The Catalan Way (Via Catalana) is the way of tens of millions of Europeans

Otto Ozols | 

On Sept. 11, hundreds of thousands of Catalonians joined hands to form a 400 kilometer long living chain. Their purpose and their desire was profoundly understood by tens of millions of Europeans.

Their own independent state – a dream for centuries for the Irish, the Poles, Finns, Norwegians, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians and many other Europeans. They have all had to take the long and difficult Way to fulfill the dream of an independent state. The memory of their struggles for independence is sacred to these people – their fathers, grandfathers have dreamed and aspired, quite often sacrificing what is most precious – their lives.

So, deep in their hearts, millions of Europeans understand and support the Catalan aspiration for their own independent state. To them, Catalonians are not some sort of separatists. They are heroic people ceaselessly striving to fulfil their fathers’ and grandfathers’ dream – an independent state.

When Pope John Paul II returned to Poland in 1979, he was surely advocating freedom for his native homeland. For centuries countless emperors and dictators had tried to destroy and divide Poland. But the Polish people stubbornly and faithfully followed their dream of an independent state.

Finland, for centuries saddled by various empires, achieved independence in 1917, as did a year later also the three Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Later the Baltic states remained true to their dream in spite of long years of occupation, repression and mass deportation to Siberia.

The closest parallels to the situation between Catalonia and Spain might be the Nordic states – Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Sweden and Finland. This was not always so. Only comparatively recently – early in the 20th century – they were relatively impoverished nations. For several centuries Denmark and Sweden ruled over the peoples of Iceland and Norway. From time to time the Danes and Swedes would wrangle over Norway, trading and redividing it, until, in 1814, the Norwegians declared independence. Naturally their Swedish masters found this unacceptable at first, and dispatched an army to reestablish “order”. Fortunately, common sense prevailed and a truce was declared, in which Norway entered into a union with Sweden, while retaining its previously adopted constitution. This union held until 1905, when Norway became a fully independent state. Another northern European state, Iceland, small but proud, declared its independence in 1944.

The example of the Nordic states shows us that even in the recent past, powerful European kingdoms were able to recognize the independence of subject neighboring peoples, enabling them to become pround and wealthy states today. They are all now universally respected in international society. One of the reasons for their success is that their relations are no longer dominated by resentment, but rather by cooperation and friendly competition. They all learn and compete among themselves for better ideas, for better solutions to their problems. In difficult, trying times, they unite in mutual cooperation and assistence. Their example could be a wonderful road map for the future of Catalonia and Spain, profoundly understood not just by northern Europeans, but by all European nations and states. That is why the peoples of the Baltic states sympathetically support Catalonia’s dream of independence.

Some time ago, one of Europe’s most brilliant thinkers and most outstanding diplomats, Estonia’s president Lennart Meri wrote: “The diversity of Europe’s large and small cultures is the key to understanding Europe’s creativity. Europe’s mineral wealth is relatively insignificant, Europe has never been a garden in paradise. Europe is the creation of its people, and, one could add poetically, that Europe in gratitude has created the European people. The idea of Liberty, Fraternity and Equality could have been born in many places, but it could only have taken root first here, in Europe.”

Lennart Meri is no longer living, but his deeply held conviction stays true, that the freedom of nations, including the freedom of self-determination is at the foundation of the European ideal. Bureaucracy, laws complicated by design, fear of change must not be allowed to deny any nation its right to determine its own future. Catalonia must be allowed to decide its own future. Those nations of Europe that have achieved their dream of independence must not betray the ideals of their fathers and grandfathers today, when their brother Europeans – the Catalonians – are striving to realize the same ideals.

Therefore, as a Latvian I say that I will be a Catalonian until Catalonia is free and independent. I believe and I hope that millions of Irish, Poles, Finns, Lithuanians, Estonians and many others will be Catalonians likewise.

Dual citizenship – the search for an unknown number of potential Latvian citizens

Uldis Ozoliņš | 

On Oct. 1, the recently adopted law on dual citizenship came into effect in Latvia.This law has the potential to affect thousands of people, including many readers of Latvians Online.

Practically, the law affects two categories of people:

  • For exiles from Latvia or their successors, it means they can have dual citizenship of both Latvia and their host county; this replaces the earlier arrangement where Latvia in general did not recognize dual citizenship and one had to renounce one’s other citizenship in order to take up Latvian citizenship.
  • For those who already have Latvian citizenship, it makes it legal to obtain dual citizenship with a wide range of countries, without giving up Latvian citizenship.

