International Conference in Riga (Latvia)

(May 10-11, 2013) and Round trip through Baltic countries (May 14-20, 2013) including a Conference in Kaunas (Lithuania) (May 17, 2013)

The international conference in Riga is organized by the University of Latvia, The Goethe Institute of Latvia, the International Erich Fromm Society, and patronized by the former president of Latvia: Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga. The conference languages in Riga will be Latvian and German.

It is only since 20 years that Latvians are not under foreign domination. They had to submit and to hide their own identity for more than 800 years – first under the rule of the Teutonic Knights and in the most recent past under the rule of Nazi Germany and the Russians. Now the Latvians are confronted with the totally different neoliberal understanding of freedom where limitlessness and unboundedness are practiced. Due to this background the topic of the conference will be:

Freedom and Liberties – Possibilities and Dangers

The conference will begin in the Great Aula of the University of Latvia on Friday, May 10, 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. with lectures on the topic of freedom and liberties in the context of authoritarianism and neoliberal unboundedness.
The second and third part of the Riga conference will take place in the Goethe Institute of Riga on Friday afternoon from 3:30 to 7:00 p.m. and on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The lectures will discuss problems of subordination and the need for a sense of identity and speak about the psychic situation of the population and the situation of psychotherapeutic care. Last but not least function Latvian cultural tradition and of Hasidic Judaism will be discussed.

Friday, May 10, 2013, 09:30 a.m. – 01:00 p.m. (Great Aula of the University of Latvia)

09:30 a.m. Opening of the Conference (Prof. Dr. phil. Igors Šuvajevs)
09:35 a.m. Welcome Speech of the former president of Latvia (Professor Dr. Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga)
09:50 a.m. Welcome of the University (Prof. Dr. phil. Maija Kūle)
10:00 a.m. Welcom of the Fromm Society (Günther Mehren)
10:10 a.m. Latvija un bēgšana no brīvības / Lettland und die Flucht vor der Freiheit (Prof. Dr. phil. Igors Šuvajevs)
10:40 a.m. Die Freiheitsfrage 70 Jahre nach Erich Fromms "Escape from Freedom" / Jautājums par brīvību 70 gadus pēc Ēriha Fromma darba "Bēgšana no brīvības" (Dr. Rainer Funk)
11:30 a.m. Izdzīvošanas stratēģijas: brīvība un valoda / Strategien des Überlebens: Freiheit und Sprache (Prof. Dr. phil. Maija Kūle)
12:15 a.m. Selbstachtung, Schuldgefühle und Freiheit – Welche Rolle spielen sie im Überlebenskampf der Letten? / Pašcieņa, atkarība un brīvība latviešu sabiedrībā ārsta skatījumā (Prof. Dr. med. Gunta Ancāne)

Friday, May 10, 2013, 3:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. (Goethe Institute of Riga)

3:30 p.m. Welcome of the Goethe Institute Riga (Ulrich Everding)
3:45 p.m. Die Bedeutung des Chassidismus in Lettland (Rabbiner Menahems Barkahans)
4:30 p.m. Erich Fromm – eine biografisch-ideengeschichtliche Einführung / Ērihs Fromms — biogrāfiski idejvēsturisks ievads (Dr. Helmut Johach)
6:00 p.m. Lettland – Geschichte eines okkupierten Landes (Prof. Dr. Valters Nollendorfs)

Saturday, May 11, 2013, 10:00 a.m. – 4:15 p.m. (Goethe Institute of Riga)