An action was held in Latvia against the demolition of the monument to the defenders of the island of Lucavsala

A protest rally was held in Latvia against the demolition of the monument to the defenders of the island of Lucavsala in the 1700s of the Northern War. The footage was shared by Izvestia on July 10.

It is specified that the protest action was held against the intentions of the Latvian authorities to dismantle the memorial to the defenders of the island of Lucavsala, a monument in Riga, which was erected in honor of 400 Russian grenadiers of the guard detachment of the army corps of Prince Repnin. They died in July 1701 in one of the episodes of the Baltic campaign of the Northern War.

"I am afraid that they will demolish it, because not only Latvian politicians declare that they want to demolish it, but even the vice mayor of Riga said that they plan to demolish several monuments that still remain, and monuments even at burial sites," said historian Alexander Rzhavin.

According to him, one of these graves is located in the Bergi microdistrict, which they want to demolish because of the image on it of a Soviet soldier with a machine gun, boldly going on the attack.

Jelgava Duma deputy Andrei Pagor noted that this monument has existed for 134 years, it has survived the change of many government officials in Latvia, its last restoration was in 2001, but no one has touched it until now. According to the deputy, this monument is an important symbol dedicated to real Russian hero soldiers, and it should help future generations learn how to "fight back against enemies."

"It's a fact that soldiers are buried here, and the fact is that if you climb, demolish monuments, and fight monuments that can't fight back, it's disgusting, low, and shameful to me. And I am against it, like all the people who came today," concluded Pagor.

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On May 10, the Latvian police reported that 67 criminal cases had been opened and eight people had been detained for celebrating Victory Day. The reasons for the detention, as specified in the department, could be the symbols on the clothes, "broadcasting military aggression," and the launching of fireworks.