Recognition of the Roma Genocide

 Recognition, official texts

As per OSCE report, “Education on the Holocaust and on Anti-Semitism”, page 94, in Latvia, the Holocaust is defined as the extermination of six million Jews during the years of Nazi power (1933-1945) in Europe, due to the implementation of the Nazi race theory. There is no information whether Roma Genocide is officially recognised.

Following the United Nations resolution designating 27 January as International Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2005, the Latvian authorities, in co-operation with civil society representatives, organise special remembrance events on that day.

 Data (camps locations, Remembrance places, measures etc.)

The Roma and Sinti genocide is officially commemorated on 27 January and on 8 May.

On 27 January 2013, the Minister of Foreign Affairs delivered an address to open the commemorative event dedicated to International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Victims of the Holocaust are remembered in commemorations taking place on 8th May – the day that marks the anniversary of the end of World War II. Since 1995, this date has been observed as the “Day of the Defeat of Nazism and Commemoration Day of Victims of World War II”. The commemoration reflects the enormous destruction and suffering that World War II brought to Latvia. Approximately one-third of the country’s population was murdered in the Holocaust, allowed to die by deprivation in prison camps, deported to the Soviet Union and Germany or scattered in prisoner of war and refugee camps. The day is observed with a wreath laying ceremony at the Brothers Cemetery in Riga, with the participation of the President, Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and other representatives.

Latvia observes 4 July as the “Commemoration Day of Genocide against the Jews” since 1990. The event addresses the twentieth century as one of unprecedented terror and violence. The genocide against the Jewish people is remembered as the culmination point of evil, emphasising that the mass killings during the Holocaust caused irreversible changes in Latvia and left deep scars on the collective memory. The official commemoration event takes place in Riga, at the memorial site of the synagogue that was burned to the ground during World War II. The President gives the opening speech during the event, followed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs or another high ranking government representative. The event is attended by ambassadors and government officials.

It is estimated that about 5 000 Jews perished from Liepāja and its vicinity. Among the victims were also many Roma, however, their exact number is not known. A memorial wall, containing the names of several thousand victims from the city, was inaugurated on 9 June 2004 on the Jewish cemetery in Liepāja.

Around 300 Jewish men, women and children and 30 Roma died in the mass shootings in the forest close to Viļāni. In the 1950s, the Soviet administration of Viļāni set up a memorial at the site of the shootings. A separate plaque dedicated to the murdered Roma was added to the memorial. Each year on 4 August, the day of the mass shooting, a commemorative ceremony takes place here.

Current research about Latvian history, published in Historical articles in 2015 - “Roma Genocide in Latvia 1941-1944”, concludes that about 2000 Latvian Roma were killed during the Nazi occupation which is half of the Roma population of 1935 (3839 persons). As mentioned in the text, the real size of the Roma population in 1941 could be larger than official data, meaning that the number of victims could be larger than 2000 people.

 Specialised institution, commission, research centre etc., dealing with this issue

According to the available information, there is no specialised institution, commission or research centre specifically dealing with the issue of the Roma Genocide.

Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
Raiņa bulvāris 7
Rīga LV-1050. Latvija
Telephone: (+371) 67 212715
Fax: (+371) 67 229255
E-mail: [email protected]

 Official initiatives (campaigns, actions, projects, commemoration days, museums)

The year 2011 marked the 70th anniversary of the tragic events of the year 1941. The Museum of Occupation of Latvia, in co-operation with the Museum “Jews in Latvia”, organised two commemorative exhibitions within the framework of the larger project “The Tragedy of Latvia, 1941”.

The first exhibition, devoted to deportations on 14 June 1941, was unveiled by the President of Latvia, Valdis Zatlers; other senior officials also participated in the ceremony.

The second exhibition opened on 30 November to commemorate Holocaust crimes of 30 November and 8 December 1941 in Rumbula. The main goal of the project was to reinforce remembrance of the Holocaust in Latvian society, to reduce prejudices and to educate the younger generation.

The project received financial support from the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the European Commission Representation in Latvia

Exhibitions on the Holocaust are presented in the Museum “Jews in Latvia”, the “Museum of the Occupation of Latvia: 1940-1991”, the Museum of Latvian History and the War Museum. Moreover, there are many local and municipal museums outside of the capital as well as travelling exhibitions that are open to viewing throughout the country.