Juhan Narma (until 29 July 1940 Nihtig or Nichtig; 26 October 1888 in Aluste,

Kreis Pernau Kreis is the German word for circle. Kreis may also refer to: Places * , or Circle (administrative division), various subdivisions roughly equivalent to counties, districts or municipalities ** Districts of Germany (including and ) ** Former ...

Governorate of Livonia The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a province (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, Baltic Governorate-General until 1876. Governorate of Livonia bordered Governorate of E ...

– 19 October 1942 in Tavda,

Sverdlovsk Oblast Sverdlovsk Oblast ( rus, Свердловская область, Sverdlovskaya oblastʹ, p=svʲɪrdˈlofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject (an oblast) of Russia located in the Ural Federal District. Its administrative center is the c ...

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

) was an

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n politician.

Biography

Nihtig was born on Vainussaare farm near Aluste. He was among the founders of the Central Cooperative of Estonian Consumers (ETK) in 1917, and would serve as a member of the board of the ETK until 1935. He was also a member of the Estonian-Soviet Chamber of Commerce and of the Patriotic League, the only legal political party in Estonia from 1935. After leaving his positions in the ETK, he served as editor of the newspaper ''

Uus Eesti ''Uus Eesti'' (New Estonia) was a daily newspaper published in Estonia from September 1935 until the Soviet occupation of Estonia in June 1940. The newspaper was politically aligned with the Estonian government. History The paper was established ...

'' in 1935–1940. On 21 June 1940, Nihtig was appointed Minister of Economic Affairs in Johannes Vares' cabinet after the

occupation of the Baltic States The occupation of the Baltic states was a period of annexation of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by the Soviet Union from 1940 until its Dissolution of the Soviet Union, dissolution in 1991. For a period of several years during World War II, Naz ...

by the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. He held this position until the cabinet was replaced by the

Council of People's Commissars The Council of People's Commissars (CPC) (), commonly known as the ''Sovnarkom'' (), were the highest executive (government), executive authorities of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), the Soviet Union (USSR), and the Sovi ...

of the

Estonian SSR The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

on 25 August 1940. Nihtig was arrested by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...

on 14 June 1941, after his former membership of the Patriotic League was discovered. In June 1942 he was sentenced to five years in prison. He died in a prison in Tavda in October of that year.

References

1888 births 1942 deaths People from Põhja-Pärnumaa Parish Politicians from Pärnu County People from Kreis Pernau Estonian Lutherans Patriotic League (Estonia) politicians Economy ministers of Estonia Estonian people who died in Soviet detention {{Estonia-politician-stub