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LATVIA'S HISTORY: EDUCATION, REMEMBRANCE, RESEARCH

March - July 2004 (28)

HEADLINES

• Exhibition "Jewish community of Latvia: history, tragedy, revival" tours Latvian towns
• Commission of Historians of Latvia publishes Latvia under Nazi German Occupation, eleventh volume in its series of symposium materials
• Commission of Historians sets research priorities for 2005-2007
• Latvia joins ITF on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research
• Memorial erected in Liepaja for the Holocaust and Gulag victims 
• Latvian officials pay tribute to Holocaust victims

Exhibition "Jewish community of Latvia: history, tragedy, revival" tours Latvian towns

On 11 March 2004 the exhibition "Jewish community of Latvia: history, tragedy, revival" opened at the municipal library in Jekabpils. The exhibition was organised by Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the museum "Jews in Latvia" and the Institute of Latvian History at the University of Latvia.

Member of the Commission of Historians of Latvia, Dzintars Erglis, informed teachers and students at Jekabpils High School about the latest research on the Holocaust in Jekabpils and other towns in Latvia. The exhibition traces the history of Latvia's Jewish community from the 16th to the beginning of the 21st centuries; it deals with World War II, the Holocaust and rescuers of Jews in Latvia, as well as activities in Latvia in the context of research and remembrance of the Holocaust.

On May 14 2004 the exhibition travelled to Sabile. There it was shown in the former synagogue, an historical building that has been preserved and now serves as a centre for contemporary art and cultural heritage of the town of Sabile. Undersecretary of State of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Andris Teikmanis made the opening remarks. Dr. Rudite Viksne, a scholar at the History Institute of Latvia, delivered a lecture about the latest research on the Holocaust in Latvia. The exhibition can be seen until September 20.

This exhibition was shown for the first time on 29 November 2001 at the University of Latvia in Riga. Subsequently, it has been shown at the Daugavpils University, Vidzemes University College, Liepaja Academy of Pedagogy, and National Library in Riga, State Archives of the Rezekne District, Ludza Museum of Local History and Valmiera High School.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Commission of Historians of Latvia publishes Latvia under Nazi German Occupation, eleventh volume in its series of symposium materials 

On 21 May 2004 the 11^th volume of series of symposium materials of the Commission of Historians was presented in the Riga Castle. It is entitled "Latvia under Nazi German Occupation, 1941 - 1945".

To cite from Professor Antonijs Zunda's article appearing in the volume,

The assessment of the policy of the German occupation regime is a complicated issue in historiography. Very often representatives of different schools of history offer very different interpretations of one and the same event. Many factors have contributed to such a situation. [..] On the whole, the historiography on the policy of the German occupation rule in Latvia can be [âÀ¦] divided into four major groups: works of the Soviet period, those of Latvian exile authors, those of foreign historians and, finally, research done in Latvia after the restoration of independence. In general, historians have addressed different aspects of the following topics: the military policy of the Nazi regime in Latvia, formation of the [so-called] voluntary Latvian legion, repressions, crimes against humanity, the Holocaust, collaboration, resistance movement, as well as economic and cultural policies."

According to Professor Zunda,

Owing to the very tendentious, distorted and ideologically tainted treatment of the policy of the Nazi German regime in Latvia during the fifty years of the Soviet occupation, there is a very urgent need for impartial research and comprehensive assessment of all these issues; this would free modern Latvian history from myths and falsifications. To meet this challenge successfully, research must be continued not only in the archives of Latvia, but also in the archives of Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and other countries.

President's Chancery

Latvia under Nazi German occupation, 1941-1945, Materials of an international conference, 12-13 June 2003, Riga: Publishers of the History Institute at the University of Latvia, Riga, 2004,

pp. 29. 

Commission of Historians sets research priorities for 2005-2007

At its annual meeting on 2 June 2004, Latvia's Commission of Historians set research priorities for the years 2005 - 2007. They also discussed ways to foster its international character and activate cooperation with historians from Eastern and Central European countries.

