Every year, the “Children of Siberia” Foundation organizes both March 25 and June 14 memorial concerts, as well as other events. This year, a conference-meeting “For the Deported” was held at the Riga Latvian Society on June 13, and on the evening of June 13, a concert was held at Riga St. John’s Church in memory of the deportation of June 14, 1941.
Conference-meeting “For the Deported” on June 13
On June 13, 2026, a conference-meeting “For the Deported” was held in the Golden Hall of the Riga Latvian Society, which brought together children deported to Siberia in the 1941 and 1949 deportations, those born in Siberia, their relatives, participants of children’s competitions, educators, and other interested parties. The event was organized by the Children of Siberia Foundation, which has been preserving and preserving the history and personal testimonies of Latvian deportations for 25 years.
The conference took place at a time when 85 years have passed since the deportation of June 14, 1941 – one of the most tragic pages in Latvian history, when the Soviet occupation authorities deported more than 15,000 people from Latvia in one night.
The conference was opened by Dzintra Geka, head of the Children of Siberia Foundation, and a prayer was delivered by Rev. Emeritus Guntis Kalme. The conference was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Baiba Braže, the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Latvia Edvards Smiltēns, and the former President of Latvia Valdis Zatlers. On behalf of the Latvian Association of the Politically Repressed, the guests were addressed by LPRA Chairman Tālis Veismanis. Continue reading “A look back at the events of June 13th”
