Controversy in Latvia over annual SS parade

Waffen SS Veterans March Through Riga

Latvian veterans of Hitler's Waffen SS marched through Riga on Monday, defying a ban by officials. The annual march divides the country. Latvians of Russian descent regard it as an insult, but many others honor the fighters for resisting Soviet occupation.


More here

 

This has been a recurring event every year I believe also in Estonia and it is usually the Russians who are offended.

 

with visitations to the local cemetery's to honor the fallen from what I understand some 25 plus years ago, as you said Pzjgr it has been a tradition for so long, and also Lithuania could be included in this

 

I suppose the Latvian government has a great ally called "time". As the song Waltzing Mathilda says: "year after year their numbers grow fewer, some day no one will march there at all".

 

Tension in Latvia over WWII SS vets parade



Published: March 17, 2009 at 12:55 PM


RIGA, Latvia, March 17 (UPI) -- Counter-demonstrators shouted "Hitler, Kaput" Tuesday during a commemorative march for veterans of two World War II Latvian SS units in Riga.
The annual Legion Day march to commemorate the veterans who fought alongside the German army during the war took place despite being prohibited by the government.
RT reported Tuesday that about 300 people took part in the march while another 100 were on hand to taunt the marchers, who included some Waffen SS veterans, which fought against the advancing Russian army late in the war.
Police stayed between the two sides and reportedly made three arrests.
Russia's Novosti news agency noted that the current turmoil over the SS comes amid concern in Moscow about the treatment of ethnic Russians in Latvia and an alleged resurgence of fascism in the Baltic state.

Tension in Latvia over WWII SS vets parade - UPI.com

 

Just saw a program of the Russian neo-nazis....seems like the problem will never solve...?? And they used nazi flags and nazi salutes....

 

Demonstrators, dressed as a Nazi concentration camps prisoners, stand near police officer, left, keeping them away from a annual march of elderly veterans of the Latvian Waffen SS who fought against the Red Army on the side of Nazi Germany during World War II, in Riga, Latvia, Monday, March 16, 2009. About 300 Latvians have honored the memory of countrymen who fought in a Waffen SS unit during World War II, in defiance of a ban on demonstrations. The poster depicts a photo of Adolf Hitler laid over a WWII-era sleeve shield for Latvian Waffen SS soldiers.(AP Photo/Roman Koksarov)

 

Im sure Germany and Austria have far more veterans and they do not parade themselves in Nazi uniforms throughout their main streets honoring the Waffen SS.

It is unfortunate to see such things, especially of EU members.

 

The Baltic nations do not see the Russians or communism as any kind of liberator, so their fight against the Russians resulted in Balts joining the Waffen-SS. If theyre were no atrocities commited by the Balts, no camps, no slave labour no Lebenstraum policy then is it really "that" huge of an issue.

 

Well, I think that is exactly the problem.

EDIT:
Interesting website in defense of the Latvian Legion.

http://www.lettia.lv/en_a_legionari-nirnberga.html

 

First 100 years under imperial russia and over 50 years under soviet ocupation. I don think that germany or austria is in the same place as Baltic states.
btw germany was the aggressor and austria in that time was germany, i dont know about the latvian ss divisions but in Lithuania there was only self-defence divisions which didnt had to move from Lithuania but the germans tricked Lithuanians and sent them to the front. So as u can see the situation is totally diferent. The balts joined these divisions in order to protect their country and they had to choose - the soviets or the nazis.

 

I don't know nearly enough about Latvia's SS divisions to comment on if they had committed war crimes as a unit as opposed to the troops as individuals, but it is not as if Latvia did not have skeletons in its closet during WWII.

Jews were reportedly massacred in Riga immediately after the German occupation and a lot of the race killings in the Baltic states were done by the Balts themselves. Could the parade become a means for antisemites to publicly propagate their politics and display their symbols?

That isn't a rhetorical question by the way, I would be interested to see what people more knowledgeable than I have to say on this issue.

 

Arajs Kommando - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

To honor veterans fighting for "independence" is one thing but to do so wearing the same uniforms and insignia which personifies evil is another. This is more of a slap in the face primarily to Russia which suffered the most fighting the very same men which bore these uniforms and massacred so many.

Surely there must be other ways for the Baltic States to honor their so called "heroes" with out wearing these shameful outfits? A Swastika, after all, is not a symbol of independence.

 

I have to agree with Sloniksp. Couldn't they do so or with De-Nazified uniforms?

 

The SS was classified as a criminal organization and I wish these people would not hold parades, just meet up in a beer hall they rented out. I except not all of them carried out criminal actions but they were part of a criminal organization. By all means let them meet up with each other but please no Nazi symbols of the past.

 

12 months ago: People carrying Latvian flags march to the Freedom Monument to honor soldiers of Waffen SS unit known as the Latvian Legion, which fought on the side of Nazi Germany during World War II, in downtown Riga, Latvia, Sunday, March 16, 2008. Some 3,000 people including a few surviving members of the Latvian Legion marched through the capital Sunday under heavy police protection to honor countrymen from the Waffen SS unit.





These are some shots from 2008. I don't see any Nazi symbology or anything immflamatory.

 

Never mind the Russians...I'm offended.

 

The ss man must be hard, unemotional, fiercely loyal. The ss mans attitude must be that of a fighter for fightings sake. He must be uneqestionalbly obediant, and become emotionally hard. He must have contempt for all RACIAL INFERIORS and for those who do not belong to the order Yader yader yader....That and the tatoo that is not on show maybe but is none the less there together with the above ideology offends me.
Nuremburg may have been incorrect in its throwing of all the guilt on to this body, but the SS was not the normal army no matter how many would wish to defend it. Anyone joining would know that as much as I know joining the boy scouts is a lot different from joining the Foreign Legion.

 

Erich, The Orange Lodge Order have a tradition of marching in Northern Ireland through catholic areas and many have been killed and maimed because of this tradition.
Tradition does not make it right or keep the peace. Sometimes traditions have to be acknowledged for the fact that they are wrong. Its wrong to insult and goad others and have boys in blue and green killed and maimed too to protect your tradition. Its about time that both organisations died out. And let us remember those that died for freedom not facism. Or we could invite them to march in London too and wave flags on their behalf. I doubt if we would and I doubt if they could march in Washington without an outcry.
SS marching anywhere will attract the same attention.