On 17 March, Latvia celebrated National Resistance Movement Remembrance Day for the first time ever after legislative proposal of President of Latvia Egils Levits was approved by the parliament. Remembrance Day was also marked by international conference about Latvian people’s resistance to occupation, continuity of Latvia’s independence de iure and regaining of independence from the perspective of Ukraine’s on-going efforts to defend itself against Putin’s regime.
Latvian people’s resistance to occupation, continuity of Latvia’s independence de iure and regaining of independence carried enormous historical, political and legal importance as it signified the will of Latvian people to have own state, Egils Levits indicated.
Latvian people were no passive victims or casualties in this fight for spheres of influence between totalitarian superpowers, President of Latvia added. Latvia was not going with the flow of the ‘big history’. Latvian people shaped their own history.
‘National resistance movement in Latvia and exile continued to nurture the idea of free and democratic Latvia despite decades of occupation. It became the basis for renewing our national independence and rebuilding democracy in Latvia according to framework of Satversme,’ President Levits noted.
17 March has been the day when people have voluntarily paid tribute to national resistance movement that opposed occupation powers for several years now, said President of Latvia. Legislators have now made this public movement an official national day.
‘As I have indicated previously, you do not just win Latvia once and that is it. Free and independent Latvian State can only exist and continue as long as each new generation is ready to stand up for and defend its integrity again and again. For the past couple of weeks, as Putin’s regime continues its war against Ukraine, we are compelled to consider this even more often than before,’ Egils Levits said to participants of the conference, underlining that National Resistance Movement Remembrance Day and national history policy obliges us to commemorate, honour and highlight the role of heroes of national resistance in our collective memory.