The historians decided to continue the in-depth study of the problems currently researched - Latvia during the first Soviet occupation; the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Latvia (1941-1945), Latvia under Nazi Germany (1941-1945) - and expand the scope to cover the entire period of Soviet occupation of Latvia from 1940 to 1991. They noted that since Latvia became a full-fledged member of NATO and the EU in 2004, it is the duty of historians to acquaint the reunited Europe with the highly complicated history of Eastern Europe, particularly in the twentieth century.  In this context, they decided to activate cooperation with historians from Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and other countries which regained their independence in recent decades. The Latvian historians observed that the biggest difference between the history of Eastern Europe and Western Europe in the twentieth century is that Western Europe had to contend with totalitarianism stemming from Nazi ideology, whereas Eastern Europe was occupied by two totalitarian regimes, one seeped in Nazi ideology and the other in Communist ideology. The Latvian historians believe that Europe will become truly united when all European countries have a common understanding and assessment of European history.

The Commission also decided to promote explanatory work so that the research results are better understood not only abroad, but also in Latvia, especially among the ministries of education and foreign affairs, teachers of history, museums, archives, and various research institutions.  Decisions were adopted to hold regularly scholarly conferences and publish research materials in Latvian, Russian and English.

Heretofore, the research focus of Latvia's Commission of Historians was on the period 1940 to 1956 and the topics of in-depth study were crimes against humanity, the Holocaust, deportations un the Soviet regime, collaboration, resistance movements, Latvian legion, economic policies of the occupation regimes, tenets of historiography.  The results are reflected in the 11 volumes of research materials published by the Commission and the 7 international conferences that the Commission has organized. Current projects include a compilation in English of the results of the most important research papers and the creation of a database about the numerous thousands of residents of Latvia who were repressed under the occupation regimes.

The meeting of the Commission of Historians was followed by an international conference on "Totalitarian regimes in the Baltic: results and problems of research" on 3 - 4 June 2004. The second plenary session of the conference was about the Holocaust in Latvia under Nazi German occupation.  The session featured five papers. Professor Aivars Stranga (Riga) spoke about the role of Latvia's Commission of Historians in the research of the Holocaust. Professor Andrievs Ezergailis (USA) reported about the first news of the Holocaust in Latvia. Margers Vestermanis (Riga), Director of the Documentation Center and the Museum "Jews in Latvia", described the efforts to assist and save Jews in Nazi occupied Latvia. Josif Rochko (Daugavpils) informed about the Holocaust in the Ilukste area; the report was based on recollections of local people. The conference papers and the latest research about the Holocaust in Latvia will appear in the next volume of materials published by the Commission of Historians.

President's Chancery

Latvia's admission into the International Task Force on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research

During the plenary meeting of the International Task Force on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research on 9 June 2004 in Rome, Latvia was admitted to the International Task Force on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research as a permanent member.

Members of the Task Force are representatives of governments, state and non-governmental organisations. The goal of the organisation is to gain support from political and public leaders both at the international and national level. The Task Force was established at the initiative of Sweden's Prime Minister Göran Persson in May 1998, and since then its membership has grown to 18 nations (Sweden, Austria, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Great Britain, Luxemburg, the USA, Lithuania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Argentina, Norway, and - as of 2004 - also Latvia and Denmark).

On 9 December 2003, Latvia's Cabinet of Ministers adopted a decision on Latvia's joining the Task Force and appointed Andris Teikmanis, Under-Secretary of State of Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as Head of the Latvian delegation. As of 2005, Latvia's annual membership fee to the organisation will be USD 25,000. However, through co-financing education and research projects of the Task Force, Latvia will have the possibility to attract much greater resources.

- Latvia's cooperation with the International Task Force on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research

As stated by President Vaira Vike-Freiberga at the Stockholm Forum in January 2001, Latvia has actively cooperated with the International Task Force on specific projects. In 2001, the joint work of state and non-governmental organisations produced the first action plan for Holocaust education, remembrance and research comprising twelve projects, which provided for teachers' seminars, translation of relevant literature into Latvian, organisation of exhibitions, and other activities.

Concerning the Holocaust, for several years Latvia has been working in several directions and many cooperation partners have been involved.

1. Holocaust research. Latvia's Commission of Historians, established in 1998, has organised several international conferences devoted to the Holocaust. Six out of the eleven volumes of research that have been published are devoted to this topic.

