The deported residents proved with their endurance that Latvia cannot be destroyed, said ex-President of Latvia Valdis Zatlers in an interview to LTV programme Rīta panorāma, speaking about the Commemoration Day for the Victims of Communist Genocide.
“These people, with their endurance, with the strength of their spirit and also with simple craftsmen’s skills, were able to prove that Latvia cannot be destroyed, physically cannot be destroyed,” he said.
“Nothing will ever be done 100%, but we are trying to do everything as best as possible,” said Zatlers, answering the question if everything is being done to make sure deportations do not repeat.
Remembering the deportations of Latvian residents to Siberia and other far-away regions of the Soviet Union on the 25th of March 1949, Latvia commemorates the victims of communist genocide on this day.
More than 42 000 Latvian residents were deported to Siberia.
At 13:00, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the association “Latvian Association of Politically Repressed”, in commemoration of the victims of the Communist genocide of 1949, will organize a solemn memorial ceremony at the”Historical Tactile” memorial to the victims of the Soviet occupation.
High-ranking state officials will be participating in this event.
After the ceremony there will be a procession to the Freedom Monument for a flower-laying ceremony. A National Guard choir Stars will be singing at the monument, conducted by Ārijs Šķepasts.
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