Igors Šiškins (born 9 June 1959 in

Rēzekne Rēzekne (, ''Rēzne'' or ''Rēzekne'' , ) is a state city in the Rēzekne River valley in the Latgale region of eastern Latvia. It is called ''The Heart of Latgale'' (Latvian ''Latgales sirds'', Latgalian ''Latgolys sirds''). Built on seven ...

) is a Latvian

ultranationalist Ultranationalism, or extreme nationalism, is an extremist form of nationalism in which a country asserts or maintains hegemony, supremacy, or other forms of control over other nations (usually through violent coercion) to pursue its specific ...

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

and politician. During the 1990s, Šiškins was a member of the Latvian ultranationalist organization

Pērkonkrusts Pērkonkrusts (, "Thunder Cross") was a Latvian ultranationalist, Anti-German sentiment, anti-German, anti-Slavic, and antisemitic political party founded in 1933 by Gustavs Celmiņš, borrowing elements of German nationalism—but being unsym ...

, where he was one of the members convicted for their involvement in bombing the

Monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders The Monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders, unofficially known simply as the Victory Monument, was a memorial complex in Victory Park (Riga), Victory Park, Pārdaugava, Riga, Latvia, erected in 1985 ...

in June 1997.

Biography

Šiškins was born in

to a

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

father and a Latvian mother, but considers himself Latvian because his parents separated when he was young.Игорь Шишкин: «Могу взять в руки автомат!» (17.03.09.)

Vesti segodnya Vesti may refer to: Media * Vesti (German newspaper), a Serbian-language newspaper in Germany * ''Vesti'' (Israeli newspaper), a Russian-language newspaper in Israel * Vesti (TV channel), the former name of the news channel Russia-24 * Vesti ...

In the

Latvian SSR The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Also known as the Latvian SSR, or Latvia) was a Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republic of the Soviet Union from 1940 to 1941, and then from 1944 until 1990. The Soviet occupation of the Bal ...

, Šiškins worked as a driver,

locksmith Locksmithing is the work of creating and bypassing locks. Locksmithing is a traditional trade and in many countries requires completion of an apprenticeship. The level of formal education legally required varies by country, ranging from no formal ...

, and

stonecutter Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using rock (geology), stone as the primary material. Stonemasonry is the craft of shaping and arranging stones, often together with Mortar (masonry), mortar ...

. In the early 1990s, Šiškins joined the ultranationalist organization

. In late 1998, Šiškins was arrested and in 2000 sentenced to three years in prison for his involvement in the 1997 bombing of the

, having to remain in prison until April 24, 2001. The activity of Pērkonkrusts was banned in 2006. In the

2006 Latvian parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Latvia on 7 October 2006.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p1122 The governing coalition, led by Prime Minister of Latvia, Prime Minister Aigars Kalvītis and hi ...

s, Šiškins ran on the ticket but the party received only 0.1% of the vote and he was not elected. In 2007, he founded the

Gustavs Celmiņš Gustavs Celmiņš (April 1, 1899 – April 10, 1968) was a Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north ...

Centre (GCC) as a continuation to the banned Pērkonkrusts. Gustavs Celmiņš Centre was similarly banned for

extremist Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered (by the speaker or by some implied shar ...

activity in December 2014 by the Latvian court following an application from the Latvian Security Police. On July 1, 2010, Šiškins was one of the two people detained at a halted march commemorating the capture of Riga by

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

from the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

on July 1, 1941. In October 2012, Šiškins was arrested and charged for the attempted purchase of explosives. In 2015, on the Remembrance Day of the Latvian Legionnaires, Šiškins organized a separate procession attended by around 20 people. Šiškins has remained active, maintaining a website under the Pērkonkrusts name. He is also believed to be one of the leaders of the

anti-immigration Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...

"Stop Migration" fund and the radical right Antiglobalists Society that have attempted to establish a political party together.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siskins, Igors 1959 births Living people 21st-century Latvian politicians People from Rēzekne Latvian people of Russian descent Far-right politics Right-wing terrorism Latvian prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Latvia Bombers (people)