2. Holocaust education. Since 2000, seven training seminars for Latvian history teachers on the methodology of teaching about the Holocaust have been held in the following cities and towns: Ligatne, Riga, Jekabpils, Valmiera, Liepaja and Rezekne. The seminars were organized by the History Teachers' Association of Latvia with the support of the Swedish Institute, The Living History Forum (Sweden), US Embassy in Riga, Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Education and Science, and Latvia's Commission of Historians. Around 350 teachers have participated in these seminars.

At the beginning of 2004, 22 Latvian teachers participated in the methodology seminars in Luxemburg and Belgium.

3.  Remembrance. Since 2001 the exhibition "Jewish Community of Latvia: History, Tragedy, Rebirth" has been shown in 12 locations in Latvia, including Liepaja, Daugavpils, Rezekne, Ludza, Valmiera, Riga, and Jekabpils. At present the exhibition can be seen at the "Synagogue" - the restored centre for contemporary art and cultural heritage in the town of Sabile. The exhibition was prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the museum Jews in Latvia, the US Embassy, and the Institute of Latvian History.

Latvian local governments and foreign supporters have assisted in the building and reconstruction of the Jewish memorials in Bikernieki, Rumbula, Auce and Liepaja.

A collection of biographies of 100 outstanding Jewish personalities in Latvia was published in 2003 through the joint efforts of the Centre for Judaic Studies at the University of Latvia, the museum "Jews in Latvia", and the US Embassy.

The Cabinet of Ministers adopted a decision on 9 December 2003 to support the erection of a monument to Zanis Lipke and other rescuers of Jews in Latvia, and allocated LVL 10,000 for this purpose.

A new project - a website on the Latvian Jewish Community - will be launched to inform and educate the public.  The project is carried out with the support of Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Latvian Jewish Community, Democracy Commission of the US Embassy, Bauska Museum of Art and Local Studies, and the museum "Jews in Latvia"*.

- Plans for 2004 and 2005

In 2005 the Ministry of Education and the US Embassy in Riga, in cooperation with the University of Iowa, will work to develop an ethics and Holocaust curriculum project for primary and secondary schools. An application for financing has been submitted to the International Task Force. The total expenditure of the two-year project targeted to expand the Latvian teachers' knowledge of methodology has been estimated at more than USD 280,000.

The following activities have been proposed to the International Task Force for financing in 2004:

- a long-term project of the Centre for Judaic Studies at the University of Latvia "Names of Holocaust victims: Memorial List of Latvian Jewish Community 1941-1945" (In 2002/2003, co-financing of approximately USD 15,000 was received from the International Task Force.).

- a seminar for history teachers on the methodology of teaching about the Holocaust in August 2004 in Liepaja;

- publishing by the museum "Jews in Latvia" of a bibliographical dictionary of Latvian Jews who were victims of the Holocaust;

An international conference on research and education about the Holocaust is planned for the end of 2005. The Conference will seek to evaluate the experience of the Holocaust research and education in Latvia, in other EU member states, and in the EU neighbour countries in Eastern Europe.

The total amount claimed from the International Task Force this year is approximately EUR 72,921. 

 For more information see: http://www.mfa.gov.lv/en/news/newsletters/History;
Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
http://taskforce.ushmm.org/

 *"Latvian Jewish Community" website address: http://www.jews.lv/en/common/ 

Memorial erected in Liepaja for the Holocaust and Gulag victims

On 9 June 2004, a memorial wall was unveiled in Liepaja's Livu cemetery in honour of the victims of World War II. Only 3% of the 7,000 Jews living in Liepaja before World War II survived the Soviet and Nazi German invasion of Latvia. Erection of the memorial was supported by the Liepaja City Council.

According to Professor Edward Anders, a former resident of Liepaja who now lives in the USA and who worked hard for the erection of the memorial, "Entire families from Liepaja and their friends were completely annihilated with nobody left to remember their names. Though the survivors tried their utmost to seek out the names of the dead, sixty years after World War II the names of only about one-fifth of the victims are listed in Yad Vashem's Hall of Names in Jerusalem. The names of the other victims are not known. This would have pleased Hitler."

