(italiano / english)

LATVIA: A NAZI COUNTRY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION


1. I VETERANI DELLE SS MARCIANO A RIGA (UNIONE EUROPEA)

2. Six Months In NATO: Latvia Increases Military Spending On Brussels'
Orders
3. Latvia deputies draft document on Soviet occupation (SIC)
4. 60th Anniversary Of Nazi Defeat: Monument To Soviet Troops Defaced
In Latvia
5. 60th Anniversary Of VE: Latvia Wants 'Reparations' From Russia,
Ethnic Cleansing (SIC)
6. Latvian city permits procession commemorating SS legion
7. Latvian defence minister to visit troops in Iraq
8. RUSSIA'S OSCE REPRESENTATIVE DENOUNCES SS LEGION MARCHES IN EU
COUNTRIES

9. Solidarity With the Communists in Latvia!
"In August-September 1991, the Supreme Soviet of Latvia
made a strong political decision and stopped and, as a result,
banned the activity of the Communist Party of Latvia..."


source: ANTINATO @...

VEDI ANCHE / SEE ALSO:

A very good mailing list on international issues: STOPNATO

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stopnato/messages

Latvia and Estonia disturbed with national minorities resolution passed
by OSCE (by Vasily Bubnov)

http://english.pravda.ru/printed.html?news_id=13387

Le insegne della Divisione SS "Latvia":

http://srpska-mreza.com/handzar/handzar.htm

"SS Infantry division Latvia. Formed in 1944, made up of Letonian and
folksdojcers..."


=== 1 ===

I VETERANI DELLE SS MARCIANO A RIGA (UNIONE EUROPEA)

“La Russia è indignata”, afferma il ministro degli esteri della
Federazione Russa

http://www.rian.ru
in: http://www.redglobe.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=4073

16 marzo 2005

“La dimostrazione dei veterani delle SS a Riga è considerata un
avvenimento immorale e inammissibile”, afferma Mosca.

“I legionari delle SS marciano nel cuore della capitale lettone, mentre
la polizia usa la violenza sugli antifascisti. Nulla, se non una logica
perversa, può spiegare la situazione”, afferma il Ministro degli affari
esteri russo in un commento alla parata di oggi svoltasi a Riga. I
veterani delle SS e gli attivisti nazionalisti radicali hanno convocato
la marcia per celebrare una data commemorativa della Legione SS lettone.

“Tutto ciò avviene nella Lettonia di oggi, che, nell’opinione
dell’Unione Europea, risponde pienamente agli standard democratici di
Copenhagen”.

“La Russia ha ripetutamente qualificato tali atti come immorali e
inammissibili. Un’impressione di particolare cinismo provoca la loro
autorizzazione ufficiale. Poco tempo prima dell’anniversario del 60°
della Grande Vittoria, le autorità lettoni cercano ostinatamente nelle
capitali europee il sostegno ai loro sforzi di revisionare i risultati
della Seconda Guerra Mondiale e del verdetto del Tribunale di
Norimberga, che qualifica le SS come un’organizzazione criminale,”
afferma il Ministro degli Esteri.

Traduzione a cura del
Centro di Cultura e Documentazione Popolare     


=== 2 ===

Date: Tue, 2 Nov 2004 12:32:04 -0800 (PST)
From: Rick Rozoff
Subject: Six Months In NATO: Latvia Increases Military Spending On
Brussels' Orders

