STEREOTYPES, THE WAY WE SEE THEM

It's been scientifically proven that the human mind has some weaknesses. People think in comic strip-like pictures. Perhaps that's why illustrated magazines are so popular. When a new notion is heard, a picture called a stereotype immediately appears in one's head.

Let's take the classic example of an island. What do you see? Perhaps a small lonely island in the ocean with a little palm-tree on it.

Let's take another example: Latvia. What do you see? Take a few seconds pause!

Perhaps the answer would be: "a Nazi officer with a gun aiming at a shivering Russian with a slogan in his hand: We are oppressed!"

One can at least get this impression from reading Western press reports on Latvia, or by looking at the topics most frequently covered by Western reporters accredited here. The recent BBC World Hardtalk interview with the country's president was a vivid example. It focused mainly on Russia and its complaints against Latvia, as well as those accused of war crimes who have not been tried as fast as the country's critics would like. There is no single and immediate answer to these and other controversies. But people can gain politically from standing on one or the other side. That may even result in some opposition politicians in Latvia talking about "hate speech" on the basis of often distorted press reports, without even stepping outside their fancy offices to observe the "hostile" event in person.

The worst thing is another. The real problems faced by this country are not unique and maybe that's why they haven't received sufficient public attention. Corruption, pedophilia, rural poverty - these are the problems Latvia shares with other countries and they may hamper the country's development for many years to come. These are the reasons why people abandon the vision of a free country cherished for ten years, become helpless and want to leave. Fortunately and hopefully, they are not part of the stereotype of Latvia now. So, there is a chance to solve them in a constructive and consequent work, without noisy political battles being staged around them.