The solemn unveiling of the memorial was attended by Antonijs Zunda, Advisor to the President of Latvia on Issues of History, officials of the city of Liepaja, and diplomats from the US, the UK, Russia, Germany, Sweden and Israel.  Attending the ceremony were also around 80 former residents of Liepaja and their descendants, who are now living in the USA, Canada, Israel, Australia, the UK, France and other countries of the world. Among the honorary guests were historians Andrievs Ezergailis and Paulis Lazda from the USA, and Margers Vestermanis from Riga. After the unveiling of the memorial, Professor Ezergailis delivered a lecture about the times and the people that the memorial recalls.

The twelve-meter-long memorial wall in Liepaja lists more than 6,400 names of victims. The list also includes the names of 44 Latvians and Germans of Liepaja who risked their lives to save 33 Jews in the war.  Two Latvians, Roberts and Johanna Sedulis, alone saved 11 Jews by sheltering them in their home.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
Memorial Wall: information and photos: http://www.ej-anders.com/;
http://www.ej-anders.com/users/xenon2/cem/index.html

Latvian officials pay tribute to victims of the Holocaust

On 4 July 2004 a solemn meeting was held at the ruins of the Great Choral Synagogue at 25 Gogola Street in Riga to remember and honour the victims of the Holocaust in Latvia. The Great Choral Synagogue was burned down on 4 July 1941 and many Jews perished in the conflagration.

The genocide against the Jews started shortly after Nazi Germany invaded Latvia in June 1941 and as a result, Latvia's Jewish population was essentially wiped out. Among those attending the commemoration were Latvia's Prime Minister Indulis Emsis, Minister of Foreign Affairs Rihards Piks, Israeli Ambassdor to Latvia Gary Koren.

An address from Latvia's President Vaira Vike-Freiberga was delivered by her Advisor on Issues of History, Antonijs Zunda. The President recalled:  

On 4 July 1941 an appalling crime was committed here on this spot. A synagogue with people inside was burned down. This tragic event marked the beginning of the horrors of the Holocaust in Latvia.  Many thousands of people were killed in Rumbula, Bikernieku forest, Liepaja, Daugavpils and elsewhere in Latvia.  The Holocaust was a terrible tragedy for the Jewish people. It was also a terrible tragedy for all of Latvia. [âÀ¦]   The Holocaust will always admonish, remind, and warn mankind to be alert. [âÀ¦] As we are honoring the Holocaust victims, expressing sympathy to the Jewish people on this day of sorrow, I urge everyone not only to preserve forever the memory of the innocent victims but also assist in the fight against violence and prejudice so that nothing like this can ever recur, so that the forces of evil can never control us. The duty of all of us is to pray for the souls those who perished so that they may find eternal peace.

In his remarks, Minister of Foreign Affairs Rihards Piks said:

During the Holocaust, the Jewish community in Latvia was almost entirely destroyed and this is one of Latvia's irretrievable losses in the twentieth century. Not even women, children, or the elderly - whether in Riga or in a small town - could save themselves from these inhuman acts.  There was no place to flee and hardly anyone whom one could trust in a situation where totalitarian terror prevailed.  One could rely only on the earth, and the earth accepted those who were humiliated and unjustly accused. Thus, over 25,000 people ended up in the forest of Rumbula, where they had been sent to die just because they were Jews. 
There is no justification for crime.  Likewise, there is no justification for those who supported and committed crimes. Regrettably, there were local supporters of evil.  Regrettably, Latvia was turned into a killing place since the Nazis transported Jews from Austria, Poland, Germany and Hungary for annihilation. 
State institutions of Latvia, non-governmental organizations, scholars and educators cooperate in the research and remembrance of the Holocaust, as well as education about the Holocaust.  They also wish to learn in depth about Latvia's history, pass on to the younger generations their knowledge of the past, so as to continue the tradition of tolerance of the Republic of Latvia and strengthen the common democratic values and security of Europe. 
While remembering the Holocaust victims, I wish also to pay tribute to the Holocaust survivors and honour the courageous persons who risked their lives to protect from death others who were in mortal danger.  Thanks to the work of the museum 'Jews in Latvia', we know about approximately 220 such cases.  Soon there will be a monument to the saviors of Jews, whose noble deeds serve as an example for future generations.

President's Chancery;
Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
NRA (05.07.2004);
Latvijas avīze (05.07.2004);
http://www.shtetlinks.jewishgen.org/riga/rigapage.htm#Synagogues%20and%20Rabbis