Politicians Versus Intellectuals in the Lustration Debates in Transitional Latvia

Abstract

The process of transitional justice in Latvia after 1991 and the public debates that surrounded it created a number of controversies. One such notable conflict dealt with lustration, and it involved Latvia's political establishment and intelligentsia. While the politicians supported the public's right to have full access to the secret KGB files, the intellectuals demanded that Latvia's society should be protected from making mistakes in its judgments and therefore the available documentation should be studied first by state-appointed experts. Each position addressed the issue of lustration from a distinctive perspective, and these reflected not merely political disagreements. Instead, they reflected conflicts of vision that had deep historical roots.