http://www.interfax.com/com?item=Lat&pg=0&id=5766630&req=

Interfax - November 1, 2004

Latvia to increase defense spending next year

Riga - Latvia is planning to spend about 153 million
lats ($289.22 million) on defense and national
security in 2005, which is 30 million lats ($56.71
million) more than this year, Defense Minister Aris
Slakteris told BNS.
The state budget assigns 153.3 million lats ($289.79
million), or 2 percent of the GDP, for defense and
security programs, Slakteris said. Most of the sum
will be channeled to the National Armed Forces, which
are to continue transition to contracted service, he
stressed.
The Defense Ministry will get 110 million lats
($207.94 million) in 2005, including 80.04 million
($151.3 million) for the National Armed Forces.
"The budget is really growing, and we have no other
way if we head for making the army contracted," the
minister said.
"We will not spend all the money on defense directly,
there will be allocations for sports, for the
Constitution Protection Bureau, the security service
of the seimas and the president, and other security-
related needs, including the research projects we
support," Slakteris noted.
The Defense, National Security and NATO Integration
section of the 2004 national budget provides for
spending 123.8 million lats ($234.03 million), and the
same section of the 2003 budget provided for spending
nearly 83 million lats ($156.9 million).
According to the treaty on Latvia's accession to NATO,
the country must annually spend at least 2 percent of
the GDP on defense.


=== 3 ===

http://www.interfax.com/com?item=Lat&pg=0&id=5780423&req=

Interfax - December 23, 2004

Latvia deputies draft document on Soviet occupation

Riga - A group of Latvian parliamentary deputies has
drafted a declaration to condemn what they called the
Soviet occupation of the country and demand that
Russia pay compensation for Soviet-era damages to the
country.
The declaration also proposes drawing up a program for
the voluntary repatriation of people who came to
Latvia during the Soviet era from other parts of the
former Soviet Union.
The document urges European parliaments and
governments to recognize the Soviet period in Latvia
as a period of occupation, to help eliminate
Soviet-era damage, and to support the proposed
repatriation program.
The declaration also urge the Latvian government to
seek the return from Russia of archives evacuated from
Latvia and free access to Russian archives relating to
the Soviet period in Latvia.
Ieva Ziberga, consultant for the New Times group in
parliament, told the Baltic News Service that the
declaration will instruct the government to appoint a
working group to assess "the crimes of the communist
regime" and value the damage done in that period so
the government can demand compensation from Russia.


=== 4 ===

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=1653703&PageNum=0

Itar-Tass - January 18, 2005

Monument to Soviet soldiers profaned in Riga

RIGA - A monument to Soviet soldiers, who liberated
Riga from the Nazi, was profaned on Tuesday, a police
representative told Itar-Tass.
The police will hold an investigation and may open
criminal proceedings, she said.
A source in the Riga City Hall said that the local
budget would pay for cleaning the monument from red
paint.
This is the main monument of the Russian community,
which makes up about 40% of Latvian population.
Thousands of Latvian Russians gather near the monument
on V-Day anniversaries, and rallies in support of
Latvian Russians’ rights were held near it recently.
Latvian nationalists have called for dismantling the
monument several times. It has been stained with
paint, and an unsuccessful demolition attempt has been
made.


=== 5 ===

http://www.interfax.com/com?item=Lat&pg=0&id=5780423&req=

Interfax - January 18, 2005

Latvia deputies draft document on Soviet occupation

Riga - A group of Latvian parliamentary deputies has
drafted a declaration to condemn what they called the
Soviet occupation of the country and demand that
Russia pay compensation for Soviet-era damages to the
country.
The declaration also proposes drawing up a program for
the voluntary repatriation of people who came to
Latvia during the Soviet era from other parts of the
former Soviet Union.
The document urges European parliaments and
governments to recognize the Soviet period in Latvia
as a period of occupation, to help eliminate
Soviet-era damage, and to support the proposed
repatriation program.
The declaration also urge the Latvian government to
seek the return from Russia of archives evacuated from
Latvia and free access to Russian archives relating to
the Soviet period in Latvia.
Ieva Ziberga, consultant for the New Times group in
parliament, told the Baltic News Service that the
declaration will instruct the government to appoint a
working group to assess "the crimes of the communist
regime" and value the damage done in that period so
the government can demand compensation from Russia.


