Gunārs Astra- The Latvian Anti-

Soviet Dissident

What was Gunārs Astra?

Gunārs Astra was Latvian

freedom fighter and a

considerable dissident Soviet

occupation.

Gunārs Astra from the very childhood was a

philosophically minded person. He practiced in

dialogue skills , challenged people to express

their opinion and then openly pointed their

mistakes. He was directly critical of loudmouths

and gossipers and therefore gained many

enemies.

Life

story...

Gunārs Astra was born on October 23, 1931. He

lived in Riga and he was only 9 years old when

Latvia was occupied by the Soviets. From 1940 to

1947 he attended the Riga City 48th Elementary

school. After graduating he joined the Riga

Electromechanic School. In 1952 he graduated and

became the VEF engineer technologian.

On 1954 he was conscripted into Soviet Army. After

the end of service in 1956 he went back to VEF and

became the Radio Workshop master. In 1957 he

became the chief of this workshop. He meant that

every leading official in every state enterprise had to

submit to soviet ideological brainwashing and obey

every order from above. In 1958 he left the VEF and

joined the Riga Pedagogical Institute to learn foreign

languages because he wanted to get more wider

view on things.

In 1961, Gunārs Astra was arrested. Initially,

he was accused of anti-Soviet agitation and

propaganda, but then also the homeland of

treason and espionage. In 1958, G. Astra had

met with US Embassy staff as well as

correspondence with the latvian Gaida

Priedīte, who lived in the United States.

The court sentenced him for 15 years in prison

and confiscation of property. Gunārs Astra

punishment endured Mordovia ASSR and the

Perm region "corrective labor camps". Trapped in

time, Astra was engaged in self-education, met

other Latvians and other nationalities prisoners.

corrective

labor camps

After prison Gunārs Astra returned to

Latvia and began working at the factory

"Straume" as installer. In the same year he

married Herta Līvija Vagale.

In 1983 he was arrested and convicted

of anti-Soviet literature storage,

reproduction and distribution. Court

sentenced 7 years in prison, five years

of exile in a special mode, and court

found out that he was a dangerous

recidivist.

In January 1988 he was released from

custody. Since the beginning of March of

the same year, on the way to Russia, G.

Astra suddenly fell ill. At first, the doctors

said that he had the flu and G. Astra was

placed in Leningrad infections hospital.

9 March, the doctors said that he has begun

sepsis - the body's overall hard poisoning, but on

19 March G. Astra moved to Leningrad military

hospital. March 23, doctors said G. Astra has

inflammation of the heart and it is necessary to

carry out the operation. The operation took place

on 25 March, but his health did not improve and

he died on 6 April in the military hospital in

Leningrad.

After the death his internal organs were removed,

there was no expertise, so people suspected that

G.Astra was killed by the poison of the National

Security Committee staff.

In 1993, at the Riga

Regional Court House

was installed a

memorial plaque in

honor of G.Astra.

On this board are

written his last words - I

believe that this time

will vanish like a bad

dream. It gives me

strength to stand here

and breathe.

Thank You!