On 14 June 2021 Latvia will mark 80 years since the first wave of mass deportations carried out by the Soviet rule after occupation of Latvia. In 1941, on 14 June, Soviet power deported more than 15 thousand Latvian residents. To honour the memory of deportees, who were cruelly displaced in 1941, their names will simultaneously be read out across Latvia. Events will be held by various Latvian diasporas around the world.
‘This event has a very powerful name. Never forgotten emphasises that we do remember what happened 80 years ago. We do remember every person deported from Latvia by the occupying power. Our name and surname are unique. They are a party of who we are as a person. By reading these names aloud we are paying a tribute to those who were deported, many of whom died in exile. It is the duty of our generation to keep those memories alive,’ said the President of Latvia Egils Levits when addressing the 119 local government officials who are responsible for coordination of ‘Deported. Never forgotten. 80 years since deportations of June 14’ events across Latvia during a remote meeting today. He also said that deportations were a tool used by the Soviet Union after the occupation of Latvia to stamp out the civically active part of the Latvian population that supported the Latvian State. ‘Deportations left a gaping hole in the heart of our nation. Occupation meant that Latvia was no longer able to protect its citizens. For long 50 years Latvia continued to exist de iure but was unable to change anything. Our people got through this terrible period and managed to rebuild Latvia into a free and independent state that we can enjoy today. These events are extra significant for the collective memory of our nation. Thank you for agreeing to be a part of this important event!’
The event ‘Deported. Never forgotten. 80 years since deportations of June 14’ will be simultaneously held all over Latvia. At 11:00, names of those deported in 1941 will be read out at various municipalities to pay tribute to every Latvian who was deported that day. ‘There is nothing more personal or private than your name and surname. We get them once we are born and live with them until we day. And we are remembered by them long after in various historical records. Every deportee deserves to be recognised – they are not merely numbers in the grand scheme. Latvians here and around the world will have a wonderful opportunity to witness the reading of the names at the same time – either at their municipality or by watching the commemorations online during a nationwide broadcast’ says Sandra Kalniete who came up with the event idea.
Name reading from all municipalities will be streamed in real time on LSM.lv and LNB.lv, while Jāņa sēta Map Publishers will provide a digital map with links to live streams from various municipalities. Later on, the locations on this map will be converted into video links to recordings of name reading and deportee lists. It will be developed and transformed into a public online platform offering visual content about the impact of deportations on Latvia and better understanding of the extent and scale to which deportations affected our country. The story will be told through the official statistics and accounts of individual experiences of those deported.
Coverage of the event ‘Deported. Never forgotten. 80 years since deportations of June 14’ will also be provided by the Latvian public broadcasting service.
Commemorative events are co-organised by the Chancery of the President of Latvia and National Library of Latvia, experts from National Archive of Latvia, Jāņa sēta Map Publishers and public broadcasting service.
Coordinator:
Augusts Zilberts
Head of PR
National Library of Latvia
E-mail: augusts@lnb.lv
Mobile: 2 6472501