Declaration
Restoration of Latvian Independence, 1991
The Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia adopted the Constitutional Law on the Statehood of the Republic of Latvia on 21 August 1991, restoring the 1922 Constitution and Latvia's independence de facto during the attempted Soviet coup.
What happened
On 21 August 1991, amid the attempted Soviet coup against Mikhail Gorbachev, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia adopted the Constitutional Law on the Statehood of the Republic of Latvia, "thus restoring the independence of Latvia de facto," according to the Latvian Parliament (Saeima).[1] The law reinstated the 1922 Constitution of Latvia (Satversme), and, in the Saeima's words, "the laws of the USSR became null and void in Latvia."[1] This completed the transitional period established by the Supreme Council's 4 May 1990 declaration, and the 21 August 1991 law provided the legal foundation on which other countries recognised the restoration.[1][2]
Sources for this page
Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.
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1.
Claim: On 21 August 1991, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia adopted the Constitutional Law on the Statehood of the Republic of Latvia, "thus restoring the independence of Latvia de facto," reinstating the 1922 Constitution (Satversme); "the laws of the USSR became null and void in Latvia." An earlier declaration had been adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian SSR on 4 May 1990, but the 1991 law provided the legal foundation for international recognition.
- Saeima (Parliament of Latvia), De facto restoration of independence of Latvia will be celebrated on 21 August (Saeima) link, article text. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
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2.
Claim: On 4 May 1990 the Latvian SSR Supreme Council adopted the Declaration on the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia, with 138 votes in favour out of 198 members. The declaration asserted that Latvia remained de jure a sovereign state under its 1922 constitution and established a transitional period for the de facto restoration of state power, to end with the convocation of the Saeima.
- On the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia (Wikipedia) link, Content and Transitional period sections. Source record