Some history is in order, to understand why this has come about.

Traditionally Latvia, like many other countries still around the world, did not recognize dual citizenship. Its basic citizenship law dates from that adopted in 1919, when dual citizenship was prohibited.

This policy line was followed when Latvian citizenship became an issue again after regaining independence in 1991, when dual citizenship continued to not be allowed, with one major exception.

The exception was for those who had gone into exile in the West during World War II, and were outside Latvia during the long years of Soviet occupation. The basis of Latvian citizenship law post-USSR was that Latvia, like Estonia, counted as citizens all those who had been citizens in 1940, at the time of Soviet takeover, plus their descendants. Exiles thus were theoretically Latvian citizens, but many had taken up citizenship in other countries. Thus, to make this a limited and controllable exception, the 1994 adopted Citizenship Law allowed exiles to renew Latvian citizenship provided they registered by July 1995, thus making them the only ones with dual citizenship. After this time, to gain Latvian citizenship they had to give up any other citizenship they had obtained.

For many reasons – lack of knowledge, lack of information and publicity, lack of administrative arrangements – many exiles however did not take up the opportunity to renew their citizenship, and the closing of this opportunity in July 1995 was widely criticised. Moreover, it led to significant contradiction in the way Latvian citizenship was granted. When the Soviets took over the Baltic States in 1940 through a process of threats and blackmail, many Western countries including the US, Britain and most Western European countries did not recognize their incorporation into the Soviet Union. And Latvian embassies and consulates, albeit with vastly reduced capacity, continued to operate and issue Latvian passports in many countries, so that we had a paradoxical situation where some held these ‘old’ Latvian passports but if for whatever reason they had not applied for renewed citizenship in 1995, they were not now recognised as Latvian citizens.

The reason for restricting citizenship to those who had been citizens in 1940 was that during the Soviet period, vast numbers of settlers came to the Baltic States; many never learnt the local languages nor in many cases did they know anything about the history, culture or background of these countries, as the Soviet Union repressed any expression of national history. On regaining independence, Latvia did not recognise these settlers as citizens, though it did provide a means of naturalisation, dependent on passing a language and history test. This has been a controversial policy, and even today is particularly criticised by Russia and by some elements within Latvia, but it shows how sensitive the issue of citizenship can be.

However, it was perhaps not the pressure from former exiles that led to the eventual change, but to another striking circumstance affecting Latvia: the now hundreds of thousands of Latvians who have left Latvia in the last 20 years or so to work elsewhere, many of whom have taken up citizenship in countries where they settled. As Latvia’s population had fallen from 2.5 to 2 million in this time, Latvia was faced with a huge brain drain and flight of the economically able. And, precisely a flight of citizens: if Latvia had stuck to its policy of not allowing dual citizenship, many would have given up their Latvian citizenship to take up that of their host country, and their children – in many cases granted citizenship of their host country at birth – would never have been able to become Latvian citizens.

But there was one more complication. Not all countries in which Latvians live and work are necessarily, let us say, friendly towards Latvia. So, for those already with Latvian citizenship, Latvia limited the range of countries where dual citizenship is allowed, limiting it to the European Union, NATO and European Free Trade Association countries, as well as countries where many Latvians had settled – Australia, New Zealand and Brazil.

For those without Latvian citizenship however, but who do have Latvian exile roots, they can apply for Latvian dual citizenship regardless of which other country has given them existing citizenship, provided that other country does allow dual citizenship.

So, the pressure to change the citizenship law grew from two directions – exiles and the more recent largely economic emigrants.

For those who are former Latvian citizens or their descendants, you can apply for Latvian citizenship now at any embassy or consulate (see the list of diplomatic and consular representations on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website) presenting relevant documentation as prescribed by the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (Pilsonības un migrācijas lietu pārvalde – PMLP), which details how you can apply (Admissibility of Dual Citizenship). There is no language or history test for such applicants. 

The extraordinary thing is that no-one knows how many potential Latvian citizens there could be to take advantage of these changes in the law. Thousands certainly. Hundreds of thousands? Maybe. For some, Latvian citizenship may mean no more than an ability to have a passport that allows one to travel and stay (not necessarily work) in any EU country and perhaps easier access to other countries. For others who simply missed out in 1995, it brings them back to a citizenship that they deserve. And for children of Latvians born outside Latvia, it means that Latvian citizenship is guaranteed and many will make use of this to deepen their connection to Latvia.

