Former Supreme Council Deputy Juris Karlsons Passes Away

Juris Karlsons, a former deputy of the Supreme Council of Latvia and a prominent public figure, died on July 21. The announcement was made by the 4 May Declaration Club, an organization he presided over.

Born on June 1, 1946, in Riga, Karlsons attended Riga Secondary Schools No. 50 and No. 7, then studied at the Riga Polytechnic Institute’s Faculty of Radio Engineering and Electronics, earning a degree in radio engineering.

He began his career at age 17 as a high-voltage electrician and later worked as an electrical fitter at the Riga Tram and Trolleybus Trust. He then moved to the Electrotechnical Factory, where he started as a radio equipment regulator and eventually became head of the technical research department and the bureau for radio measurement equipment repair and operation. Subsequently, he served as chief designer at the Special Design Bureau for Scientific Instrumentation of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, working on diagnostics for USSR ballistic and strategic missiles.

During the Latvian national awakening, Karlsons became active in the Latvian National Independence Movement (LNNK) and the Popular Front of Latvia (LTF). He participated in the founding meeting of the LNNK in Arkādijas Park and the congress in Ogre. At his workplace, he established an LNNK branch and later headed the LTF branch at his institute. He was a delegate to the first two LTF congresses, a board member of the LTF Vidzeme suburb chapter, and a board member of the LNNK “Ziedoņdārzs” chapter.

In March 1990, he was elected to the Supreme Council as a candidate of the LTF in Riga’s 52nd electoral district, receiving 4,111 votes out of 7,817. In the Supreme Council, he served as deputy chairman of the Trade and Services Commission and as a member of the Joint Budget Commission.

After the Supreme Council’s tenure ended, he entered business, becoming vice-president of Latvijas Unibanka. He continued his political work as a Riga City Council deputy and held positions in Riga municipal companies. Karlsons was also the president of the 4 May Declaration Club.