Latvia for the next 45 years. The peaceful Singing Revolution, starting in 1987, called for Baltic emancipation from Soviet rule and condemning the Communist regime's illegal takeover. It ended with the Declaration on the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia on 4 May 1990, and restoring "de facto" independence on 21 August 1991. Latvia is a democratic sovereign state, parliamentary republic and a very highly developed country according to the United Nations Human Development Index. Its capital Riga served as the European Capital of Culture in 2014. Latvian is the official language. Latvia is a unitary state, divided into
Government institutions in Latvia Latvian State Forest Research Institute "Silava" National Research Institute of "Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment Research Institute" Food and Veterinary Service Government institutions in Latvia This is a list of government and municipal institutions of Latvia and their subordinated institutions with executive powers: Latvian Chancery of the President Saeima Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia The State Audit Office Latvijas Banka The Central Election Commission The Financial and Capital Market Commission The Ombudsman's Office The National Council for Electronic Media The Public Utilities Commission Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau Society Integration