Riga Mayor Nil Ushakov, during an interview with a local television station, promised to rename Dzhokhar Dudaev Street by the end of the year.
In 1996 the street, which was previously called Comosnautics Street, was named in honor of Chechen separatist Dzhokhar Dudaev. Over the years more than 40 petitions had been made to change the street’s name, but each one was declined.
In 2009 the Russian Society of Latvia together with several other public organizations presented the city legislature with a petition bearing over 2000 signatures requesting that the street name be changed.
“[The naming of the street] was done without any consultation with the residents of the city. We do not want to repeat that mistake. This will take time, but the issue will be resolved. We need about a year to do this,” Mayor Ushakov said.
Many public organizations have come out against changing the name. In early 2010, activists of the Civil Union and All Latvia Party gathered over 2000 signatures on a petition requesting that the street remain named in honor of the Chechen separatist. They promised to protest if their initiative is ignored.
There is no unanimous consent among residents regarding the street’s name. In 2004 several people were arrested for vandalizing the street.
Worldwide there are around 20 streets named after the general, in particular in the Baltic republics and Western Ukraine.
