Popular Front of Latvia
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The Popular Front of Latvia (Latvian: Latvijas Tautas fronte) was a political organisation in Latvia in the late 1980s and early 1990s which led Latvia to its independence from the Soviet Union. It was similar to the Popular Front of Estonia and the Sąjūdis movement in Lithuania.
Its newspaper was
Historic background
Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania were occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940–1941, by Nazi Germany in 1941–1944 and again by the Soviet Union in 1944–1991.
In 1940, almost immediately an armed resistance started, which under the name of
Beginning in 1986, Latvians began to organise around specific causes. One of the first successes in challenging Moscow was the stoppage of the building of the 4th hydroelectric dam near Daugavpils on the Daugava, the main river in Latvia. This protest inspired the formation of the Environmental Protection Club, which saw the environmentally driven protests as a channel through which to challenge the Soviet regime more broadly.[1]
Latvia's independence movement started with small demonstrations for independence and human rights in 1986. The first demonstrations, organised by
Popular Front from 1988 to 1990
This resurgence created several political organisations devoted to increased autonomy or independence for Latvia. The LTF was the biggest organisation. It was founded on 9 October 1988. Originally, Tautas Fronte took a moderate position, requesting wide autonomy for Latvia but stopping short of calling for independence. Tautas Fronte was supported by moderate members of the leadership of the Latvian SSR including head of state Anatolijs Gorbunovs, but opposed by hardline Communists.
Tautas Fronte quickly grew to 250,000 members. Its goal was to create a wide coalition devoted to autonomy or independence of Latvia. As 48% of Latvia's population was ethnically non-Latvian (mostly people who had moved to Latvia from other parts of the Soviet Union), Tautas Fronte reached out to ethnic minorities. In particular, it advocated school education in languages other than Latvian and Russian to attract the support of non-Russian minorities. At the same time, Tautas Fronte worked with more radical Latvian movements advocating the immediate independence of Latvia.
Gradually, the overall opinion within Tautas Fronte shifted from the autonomy of Latvia within the Soviet Union to full independence. On 31 May 1989, it announced that the government of the Soviet Union had not been sympathetic enough to Latvia gaining autonomy and an independent Latvia had become the only option.
In 1989 and 1990, the first free elections were held in Latvia since Kārlis Ulmanis' coup d'état in 1934. The most important were the elections to the Supreme Soviet, the parliament of the Latvian SSR, on 18 March 1990. A pro-independence coalition, led by Tautas Fronte, won 138 out of 201 seats in the Supreme Soviet, more than the 2/3 majority needed to amend the Constitution.
Tautas fronte from 1990 to 1993
After the 1990 elections, Tautas fronte became the governing party in Latvia. On 4 May 1990, the first law passed by the new Supreme Soviet declared Latvia's intention to restore independence. Dainis Īvāns, the chairman of Tautas fronte, became the deputy speaker of parliament and his deputy, Ivars Godmanis, became the prime minister. Many other members of Tautas fronte took key positions in the government of Latvia.
From May 1990 to August 1991, Latvia went through a tense period. Its independence was not recognised by the government of the Soviet Union and a military crackdown threatened by the Soviet government was generally feared.
Several Soviet tanks appeared on the bank of the Daugava river in the Riga Old Town. Television networks broadcast footage of rifle shots being exchanged at night in Old Town on the evening of 13 January 1991. On the streets unarmed people built the Barricades and spent days and nights guarding them, singing Latvian songs. Because of this the independence movement is now known as "the Singing Revolution".
The independence of Latvia was finally recognised after the failure of the
The end of Tautas fronte
In June 1993, Latvia held the first
Legacy
All or almost all the political goals of Tautas fronte have been achieved. Latvia is now an independent country, with Latvian as the only official language. Its economy and politics, formerly socialist and oriented towards the Soviet Union, is now free-market and European-oriented. While Tautas fronte itself ceased to exist during the economic difficulties of the mid-1990s, many of its former activists have important roles in today's Latvia.
The Museum of the Popular Front of Latvia is located in its former offices, which are owned by the state, in Vecpilsētas iela 13/15 in Riga.[4]
See also
- BPF Party
- Democratic Russia
- Latvian independence movement
- People's Movement of Ukraine
- Popular Front of Estonia
- Popular Front of Moldova
- Sąjūdis
References
- ^ Schwartz, K. (2006). Nature and national identity after communism: Globalizing the Ethnoscape. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.
- ^ "Latvia and the Enlargement of the European Union". www.europarl.europa.eu. European Parliament. 2000-07-31. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
- ^ "Zinātnes Vēstnesis: 1999.g. 25. oktobris". www.lza.lv (in Latvian). 1999-10-25. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
- ^ "Par Tautas frontes muzeja sabiedriskajai padomei nodotā nekustamā īpašuma atdošanu valstij". LIKUMI.LV (in Latvian). Retrieved 2018-10-24.