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The President of the Republic at the Meeting of the Roundtable of National Minorities on November 15, 2001, at Sakala Centre15.11.2001
Dear Minister,
dear members of the Roundtable of National Minorities,
Excellencies,
dear guests!
Despite the brief history of Estonia's independent statehood, Estonia has a considerable experience with policies of national minorities. Due to our geopolitical position, Estonians have had active contacts with other nationalities ever since ancient times. It is true that, on the one hand, those contacts led to the conquest and subjection of Estonia on the part of foreign powers for long centuries; on the other hand, this resulted in close contacts with representatives of other languages and cultures, and in the kingdoms and empires that governed us, we could be looked upon as a quite small national minority, if we transfer modern concepts into the past. One thing is sure - we have had to take into account other languages and customs, and also the rule of others and all its consequences. Thus, we Estonians have a considerable experience of existing as an ethnic and national minority.
When Estonia gained her independence at the end of the first quarter of the 20th century, the democratisation process in Europe had already begun, but in 1925, when the Republic of Estonia passed the law on the cultural autonomy of national minorities on the initiative of the League of Nations, fascists had already come to power in Italy, and Bolsheviks in the Soviet Union; in 1933, Nazis seized the power in Germany. The world was torn into another major conflict in the struggle for hegemony and living space.
After World War II, we became a national minority in the Soviet Union, where Russians were the dominating nation. In the Soviet Union, the equality of all nations was present in rhetoric, but in reality, the policy of assimilation of all peoples and cultures was implemented, its impact on the Russians being equally painful. As a result, dozens of small nations were obliterated on the territory of the Soviet Union, and their sad fate can now only be traced with the help of historians.
With the restoration of Estonia's independence in 1991, the problems of national minorities had to be addressed immediately. The situation was complicated, because other nations living in Estonia in many cases had no common positive historical experience with Estonians that could have been shaped into a successful policy of the national minorities. Today, I would like to thank all Ministers, who have addressed the issue of national minorities after the restoration of Estonia's independence, and whose work has made it possible for us today to speak about the national minorities policy of Estonia, and other institutions beside the central power that implement this policy.
The Roundtable of National Minorities acting by the President of the Republic, which was initiated on July 10, 1993, has by no means played a minor role in this process. Today, the Roundtable consists of the representatives of national minorities and members of political parties, as well as scientists, who together constitute a substantial group of experts. Ants Paju, Priit Järve, Vello Pettai, and Hagi Shein have worked at the Roundtable as the representatives of the President.
The aim of the activities of the President's Roundtable has been to draw up recommendations and proposals to the legislative and executive powers of Estonia on solving the socio-economic, cultural, and legal problems of the national minorities, on the key issues of the integration programme, on the solution of matters concerning those applying for citizenship, and learning and usage of the Estonian language; and of course, on the preservation of the cultural and language identity of the national minorities. The Roundtable has submitted its recommendations to the President of the Republic, to the Riigikogu and the Government of the Republic, as well as to the Riigikogu Committees on several draft acts under legislative proceeding.
For more elaborate consideration of the problems and preparation of discussions, the Roundtable has formed several working groups. Experts and observers are often engaged in the work of the Roundtable. Several organisations of the EU and the European Commission in Estonia, as well as embassies, whose representatives participate as guests on the public meetings of the Roundtable, have shown great interest in the work of the Roundtable. Also the minutes of the Roundtable meetings are available on the Internet.
From all my heart, I would like to thank all the representatives at the Roundtable of National Minorities, and of course, all the members of the Roundtable, who have done everything in their might in the past seven and a half years to support considerably the development and also correction of the national minorities policy of the Republic of Estonia.
This work has not been easy, and many problems are still waiting to be solved.
It is important to confirm that we will continue our work and try to engage even more experts, representatives of national minorities, and to be in an even more intense contact with both the legislative and the executive power. Because all our aspirations can only have a single aim - a free human being in the free Republic of Estonia, independent of the language he speaks or thinks in, the religion he professes or the customs he prefers. We must learn to keep together as a swarm of bees, because we have one country, one ideal of freedom, and one desire to prevail even at the most turbulent of times.
I wish you strength and magnanimity in solving these problems that have a very intimate meaning and delicate nature for human beings.
Thank you!
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