1991 barricades remind that state is not just border posts, buildings and slogans - Rinkevics

RIGA - The barricades of 1991 in Riga remind us that the state is not just border posts, buildings and slogans, but people, President Edgars Rinkevics wrote on Facebook on Tuesday, the day for the commemoration of the 1991 barricade defenders.

The president notes that 35 years have passed since the 1991 barricades, but people still remember the bonfires, the noise of gunshots at Bastejkalns and the excitement. "In those days, Latvian patriots traded their personal safety and comfort for Latvia's security and future," Rinkevics said.

The president underlines that the country is made up of people who understand in a crisis, "together" is not a nice word, but a practical choice. In 1991, he points out, it meant standing shoulder to shoulder in the cold and supporting each other. "So much has changed in these 35 years, but this has remained the same. Even today, it seems that nothing is more important than supporting each other and caring for our fellow human beings," Rinkevics said.

The president says that people defended Latvia not because they were born with a special hero gene. Rinkevics believes that people took part in building and guarding the barricades because it was the logical thing to do. "If we do not take part, others will. Others, whose values do not coincide with ours," Rinkevics said.

The president adds that the participants of the 1991 barricades were a great force in the right place at the right time, and that Latvian society is still a great force today. "At this exact time and in Latvia," Rinkevics said.

Construction of the barricades in Riga began in the evening of January 13, 1991. The objective was to defend the building of the Supreme Council, the Television Tower, bridges over the Daugava River, and other objects of strategic importance. The Soviet special forces unit OMON took action on January 16. Roberts Murnieks, a driver working at the Ministry of Transport, was shot dead as OMON attacked the Vecmilgravis Bridge.

The bloodiest events were on January 20, when OMON attempted to assault the Interior Ministry building. Five people were killed: schoolboy Edijs Riekstins, two police officers - Vladimirs Gomonovics and Sergejs Kononenko, and Riga Film Studio cameramen Andris Slapins and Gvido Zvaigzne.