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Address by the President of the Republic to the Delegations of Border Guard Authorities Participating in the International Seminar ''On Experience in Building up Border Guard Organisations in Europe'' on August 17, 2002, at Kadriorg17.08.2002
Dear guests,
As the President of the Republic of Estonia I am pleased to welcome you in Estonia, in a country, which has learned during its history both the price of independence and of deprivation of independence.
National borders are part of the fundamental sovereignty of a state. In 1918 Estonia realised its long-term dream: proclaimed the independent Republic of Estonia. One of the first steps was to establish its national borders and bring the borders under control. The Peace Treaty of Tartu of 1920 is considered Estonia's birth certificate, establishing a clear frame for the independent statehood.
The border determines territorial integrity of the state. The border is for a state and its people like a fence around the house giving meaning to a home. On my home island long stone fences surround farms, many of them are centuries old. Houses inside the fences may be new already. Due to these fences we recognise homesteads and can restore former farms. This lyric deviation shows that the border is not only a technical or geographic term but also a deeply symbolic phenomenon. A house-owner interprets breaking a fence as breaking into his home. Anything happening on the border is directly related to the security of the state.
October 1939 when as a result of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact we had to open our borders to a foreign army, is one of the most depressive memories for the people of Estonia. It took us fifty years to free ourselves of the alien forces. As early as in May 1990, right after the first pieces of legislation were adopted to re-establish the Republic of Estonia, the work to restore Estonia's border was started. We were not yet independent but Estonia's border guard attempted to exercise its functions already. Literally speaking they worked barehanded. Nevertheless it fulfilled its mission. When Estonia restored its independence a year later, we were able to exercise control over our borders.
Dear guests,
This is history. However, we know that the meaning of a border has significantly changed. Apart from marking sovereignty of states the borders also mark zones in which organised crime, terrorism, smuggling, drug trafficking and trafficking in human beings can and should be prevented. National borders have a really global meaning as they are related not only to the interests of a state but I would even say to all of us or rather to the interests of the mankind. We just have to recall the September 11 catastrophe in New York.
Collaboration between border guards and customs organisations of many countries confirms our common goals. Your seminar and exposure to Estonian border guard experience confirms this.
No state border is meant to close the state in and cut it off from the world. The border is a zone to arrange the movement of people and goods.
I wish you success in your mission.
Thank you for your attention.
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