=== 6 ===

http://www.interfax.ru/e/B/politics/28.html?id_issue=10753043

Interfax - February 23, 2005

Latvian city permits procession commemorating SS legion

RIGA - The city council in Liepaja, Latvia on
Wednesday gave permission to the Union of National
Forces to hold a street procession on March 16 in
memory of the Latvian Waffen SS legion.
Viktors Birze, the union's co-chairman, told BNS that
the route was agreed upon with the local
self-government and only slightly differs from the
original.
"I am satisfied that the city council did not give in
to the blackmail from left-wing political parties -
the Latvian National Democratic Party, and the
association For Human Rights in Unified Latvia," he
said.


=== 7 ===

http://www.spacewar.com/2005/050321174157.cdopup0h.html

Agence France-Presse - March 21, 2005

Latvian defence minister to visit troops in Iraq

RIGA - Latvian Defence Minister Einars Repse left Riga
on Monday for Iraq, where he will visit Latvian troops
and discuss the political situation with leaders of
the US-led forces there, the defence ministry said.
Accompanying Repse on his trip to Iraq are Latvian
Land Forces Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Juris
Bezzubovs, Latvian Ambassador to NATO Aivis Ronis and
the US defence attache to Latvia, Leigh Sumner.
They will also discuss the political situation in Iraq
following elections at the end of January, including
the setting up of a new government, and the
participation of Latvian servicemen in rebuilding
Iraq.
Some 120 Latvian soldiers are stationed in Iraq,
mainly in Al Hillah, about 100 kilometers (60 miles)
south of Baghdad, under a Polish command.
In September last year, one month before the soldiers
from the Baltic state was due to leave Iraq,
parliament extended their deployment until June 2005.
On Monday, Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis told AFP
that Latvia, which joined NATO last year, was
determined to prolong its troops' mission in Iraq for
another year.
Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga told a news
conference Monday that the presence in Iraq of troops
from the Baltic state was vital to building democratic
structures in the country.
"We will continue our presence there," she said, while
expressing the hope that Iraq would soon be able to
guarantee its own internal security.


=== 8 ===

http://en.rian.ru/rian/
index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=5470002&startrow=1&date=2005-\
03-21&do_alert=0

Russian Information Agency (Novosti) - March 21, 2005

RUSSIA'S OSCE REPRESENTATIVE DENOUNCES SS LEGION MARCHES IN EU COUNTRIES

MOSCOW - Russia's OSCE permanent representative Alexei
Borodavkin has pointed to the inadmissibility of
holding SS Legion marches in EU countries.
"There can be no justification for SS Legion veterans
marching in the center of the Latvian capital and for
the police using force against anti-fascists.
Moreover, these events are taking place in modern
Latvia, which is a member state of the EU and the
OSCE," the Russian permanent representative told an
OSCE session in Vienna, Russia's Foreign Ministry
reported on Monday.
Alexei Borodavkin pointed to the inadmissibility of
the "attempts to justify the nazis' ideology and
crimes, heroize the fascist SS organization and its
former legionaries."
"The fascist manifestation in Riga cannot be qualified
otherwise than an insult to the memory of those who
saved the world from Nazi plague," his statement says.
According to Russia's permanent representative, it was
very cynical that the SS Legion march in Riga took
place on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the end of
World War Two. On the eve of this date, the OSCE
Council of Foreign Ministers adopted a special
declaration in Sofia in December 2004, the diplomat
reminded the OSCE session.
The document, in particular, says the following: "We
mourn for tens of millions of persons who perished in
the war, tens of millions of the victims of the war,
the Holocaust, the occupation and repressions. We
commemorate all those who fought for the victory of
humanism over the dictatorship, oppression and
aggression. Time will be unable to belittle the
grandness of their sacrifice."
"However, we have to state regrettably that we do not
find a satisfactory explanation for the fact that the
OSCE and the European Union have refrained from their
assessment of what took place in Riga," Alexei
Borodavkin stressed.
Russia's OSCE permanent representative expressed the
hope that the OSCE would give a principled assessment
of the fascist manifestation in Riga and the act of
desecration of the monument to Soviet soldiers -
liberators in the capital of Latvia in January.
The Russian side has on many occasions qualified SS
marches in Latvia as immoral, inadmissible and
contradicting the judgement of the Nuremberg Tribunal,
which recognized the SS a criminal organization,
Russia's OSCE permanent representative said.


