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The Speech of the President of the Republic ''Estonia - 2002'' at the Estonian Committee in Sweden 31 January 200331.01.2003
Dear compatriots!
Ladies and Gentlemen!
First please allow me to express my gratitude for the invitation that offers me an opportunity to speak about the latest developments of our homeland. Having been the bearers of the continuity of the Republic of Estonia for the most part of your life, you also wish to be sure that the development of Estonia would ensure the wellbeing of our nation, her secure future and her dignified place of the state among other states.
We value your contribution to the benefit of the Estonian state, your attention and care.
A dozen years that have passed today from the restoration of Estonia's statehood and the change of her social order have altered Estonia beyond recognition. However, this ''non-recognition'' only applies to those, who are still discovering the normal Estonia - the ''true Estonia''. For you, dear friends, the return of Estonia to the West, her independent statehood, her free market economy and her Estonia-focussed social life, simply means that an interrupted road has been re-discovered and the journey may continue. True, not quite there, where you or your parents were forced off of it, but within the context of new challenges and conditions.
In Estonia's life the year 2002 may be regarded as the concluding year of the transition period, which followed the restoration of independence. The attributes of the transition period were ensuring the initial acceleration and capitalisation of the economic development, bringing of the social order and social guarantees in Estonia in line with the conditions of free market economy, the assuring of Estonia's political system and democracy, the accession of Estonia to the international co-operation and security network and the preservation of the prerequisites required for the development of Estonian culture, education and science.
Whichever sector we address we can obviously state: Estonia and our people have successfully come through the most difficult and complicated stage.
Let us, for instance, consider the economic or infrastructural indicators in Estonia, where in certain fields - for instance the number of fixed Internet links per person, or the extent of mobile phone users - we can be compared with the leading countries of the world. Yes, with regards to the gross national product per capita the gap between the leaders and ourselves is two-and-a-half or three-fold. In 2000 the GNP per capita in Estonia in internationally comparable prices reached a little over ten thousand dollars, whereas in Sweden and in Finland this indicator was 25,000 dollars, let alone Canada and USA where it reaches 30 thousand, and even surpasses it.
Nevertheless, the annual growth of the aggregate production that has been at the level of five to six percent within the last years, including the year two thousand and two, is encouraging. We have a reason for being content about the continuation of investments creating new jobs and improving the consuming ability. Last year the unemployment percent fell from twelve per cent to nine.
Furthermore, slow growth of the consumer price index, the continuing growth of the export capacity, a relatively low foreign debt, the firm kroon, and the national budget that was maintained in balance even during the most challenging transition years, also speak of the stability and competitiveness of the Estonian economy. True, for the first time the national budget for this year was adopted with a deficit. However, this deficit has been caused by the pension reform, the obligation assumed by the state to guarantee the mandatory funded pension of the people. We were simply not prepared for the readiness of so many people to save money that the joining with the funded pension schemes entails. At the same time, last year the budget surplus reached nearly a billion and a half kroons that represents nearly one point five per cent of the gross national product.
Dear audience!
For Estonia the year of 2002 constituted a year of major foreign policy challenges and momentous decisions. In many respects it was an extraordinary year: fast, full of events, forcing people to ponder. Within a short time the world has changed a lot, and we all have to follow this dynamics in order not to fall behind the developments, not to find ourselves among the bystanders.
In my last New Year address I said that we remember the efforts made by the first generation of Estonian politicians in 1920s and 1930s for the conclusion of defence and cooperation agreements with our neighbours in the north and south, which yielded no results, and Estonia faced the fate of losing her state. It is by reason of this lesson given by the history that we have been striving for forms of cooperation and alliances, which would safeguard or support the freedom of our internal development.
Today we have received an invitation from both the NATO as well as the European Union, and are entering a new phase of the development of our society. Estonia must stay Estonia also in the years to come, having her own identity and culture while being a successful part of the European Union and the NATO, establishing jointly with other Member States various structures addressing the future, and ensuring the sustainability of the society.
Estonia has rich national traditions and a strong feeling of cultural self-value. No one doubts Estonia's ability to cope, and she must be able to cope with any international circumstances. But for the purpose of ensuring the development of her society the accession to the European Union is certainly the optimal choice.
For the Estonian people the accession to the European Union offers wider opportunities for working, studying and travelling within the European Union. This means a safer and better-developed social environment, and higher personal wellbeing. I am confident that upon becoming a member of the European Union Estonia, based on her historical experience, is able to offer Europe useful and discernible additional value.
It is a well known fact that after the enlargement of the European Union Estonia's eastern border will become the external frontier of the European Union, resulting in major responsibility this brings along for the Estonian border guard and customs services before all the Member States.
