Barricades Defenders Remembrance Day
1991 Barricades Defenders Remembrance Day (Latvian: 1991. gada barikāžu aizstāvju atceres diena) is a Latvian remembrance day observed each year on 20 January. Created as a commemoration day by law in 1997,[1] the date honors the civilians who defended The Barricades in Riga during January 1991, when Riga's OMON unit and other occupying units attempted to forcibly re-impose the Soviet Union's illegal subjugation on Latvia after the Baltic States' declaration of the restoration of independence a year earlier.[2][3][4][5]
Background
[edit]On 20 January 1991, five people were shot dead and 13 injured in an attack by USSR forces who attacked barricades constructed by citizens as a form of non-violent resistance against the illegal Soviet occupation.[6] The Barricades are a key moment in Latvian national consciousness when the Popular Front of Latvia, with the broad support of citizens, foiled those who were seeking to continue the repression of Latvian independence and continue the illegal occupation of the Baltic states.[7]
See also
[edit]- Day of the Restoration of Latvian Independence
- On the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia
- Baltic Way
- January Events
- Phosphorite War
References
[edit]- ^ "Grozījums likumā "Par svētku un atceres dienām"". LIKUMI.LV (in Latvian). Retrieved 2025-05-09.
- ^ "Plkst. 21.07 OMON un nezināma kaujas grupa uzbrūk Latvijas Republikas Iekšlietu ministrijai. Kaujā tiek nogalināti milicijas darbinieki V. Gomanovičs, S. Konoņenko. Šautu ievainojumu rezultātā mirst k... - Barikadopēdija". www.barikadopedija.lv. Retrieved 2025-05-09.
- ^ "Latvia marks the civic heroism of the 'Barricades'". LSM. Retrieved 2025-05-09.
- ^ "20. janvāris – 1991. gada barikāžu aizstāvju atceres diena". Daugavpils.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 2025-05-09.
- ^ "FOTO: Pie ugunskura un plakātiem Doma laukumā atceras Barikāžu laiku". LSM (in Latvian). Retrieved 2025-05-09.
- ^ "1991. gada barikāžu aizstāvju atceres diena". Archived from the original on 2024-03-18. Retrieved 2025-05-13.
- ^ "FOTO un VIDEO: Barikāžu aizstāvju atceres dienas notikumi". LSM (in Latvian). Retrieved 2025-05-13.