С Днём Победы
Today the Russophones of the world commemorate the victory over German Nazi in the Second World War.
It is the greatest day for most of Russian-speakers in Latvia too and tens of thousands of people come to Victory Monument to lay flowers.
This is the day which unites national minorities of Latvia and being intensively used by left wing parties as well.
С Днём Победы! (S Dnem Pobedy means Happy Victory Day)
See also nice photo of 2008 Victory Day.
Labels: events, flowers, holidays, monuments, pardaugava, russian, soviet, wars
People Reaction (12)
Happy victory day! This is very impressing, all those flowers.
Happy Victory Day! As Elaine said, it is impressive to see all the flowers laying down. It seems to be one of those days that makes you feel proud of your heritage due to the importance of that event.
Soviet sympathizers are holding here a campaign glorifying Soviets once every year at this time. Couple of last years they are holding special "George ribbon" campaign, wearing special striped ribbons and making greeting cards with heavy use of Soviet symbols.
Some people have made parodies of that, reminding the Soviet enthusiasts, that Soviet Union and Nazi Reich policies were very similar a the time and at the beginning of the WWII the USSR and the Reich actually were friends and occupied Poland together. See, for example: http://russkieland.wordpress.com/2009/05/04/congrats-on-9th-of-may-comrades/ .
Latvians mostly hate this event because of the Soviet/Russia propaganda taste it has to it. They have victory over Nazism and WWII victim remembrance day on 8th of May, just like the rest of Europe and USA, and often consider the 9th of May (which is old Soviet tradition, now also followed by Russia and other CIS countries) a day of celebration of Soviet-Russian chauvinism.
Explanation? Soviet Union took over Latvia in 1940 and left it only in 1994, when the last Russian army units left the country. Nobody likes conquerors.
It is a pity that sentimental feelings of those old Russian men and women who fought bravely to defend their homeland (Russia) against Nazi invasion, and later settled in Soviet occupied Latvia, are being used by political forces of Neo-Soviets and Russian Nationalists.
The worst is that a whole new generation of young people born to those Soviet settlers has grown up who have never seen the USSR and often have not been to Russian Federation, but are Russian-Soviet "patriots" in their hearts, with some Commie-Putinist junk in their heads, often hating Latvia in particular and West in general and loving Great Russia and Soviet ideas retold by their nostalgic parents.
Seems as if they are people lost at the wrong side of the line bordering separate civilizations.
Glorious victory and glorious flowers.
That is an amazing quantity of flowers. Thanks for the information too. Very interesting.
Anonymous A local guy said...
Soviet sympathizers are holding here a campaign glorifying Soviets once every year at this time. Couple of last years they are holding special "George ribbon" campaign, wearing special striped ribbons and making greeting cards with heavy use of Soviet symbols.
Some people have made parodies of that, reminding the Soviet enthusiasts, that Soviet Union and Nazi Reich policies were very similar a the time and at the beginning of the WWII the USSR and the Reich actually were friends and occupied Poland together. See, for example: http://russkieland.wordpress.com/2009/05/04/congrats-on-9th-of-may-comrades/ .
Latvians mostly hate this event because of the Soviet/Russia propaganda taste it has to it. They have victory over Nazism and WWII victim remembrance day on 8th of May, just like the rest of Europe and USA, and often consider the 9th of May (which is old Soviet tradition, now also followed by Russia and other CIS countries) a day of celebration of Soviet-Russian chauvinism.
Explanation? Soviet Union took over Latvia in 1940 and left it only in 1994, when the last Russian army units left the country. Nobody likes conquerors.
It is a pity that sentimental feelings of those old Russian men and women who fought bravely to defend their homeland (Russia) against Nazi invasion, and later settled in Soviet occupied Latvia, are being used by political forces of Neo-Soviets and Russian Nationalists.
