning, they at least hoped the approximate 25% support would force Latvia's centre-right government to begin a dialogue with national minorities.
Hundreds of thousands of Russians, Belarussians and Ukrainians moved to Latvia and the neighboring Baltic republics during the population transfers of the Soviet regime. Many of them never learned Latvian and were denied citizenship when Latvia regained independence, meaning they do not have the right to vote or work in government.
According to the current law anyone who moved to Latvia during the Soviet occupation, or was born to parents who moved there, is considered a non-citizen and must pass the Latvian language exam in order to be naturalised.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Good.
Russian, English, German or French I can understand, Latvian I can’t. Some kid’s on trial for murdering his parents in their sleep for forcing him to learn latvian and I’m on the jury, the kid walks.
They deserve their own culture, language and borders as do we.
They deserve their own culture, language and borders as do we.
Didn’t Andy Kaufman play a character on ‘TAXI’ that was from Latvia?
Um...the country's name is Latvia. why shouldn't people residing there speak Latvian?
This must be a slow news day. I was there in 1998, and it was the same. In fact, they refused to speak Russian, preferring German or English if you didn't speak their language.
They should speak Swedish... and they should wear their underwear on the outside.
good for them!
Demanding Russian as a second national language is too much for local non-Latvian minorities in my opinion, but still it is highly racist to demand language exam for non-Latvian people in order to obtain citizenship.
Note, we aren’t talking about newcomers who are seeking to naturalize.
And it is too simple to link Russian minorities to a ‘40s Soviet occupation.
A significant Russian minority resided there for a thousand years, Latvia was a part of Russia until for centuries right until a communist revolution.
For that same reason you have to prohibit English in California, for a reason it was Spanish a few centuries ago and predominately Hispanic again for now.
The funds raised in these FReepathons go to pay our current quarter expenses. But we're also going to try to replace some of our older servers and failing equipment this year so we're going to add a little extra to our FReepathon goals. John is estimating ten to fifteen thousand to do this and I'd like to get it all in place and working before the election cycle is fully heated up, so we'll try to bring in a little extra now, if we can, and the rest next quarter.
Jim Robinson
After watching how Georgia got packed with Russians and then had hunks carved out of it, Latvia is darn right to be leery. There are some pockets of Russian speakers still there, and a casual traveler might find it easier to tackle Russian than Latvian. But it would make more sense in world politics for Latvia to adopt English rather than Russian if they want a second language.
I was deployed to Uzbekistan, another forcibly annexed Soviet “republic” where I learned that after the USSR collapsed in 1991 the Russian minority in UZ went from thirty to seven percent as they were no longer the ruling class. Served them right. So, did latter-day Russians living in the Baltic states benefit from the effects of the 1940 Stalinist Soviet invasion? D-mn right they did. Screw ‘em.
Latvia for Latvians. So what’s the problem?
Sounds like Poland, if you try to speak Russian in Warsaw, you’ll probably get your a$$ kicked.
Dievs sveti Latviju!!
God bless Latvia?
>>>>>>>>>>After watching how Georgia got packed with Russians and then had hunks carved out of it, Latvia is darn right to be leery. There are some pockets of Russian speakers still there, and a casual traveler might find it easier to tackle Russian than Latvian. But it would make more sense in world politics for Latvia to adopt English rather than Russian if they want a second language.>>>>>>>>>>>
Well, you have some points, but misenterpreting most facts.
For example, Georgia wasn’t packed with Russians. It has Abkhazian and Osetian minorities which has absolutely no ethnic and cultural ties with both Russia and Georgia.
For some reason ethnic Georgian Soviet leader Stalin included both Abkhazia and Osetia into a Georgian Soviet Republic.
It wasn’t a problem until late 80s, when nations started to recognize their identity within Soviet Union.
Georgian government started openly racist policy on minorities at the time as the way to distract public from economy issues. ‘Georgia for Georgians’ was one of official slogans of Geogrian President Gamsahurdia at the time. He has denied citizenship to Abkhazians and Osetians as a kind of ‘undermenshens’ and declared war on them which Georgia lost in earlier 90s.
Osetians came to Russia for citizenship for a good reason. They had no chance to be recognized as a nation, they didn’t want Georgia which ethnically cleansed them, and they needed passports to travel etc.
Russia had it’s own goals utilizing a crisis made by Georgians.
It had it’s climax at august 2008 as we all know.
For that same reason it is short sighted on Latvian side to alienate minorities denieing them basic civil rights, of cource I’m not about making a Russian as second official which is too much.
Anyway, present policy is just a way to make minoroties a good target for Russian propaganda and agents of Russian influence.
Russian, Ukrainian, Ruthenian (Belarussian), Polish, German and Jewish minorities were living there for centuries using Russian as the way to communicate to each other long before they ever know ‘Latvia’. Latvia itself has first emerged after Bolshevic revolution. It was a part of Russia since 18th century and Sweden before 18th century.
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