Today, events in Riga will begin to commemorate the barricades of 1991, reports the LETA agency.
At 18:00, a memorial event for the defenders of the barricades of 1991 will take place at Zakiyusala near the Latvian Television building. More than 100 young guards are expected to take a solemn oath and sing together.
Also today, a cancellation of the "35 Years of the Barricades" envelope will take place at the post office on Elizabeth Street. Latvijas Pasts will issue a special envelope and organize a unique cancellation dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the barricades of 1991.
The designer of the envelope and stamp is artist Girts Griva, and the special cancellation will occur at the post office on Elizabeth Street during working hours.
On January 14, a photo exhibition titled "We Defended Latvia" will open at Freedom Square. The exhibition will be available until January 27.
On January 16, from 10:00 to 15:00, a conference titled "The January 1991 Barricades as an Expression of Popular Resistance to Totalitarian Regimes and Lessons for Today" will take place in the Baltic Hall of the Saeima and online.
A memorial event will be held at the cemetery in Marupe and at the memorial sign "White Cross" near the Vecmilgravis Bridge in honor of the first person killed at the barricades of 1991 — Roberts Murnieks.
On January 17, an open house day is planned at locations related to the events of the barricades — at the Saeima, the Cabinet of Ministers, Latvian Radio, Latvian Television, and the office of LLC "Tet" on Dzirnavu Street.
At 17:00, a festive gala concert titled "35 Years of the Barricades of 1991" will take place at Dome Square.
On January 18 at 15:00, a festive concert for the participants of the 1991 barricades titled "We Defended Latvia" will be held in the exhibition hall at Kipsala "BT1".
On January 20, a Day of Remembrance for the Defenders of the Barricades of 1991 will be observed — a national holiday that will be widely celebrated in Riga and the regions of Latvia. At 9:00, an ecumenical service will take place at the Riga Dome Cathedral, and at 10:00, a memorial bonfire will be lit at Dome Square. In the evening, a joint singing by the bonfire is planned.
At 11:00, a memorial ceremony and flower laying will take place at the Freedom Monument, at the Bastion Hill at the memorial sites for the fallen, at the former Ministry of Interior building on Rainis Boulevard, 6. At 14:30, a memorial event will be held at the Second Forest Cemetery, where the memory of those who died on January 20, 1991, will be honored, and at 16:00, a memorial bonfire will be lit near the Saeima building.
As is known, the construction of barricades in Riga began on the evening of January 13, 1991. Their purpose was to protect the building of the Supreme Council, television, bridges over the Daugava, and other strategically important sites. On January 16, the special unit OMON became active, but the bloodiest events occurred on January 20, when OMON attempted to seize the Ministry of Interior building. Simultaneously, during a shootout near the Vecmilgravis Bridge, the driver of the Ministry of Transport, Roberts Murnieks, was killed.
The burial sites of those who died during the barricades are now at the Second Forest Cemetery in Riga, where Andris Slapins, Edijs Riekstins, Sergey Kononenko, Juris Podnieks, and Guido Zvaigzne are buried.
Since 1997, January 20 has officially been recognized as the Day of Remembrance for the Defenders of the Barricades.