The worst is that a whole new generation of young people born to those Soviet settlers has grown up who have never seen the USSR and often have not been to Russian Federation, but are Russian-Soviet "patriots" in their hearts, with some Commie-Putinist junk in their heads, often hating Latvia in particular and West in general and loving Great Russia and Soviet ideas retold by their nostalgic parents.
Seems as if they are people lost at the wrong side of the line bordering separate civilizations.
Totally 100% truth, and nothing but, the truth!
sveicieni svetkos (::::
A local guy said...
Explanation? Soviet Union took over Latvia in 1940 and left it only in 1994, when the last Russian army units left the country. Nobody likes conquerors.
Lie!!!
It wasn't taken over! Latvians were welcome Red army.
to a local guy
Right and it doesnt have anything to do that nationalist in latvia use their power to discriminate those peoples instead of assimilating them?
It does make sense that when war veterans remember how they were treated in Soviet Union - as true heroes and nothing less, they dont feel a glimpse of sympathy about Latvia - when in Latvia they get less then minimum pension around 90-100 eur (after they pay all the bills they get barrely enough money for food), goverment says that they are actually occupants, bastards and criminals, they werent granted citizenship - they have to use Latvian passport with ALIEN on the front of it, and latvians nazi who fought against them during WW2 are considered as official heroes!
So when people have to live in such conditions there can be no place for something as stupid as saying they it is because people are like that - NO - it is because there are nationalists whos dream is probably to see all russians dead. When they dont agree to dig up their own grave they say it is Russian propaganda who is messing with their head.
Look at the facts again - Russian propaganda is doing nothing, just sitting aside with a cold beer and a pack of popcorn, enjoying the show.
"latvians nazi"
What's that?
I am not aware of a single Latvian Nazi in existence ever.
Are you?
Tell me!
P.S.
Not granting automatic citizenship of the formerly occupied country to the former soldiers of the occupying army is not a "discrimination". After all - they have the right to Latvian citizenship after passing simple language test. But that is too much for you, isn't it? You consider that to be "assimilation"!
What you would consider to be "fair" is Latvia being a "Little Russia" with Russian language and Soviet culture still dominating the landscape as it did all those years in the USSR.
And that country - Latvia, which the Red Army destroyed in 1940, is NOT PAYING ENOUGH to those Red Army "veterans", you say? What ungrateful bastards, aren't they? ;)
Everybody f#cking OWES YOU! And if they don't agree, then they are "Nazis" discriminating you!
Oh, that pesky and too familiar Great Rooshun mindset...
P.P.S.
Yes, it should be hard losing all those special privileges and being told truth in the face after decades of being "treated in Soviet Union - as true heroes and nothing less". That is the point. That is what pisses off them and you.
to Mr. Qwerty
I get what you want to say. Soviet Union was bad, russians are occupants... yeah, yeah we know the story, blah blah blah.
I am also very sad that you are so badly educated that you don't know anything about latvian nazis. I would suggest you go on 16 of march to the freedom monument for a history lesson. Also try to google this topic. You will be amazed how "nobel" were some latvians.
But I guess you ARE right - no citezenship to those occupants, they just want to harm Latvia. Germans on the other hand were great and should have won that war against red invaders! Those nazis would have proceeded then with their magnificient plan to genocide all latvians, just like jews and other nations (as it was in Hitlers plan). Perhaps then today there would be no need to dispute, simply because there wouldn't No latvians. How does that sound to you? Sounds great, doesn't it?
But no, those pesky ruskies meddled and gave your nation a wrong way - a life in ussr instead of grave in the third reich. Jeez what a morons, spoiled all that fun your grandparents in nazi gas cameras. :\
Oh, that appleknocker mindset of "Occupation victims"...
P.S.
Yes, it is hard, as you have said "to be told truth in the face", especially when it is a lie and it is rather being stabed in the back. But those heroes seen a real enemy, so they ignore most of the misserable scums.
Disgusting! (vomit) O_o