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The President of the Republic Address at the Annual Conference of Association B7 on January 10th 2002 in Saaremaa10.01.2002
County Governor,
Participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen!
The sea keeps countries and nations apart and brings them together. This has been the way for ages and we take it for granted. Just like the beginning of co-operation between seven major islands in the Baltic Sea was taken for granted.
Throughout the history people on the islands of the Baltic Sea have lived in close communication. The good co-operation today was preceded by mutually beneficial exchange of goods as well as by use of battle-axes. History knows ancient military campaigns and plundering raids as well as commercial trips close and far. We can read about islanders' ancient habit of plundering voyages to Sweden and Denmark even from Heinrici Chronicon Livoniae. These contacts have left their imprint on the cultural heritage of the islands and people of the Baltic Sea.
Evidence of long-rooted contacts is found in burial places and old sagas. The blood of our people on the islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa is probably mixed with that of other islanders.
According to the Saga of Guta a part of the population had to leave when the island of Gotland was overpopulated. They left for Hiiumaa, some where likely to move to Saaremaa.
Stories tell that Vikings took most beautiful women with them from their plundering raids to Saaremaa. The people of Saaremaa are said to have brought from their raids besides weapons also 7-10-year-old boys who were fit to fight in a battle in a few years. Brave warriors were in high demand to protect the island against invaders.
In the 11th and 12th centuries islanders became increasingly active in the sea. The closest contacts were with Gotland. There are plenty of stories about people from Saaremaa who had been well known and recognised musicians in the weddings on Gotland.
Let's return from history to the present time.
An island is most unique national wealth. It is a pleasure to admit that we have had a will and skill to find ways to use the wealth. I mean the preservation and development as well as promotion of the singularity of the islands.
Urbanisation and larger centres attract people from the islands to the continent to look for new opportunities and better income. The stationary population is decreasing. Economic activities intertwined with the specificity of islands and the creation of new jobs would help to eliminate economic motives to leave the islands. We should think more about motivating people living on the islands.
We should increase the awareness about the advantages of islands and value them more. Can we value the islanders sufficiently as carriers of a specific culture?
Protecting the islanders' way of life we protect such a way of life in which people live close to nature aware of relevant socio-economic limitations. At the first glance everything is simple: isolation is also a facet of the specificity of the island as a region. On the other hand people on the island should feel themselves as dignified citizens, able to realise its ideas. In today's Estonia unfortunately some family members work on the continent and the entire family meets in its island home only over the weekend. I do not consider this a normal situation. Family relations suffer and household costs grow.
Talking about islanders I would like to underline two aspects: closeness to nature and sustainability. I think these key words characterise people both in Saaremaa and Bornholm, in Gotland and a faraway island of Tonga.
Closeness to nature does not mean living as aborigines in a reserve. This is a way of life valuing clean nature as an invaluable resource with environmentally friendly management. This is a frame of mind and a skill to perceive oneself as a part of nature.
The sustainable way of life has helped to cope with scanty means. The life has taught the people living in tough natural conditions to think about the future. Today the ever-increasing and lavishing consumption forces large cities to look for additional ways in waste management to avoid pollution. The sustainable way of life displays our ability to keep and protect the heritage. It displays also our respect to future generations.
The islands need more attention. Different regional policy measures to regenerate working and living environment and protect nature should ensure the development of the islands and their population. Awareness and solving of specific economic, ecological, social and demographic problems through joint projects allow making a better use of experience and resources.
Let us make a joint effort to preserve our national wealth - our islands so that the value of the wealth would neither be devalued nor end up in foreign hands.
Dear participants of the conference,
Regional co-operation is very significant. The regional individuality through various co-operation mechanisms and joint activities helps us to facilitate the local development as well as national welfare in its entirety.
Association B7 is a part of co-operation in the Baltic Sea Region, which has become really multifaceted. B7 is a good example of joint work done by member states and candidate countries within the regional policy of the European Union. I acknowledge highly such a co-operation form not only for Saaremaa and Hiiumaa but also for the development of entire Estonia.
The implementation of B7 joint projects has brought Estonia good experience in international relations and additional foreign investments. It has helped Estonia to make its way into the European structures and develop political and economic relations based on Estonia's interests with neighbouring countries.
I have been asked would Estonia not become a remote area upon the accession to the European Union. My response is that each EU member state has equal opportunities to have a word in the developments and Estonia would have this possibility in future as well. It would depend only upon our energy and skills to what extent we can use EU opportunities and how good we are in making additional proposals. Actions and projects launched within B7 confirm that if there is a will there is a way.
The active participation of Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany has made our co-operation efficient. The EU-regional-policy-based action plan and projects implemented have served as a major impetus for the development of our islands. We will find new and even more comprehensive ways to co-operate. The key words should be environmentally friendly and sustainable economy, nature tourism and valuable cultural heritage.
I see tourism as a potential area of co-operation. We have not used in Estonia all the possibilities to promote tourism. Marine tourism involving major islands in the Baltic Sea would be attractive for friends of nature and lovers of cultural heritage. This could be a way to promote our unique nature and sites. The flora in Estonia and its island is rich in species. We know that in the Viidumäe Nature Reserve there are places where 69 different species of plants have been identified on a square metre. We have other areas in Estonia rich in species as well. No wonder that already in the seventeenth and eighteenth century several outstanding people and researchers from Europe visited Estonia and also Saaremaa. Tourism industry would create new jobs and help to secure stationary population on the islands.
I do believe that the year 2001 when Saaremaa was the presiding island in the association was successful for B7. I hope that the new B7 strategy presented to the European Commission today for financing specific projects will be approved of in tomorrow's discussions and find support in the European Union.
I wish you perseverance so characteristic of islanders, good will to continue with joint activities and new interesting thoughts in preparing new projects.
Good luck to you!
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