Review
[1] Ten years is a very short period of the development of the new political system in the post communist Latvia. However this period was the most dramatic in the modern Latvian history - political culture had to be restored, renewed and developed, many aspects of the Western European political culture of the post war period had to be integrated in the everyday existence of the people and the state.
[2] Latvian political culture in the early 90s was affected by the attempt to restore the Latvian political system that existed before Latvia was occupied by the Soviet army and later, 1940, integrated in the Soviet Union. The 50 years long pause of the independent national state demonstrated itself in the restored constitution of the 1st Republic as well as army uniforms, festivals and other places of collective political memory. To return to the culture of the 30s, also in the discourse about the nation, state politics towards the ethnic minorities - these aspects were and are still important for understanding of the political culture, of the dominance of the ethnic nation and problematic discourse of the political nation.
[3] After the so called singing revolution in the late 80s and the collapse of the USSR almost all spheres of the society had to be changed, the process of the de-sovietization was painful and slow, mainly because of the lack of knowledge about the social and political order that became an aim of the new Latvian politics. The lack of the human resources, highly educated professionals who could set up bridges between former Soviet Republic and the rest of the changing world, was additional negative heritage of the Soviet period.
[4] On the other hand, all the aspects of the transformation of the society which were mentioned above gave the possibility to the local representatives of the elite to undergo rapid changes and to accept Western theoretical and practical experience in the building up a democratic society.
[5] No doubt these changes could not have been successful and efficient had the Western colleagues not offered their assistance, Western countries, especially Scandinavian countries and Germany, as well as the USA their foundations and financial support.
[6] Education, schools and high schools, were not an exception, on the contrary to change the culture of educating young generation, the culture of transmitting and interpreting theoretical knowledge of the past, was of the great importance for the new Latvia.
[7] Faculty of the political science of the Latvian university was one of the most important examples of the deconstruction of the Soviet educational tradition. Politics, as the theory and practice of the state and society affairs was offered as a scholar discipline, it could be studied, discussed, criticized. Students were allowed to create their own view and analysis of the political culture independent of their family background, ethnicity etc.
[8] The university made the faculty a forum for young intellectuals, professors who could approbate their interpretation of the European political tradition. Such representatives of the faculty as Andris Runcis, Juris Rozenvalds etc. could use their experience of studying and practicing in the United Kingdom and Germany to create new courses, to offer new seminars, to set up new libraries. The result of the close cooperation with the western colleagues was for example the German-Latvian Social Science Center in Riga with a library and information center for students and scholars. Supported by Volkswagen Foundation , the Centre existed for almost five years and during this period 8 students and young scientists studied in Berlin and Riga, offered their courses, wrote essays and, what is even more important created a network, that united colleagues from Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Germany, Finland etc. Professors and students during the period tried to solve, and the result is no doubt a success, two main problems of the developing political science in Latvia - to set up intellectual basis in form of libraries and a human basis, in form of doctoral and MA projects form Latvia and about Latvia. Some of the examples of the activities of the Centre can demonstrate the successful cooperation - the publication of the MA about the Latvian SS Legion in Berlin „Baltic countries Workshop“, published by Manfred Kerner and Sigmar Stopinski, was one of the first attempts to discuss this complicated and emotionally very painful page of the Latvian history.
[9] At the same time during the existence of the center, German colleagues could scrutinize the creation of the new academic disciplines, such as comparative politics, could watch the development of the MA studies in the faculty of politics.
[10] What aspects of the political science in the modern Latvia should be stressed, when talking about the quality aspects of the political education?
[11] First of all quality aspects are easily influenced by the development of the general economic situation in the country - low salaries of the academic staff and general negative attitude towards the prestige of the academic carrier, as well as low political culture of the new democratic society, corruption in different spheres, including the academic, as latest scandals with the economy and low faculty of the university show, create negative atmosphere in which students and teachers have both to develop and to improve their knowledge. The policy of the Latvian state towards the development of the education does not support close international cooperation in research and teaching - Latvian colleagues still wait for the development of the system of Latvian political foundations, which would support, like Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Konrad Adenauer Foundation etc. talented students and young generation of the academic staff in their research. As the result, and this concerns not only political science, but history, sociology, theory of culture and other disciplines, local aspects and regional problems dominate in the research, there is still lack of real academic contacts with the rest of Europe and world. Unfortunately, and Andris Runcis stressed it in his analysis very well, political science is still looking for its identity, quality standards and also ethical principles. Teachers and students, despite material problems, bad libraries with old literature and extremely expensive annual journals for political theories and modern development try to come and stay in Europe, also in renewed Eastern and Central Europe, developing contacts with other post communist countries. As an example of the successful cooperation different projects with Russia, Poland and among the Baltic States can be mentioned.
[12] Examining the state of libraries, computer rooms and the access of students to the newest editions of the political science, it is necessary to admit, that the lack of financial support makes it for the students of University of Latvia, as well as other high schools where different aspects of the political science are educated (Stradins University, Latvian academy of culture with International cultural replationship as one of the main disciplines in the curriculum of the school) impossible to catch up with the latest ideas and development of the political culture of Europe. Also the concentration on political theories, history of the politics in Europe and Latvia, as well as many other mainly empiric subjects does not create universal person, who is not only professionally highly educated specialist, but also an expert in other fields which are elements of the interdisciplinary concept of the political science as a part of human culture. That is why it is necessary to think and to develop not only a craftsman, a specialist, who goes deep into aspects of the state structure and political development of democratic society or regional aspects, but an intellectual, who is aware of the historic and cultural background of the region, country or continent. To stress and to develop cultural and anthropological aspects of the curriculum for the students of the political science, these are in my opinion the aims for the future development and competitiveness of the Latvian university in Latvia and in Europe. To sum up the above mentioned aspects of the development of the political science in the last ten years in Latvia, it is necessary to say that Latvia is still on its way into European Community of academic culture. Education in Latvia is a mirror of the political transformation, of a dialogue with the modernity and the Soviet as well as past of the 1st Republic. To reorganize the social science and to develop modern educational concept for the new market of labor in Latvia it is necessary to create interdisciplinary vision of the political science, to intensify cultural accent in the curriculum. This is necessary not only for new high standards of political education, but, as education is an integral part of the political culture of the state, also for the improvement of political culture of the Latvian society, for better political awareness of an individual as a person who is a citizen and who, according to Clifford Geertz, creates his culture as a self made network of symbols, ideas and views, is an independent and self confident subject of a state and not object.
Riga, 2002
