Stories about Latvia from January, 2009
Latvia: Protest and Changes
Baltic writes about political changes taking place in Latvia due to the crisis. Free Speech Emergency in Latvia posts a video from a silent protest in Riga.
Latvia: “Beginning to Smell Like the 90s”
All About Latvia writes that “it’s hard not to notice that it is beginning to smell like the 90s”: “In the last week, strangers asked me three times for some changes to buy a tram ticket. Usually, asking for a smoke, or some change is used as a way to...
Latvia: Snap Election?
All About Latvia thinks the country is “heading for snap elections” and this may be a good thing: “While the IMF sees an election as a liability because it ushers in an uncertain future, for the people of Latvia an election under new updated election laws appears to be a...
Latvia: Economy Update
An update on the economic situation in Latvia – at Edward Hugh's Latvia Economy Watch.
Latvia: Flash Mob To Support Public Radio
Free Speech Emergency in Latvia writes that “employees of Latvia's public service radio (Latvijas Radio) have called for a flash-mob to gather near the parliament (Saeima) building for five minutes on Friday, January 30 to stand in complete silence to protest the “silencing” of the national radio service through budget...
Latvia: Politics Updates
Two updates on the post-Jan. 13 politics in Latvia – at Baltic, here and here: “Whoever you speak today in this Baltic country recognizes that discontent about the present political class is simply unbearable.” All About Latvia adds: “If Latvia were a civilized country, the government would have long collapsed...
Latvia: Riga Riots Followup
A followup on the Riga riots: Free Speech Emergency in Latvia reports on “an informal movement of non-violent resistance, called The Penguins (Pingvini).”
Estonia: A Different Path
Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa writes that “most international English-language news coverage of the recent riots in Latvia and Lithuania has shocked me by the lack of basic knowledge about Estonia”: “There is a general meme descending in the pages of usually reliable media that the economic crisis is going...
Europe: Entropa
Belatedly, links to some posts on Entropa: Margarete of The Foreigner's Guide to Living in Slovakia believes “it should be taken down”; Kosmopolito thinks that “the debate around the project is also part of the installation”; BBC's Mark Mardell writes that “the fact that it is a hoax does not...
Latvia: Book Publishing VAT Up From 5% To 21%
Very belatedly, links to Peteris Cedrins’ reporting and musings at Marginalia on the history of book publishing in Latvia and the outrageous VAT increase on books from 5 percent to 21 percent.
Latvia: Rioting in Riga
In his post about the Jan. 13 peaceful protest rally followed by rioting in Latvia's capital, Aleks Tapinsh of All About Latvia wrote that the country's PM had "told the people in his New Year’s Eve address how penguins deal with severe winter - they huddle together to stay warm - the same way as Latvians ought to do when going through the economic turmoil." What happened in Riga Tuesday has thus been labeled by some as the "penguin revolution." Below are some accounts and opinions from the blogosphere.
Latvia: Government reconstruction
Baltic reports that the government of Latvia is being reconstructed to a smaller cabinet, facing the economic crisis that has hit the country recently.
Latvia: People, politicians, and guardians
Baltic publishes the latest Latvian opinion polls, showing how people consider politics under the threat of international financial guardianship.