=== 9 ===

Date: Sat, 15 Jan 2005 04:48:26 -0500
From: "mart"
Cc: <ANTINATO @...>
Subject: Fw: Solidarity With the Communists in Latvia

Forward from mart

So much for capitalist "democracy" in the
new NATO vassal states! Solidarity with
Latvian Communists!

mart
========================================
http://www.solidnet.org/cgi-bin/view?FILE/URGENT_actions/
069solidaritycominLatvia.doc

Athens Meeting 8-10 October 2004,
Solidarity Statement For The Communists In Latvia
-------------------------------------------------
From: SolidNet, Monday, October 18, 2004
========================================

Solidarity With the Communists in Latvia

In August-September 1991, the Supreme Soviet of Latvia
made a strong political decision and stopped and, as a result,
banned the activity of the Communist Party of Latvia. That
decision was made without and trial or inquest. The
propaganda of communism was equated to the propaganda
of Nazism ideology and as equated to a crime. This juridical
illegal act was used in order to limit political and civil
rights of former members of the Communist Party of Latvia.

In particular, this fact was later used to persecute the
members of the Communist Party of Latvia (already
forbidden party).

As a result, people who stayed as a members of the
forbidden Communist Party of Latvia, after January
13 1991, more than ten years have no rights to take
part in the elections. They have no rights to vote or
to be elected, neither during the elections in the
Latvian Parliament, and neither during the elections
in the municipalities of Latvia. But at the same time
they have the rights to take part in the election in
the European Parliament.

The status of these people is very odd, because in this
case we do not see the elementary juridical logic. As a
result the political and civil rights of these people are
being infringed, which runs counter to the International
and European legal acts. Latvia is now a member of
European Union and must observe these legal acts.

The members of the International meeting of the Communist
and Labour parties in Athens, Greece in October 8-10 2004
are expressing their disagreement against the fact that the
activity of the Communist Party of Latvia is still banned
in Latvia

We demand tat the official authorities of Latvia solve this
rude infringement of human rights in political views: we
want them to abolish the prohibition of the activity of the
Communist Party of Latvia, to abolish the articles in
Latvian laws, which regulate the procedure of elections
in Latvia, because now, according to these laws the
ex-members of the Communist Party of Latvia have no
right to take part in the elections in the Latvian
Parliament as well as in the elections in the
municipalities of Latvia.

We are addressing this resolution to the leaders of the
countries-members of the European Union, the European
Parliament, and European Union, asking to take possible
measures in order to stop this rude infringement of
the human rights of ex-members of the Communist
Party of Latvia.

Signatures

Party

Algerian Party for Democracy and Socialism
Communist Party of Australia
Democratic Progressive Tribune Bahrain
Communist Party of Bangladesh
Workers' Party of Belgium
New Communist Party of Britain
Bulgarian Communist Party "Georgi Dimitrov"
Communist Party of Bulgaria
Communist Party of Canada
Communist Party of Chile
Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia
Communist Party in Denmark
Communist Party of Finland
United Communist Party of Georgia
German Communist Party
Communist Party of Greece
Hungarian Workers Party
Communist Party of India
Tudeh Party of Iran
Communist Party of Ireland
Party of Italian Communists
Lithuanian Socialist Party
Communist Party of Luxembourg
Communist Party of Malta
Party of Communists, Mexico
Popular Socialist Party of Mexico
New Communist Party of the Netherlands
Communist Party of Norway
Palestinian Communist Party
Palestinian People's Party
Philippine Communist Party
Portuguese Communist Party
Communist Party of Russian Federation
Communist Workers' Party of Russia - Party of Russian
Communists
CPSU
Communist Party of Slovakia
Communist Party of Peoples of Spain
Communist Party of Sweden
Communist Party of Syria
Communist Party of Turkey
Union of Communists of Ukraine
Communist Party, USA
Communist Party of Vietnam


*End*

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