Gunārs Astra spent nearly 20 years in prison for a free Latvia

Latvian dissident Gunārs Astra would have turned 95 on Thursday. He spent 19 years, four months and 16 days imprisoned for his belief in a free Latvia, LSM reports.

Astra’s younger brother Leons said their father passed on a rebellious, free-thinking spirit. The three brothers lived in Lucavsala, and Gunārs was the most outspoken, Leons recalled.

Leons travelled 5,000 kilometres by Java motorcycle to visit his brother, wearing a helmet in the colours of the Latvian flag. They could communicate only across the roofs of the barracks because visits were not allowed.

Gunārs’s dissident activities affected the whole family, Leons said, and ended his scientific career. “Doors were closed to me everywhere,” he said. He returned to his grandfather’s house in Lucavsala, which was close to collapse, and took a job as a driver. “My life was ruined,” he said.

On Thursday, Leons met staff from the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia at a court, a symbolic location where Gunārs had spoken openly about Latvia’s occupation and Russification.

Museum director Solvita Vība said Astra’s example remained an inspiration. “We often hear now that life during the Soviet occupation was very difficult. It wasn’t black and white; people had to try to collaborate, coexist and adapt. I can’t listen to that,” she said. “We had people who were different, and now we say they were heroes. But what I want to say is that anyone can be someone who does not betray.”