PBLA publikācijas nedēļas nogales latviešu skolām

Daina Grosa | 

Lielā latviešu emigrācijas viļņa rezultātā latviešu nedēļas nogales skolas, kas atrodas ārpus Latvijas turpina pieaugt skaitā. Ja pirms pieciem gadiem Eiropā bija saujiņa latviešu skolu, tad 2013./2014. mācību gadu iesākot tādu jau ir apaļš 50.

Prieks dzirdēt, ka latvieši paši, dzīvojot katrs savā pasaules pusē, gatavi sarosīties un paši piestrādāt pie tā, lai viņu bērni un mazbērni regulāri satiekās ar saviem latviešu vienaudžiem un arī piestrādā pie savas latviešu valodas, lai tā neaizmirstas, ikdienu dzīvojot citas valodas vidē.

Lai mūsu bērniem, kas atrodas ārpus Latvijas – vai tas būtu nesenajā emigrācijā vai trešajai paaudzei trimdinieku, kas vēl arvien sīksti turās un cenšās savu valodu uzturēt – būtu daudzveidīga mācību viela, pēdējos pāris gados Pasaules brīvo latviešu apvienības (PBLA) Izglītības padome ir izdevusi vairākas darba burtnīcas un lasāmgrāmatiņas, ko bērni var izmantot nedēļas nogales skolu mācību stundās. Tikpat labi darba burtnīcas var arī izmantot mājās, vecākiem pašiem palīdzot saviem bērniem vingrināties valodu.

Mācību grāmatas “Roku rokā Latvijā”, “Vieglā un saprotamā latviešu valodas gramatika” un “Latviešu valoda 2” ir Rīgas starptautiskās skolas (International School of Riga) latviešu valodas skolotājas, Unas Auziņas, gara darbs. Auziņa, strādājot ikdienā ar bērniem, kuriem latviešu valoda nav dzimtā valoda, ir sapratusi, kā vislabāk viņiem “piekļūt” un ieinteresēt spert pirmos soļus latviešu valodas apgūšanā. Darba burtnīcas domātas bērniem no pirmsskolas vecuma līdz apmēram 5. klasei, jo “Latviešu valoda 2” jau ir domāta bērniem vecākās pamatskolas klasītēs.

Noderīgas mācību procesā ir mazās lasāmgrāmatas, kur bērni var lasīt vieglā valodā rakstītus tekstus – vienkāršus, bet saistošus stāstiņus par bērna ikdienu. Katru stāstiņu bērns varētu attiecināt uz sevi, jo lasāmgrāmatu tēmas ir universālas. “Mani sauc”, “Man patīk”, “Mana ģimene”, “Kur es dzīvoju”, “Mūsu māja”, “Laukos pie vecmāmiņas” – visas ir tēmas, ar kurām jebkurš bērns var identificēties. Līdz šim sērijā publicētas 16 lasāmgrāmatas, kopumā paredzēts izdot 32 grāmatas. Šogad tika izdotas 8 grāmatas un 2014. gadā PBLA paredz izdot nākamās 8 grāmatiņas šinī sērijā.

Visas mācību burtnīcas var Rīgā nopirkt PBLA pārstāvniecībā, Lāčplēša ielā 29/5, vispirms piezvanot Leldei uz 67282980 vai rakstot uz lelde@pbla.lv

Cenas darba burtnīcām ir 3 LVL par katru “Roku rokā Latvijā”, “Vieglā un saprotamā latviešu valodas gramatika” un “Latviešu valoda 2” darba burtnīcu bet tikai 1LVL par katru lasāmo grāmatiņu.

Ziemeļamerikā šos mācību materiālus var iegādāties ALA Apgādā, rakstot Dacei Copeland: dace.copeland@wmich.edu un Austrālijā no Dainas Grosas: epasts daina.gross@pbla.lv

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Divas no 2013. gadā izdotajām PBLA lasāmgrāmatām.

Daina Gross is editor of Latvians Online. An Australian-Latvian she is also a migration researcher at the University of Latvia, PhD from the University of Sussex, formerly a member of the board of the World Federation of Free Latvians, author and translator/ editor/ proofreader from Latvian into English of an eclectic mix of publications of different genres.