The Membership of the European Union is a factor accelerating the development. Ireland, having turned from a country with the most modest level of development in Europe into one of the most rapidly developing Member State in a mere 15-20 years, poses a good example with this respect. I sincerely hope that as a result of a comprehensive dialogue the people of Estonia will become members of the European Union with the referendum held on 14 September. Maybe then, in only few years' time, we can speak of Estonia as being one of the most rapidly developing states within the European Union.
On 11 September 2001 we were all appalled by the events in the United States, which created a foundation for the emerging of new understanding of the content and goals of the international co-operation. But first of all this bitter experience underlined the need for more efficient and resolute co-operation.
One of the principal courses of our activities in today's security situation is a contribution into the joint efforts taken in the fight against terrorism. The measures against organised crime, safeguarding our frontiers, and other such actions are related to the current tasks in guaranteeing the security.
Last May in Prague I observed that every square kilometre of peace and stability in Europe is worth its weight in gold. Estonia is able to contribute into different NATO operations or coalitions in a number of different ways. Essentially I have in mind small-scale specialised units within the framework of NATO's tasks. Our goal in joining the NATO is not a way of getting access to consuming security, instead we intend to offer equal partnership in the process of ensuring international security and safeguarding democracy.
The Estonian State continuously bears the defence appropriations amounting to 2% of the gross national product, and the people are ready, whenever necessary, to participate in defending of their state. Building our defence forces, ensuring their capability of operating jointly with allies is - in the first place - essential for ourselves.
During the entire period following the restoration of independence Estonia has been co-operating purposefully with its neighbours in the North, South, East and West. Co-operation arrangements have been set up between the three Baltic States, between the Nordic Countries and the Baltic States, between the Baltic Sea Countries, we have the European Economic Area, the already discussed European Union and the NATO. I am convinced that the more multifaceted is this co-operation, the more stable is the society.
I would like to underline yet some other aspects related to the co-operation between the Baltic States. The unity of the Baltic States that emerged in the course of the restoration of their independence has never faded. The similar foreign policy aspirations have made us partners within the process of accession to the NATO and the European Union. Each one of us has advanced at her own pace and has had her own accents, but Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have stood side by side on both fronts.
We have been co-operating extremely successfully in the defence sector, which may be justified by our common past and common ''feeling of threat''. The jointly developed defence projects enable us to use our resources reasonably. We are pleased to have set up the Baltic Defence College in the ancient university town Tartu; this college has developed into an important centre both for the training officers, as well as researching the defence issues.
One of the co-operation areas with ever-increasing import would certainly be the development of regional co-operation relations between the Baltic States and the Nordic countries. New dimensions should undoubtedly be brought into the co-operation between the Baltic States and the Nordic countries. As members of the European Union the Baltic States will become increasingly more worthy partners for the Nordic countries at the regional level also. Hopefully the future of this co-operation will be moulded by the Northern Dimension of the European Union, which - with Finland's far-sighted initiative - offers means for resolving a number of important regional issues for the benefit of all the Member States of the European Union.
The reforms carried out in the society and preparations for the membership of the European Union and the NATO have demanded momentous material compromises and spiritual efforts from the entire nation, it has required creativity and flexibility that help us to swiftly re-tune and cope with many situations that seem new.
Yet it has become more and more obvious that for ensuring her sustainability Estonia, figuratively speaking, needs a new boost.
According to the ''Estonian Human Development Report'' of 2002 Estonia ranked 42nd among the countries of the world by its human development index, and falls into the category of countries with high human development. The advancement of Estonia in this ranking is, however, a result of the rapid economic growth. At the same time, as the social scientists have observed, this success has been achieved at the expense of the relatively slower social development. Although the economic growth has resulted in the reduction of poverty, income stratification in Estonia is still considerable as compared to the Nordic countries. The demographic crisis has revealed the inadequacies of the labour and education policies. The share of working people of the entire population is a mere 42 per cent. The population is ageing very quickly. People in their prime working age (25-49 years) constitute only a third of the population of the working age.
Within the last decade the natural gain in population ensuring the numerousness of the population has been negative. Our average life expectancy, that in the case of men is just and about seventy, is seriously impaired by the large number of deaths through injury, constituting on the average 12 per cent of the entire mortality rate. In the Nordic countries this indicator is a mere 3-4 per cent. Although, as compared to the mid-1990s, the suicide risk has declined it is still notably high when matched to that of other states and nations.
The large number of school dropouts is also worrying. We have more than four thousand young school dropouts of 10-24 years of age with no basic education. Of persons of over 29 years of age merely 36 thousand have left the education system with only a basic education. These facts distinctly speak of the educational stratification in the Estonian society.
There is a reason to mention the spreading identity crisis of the entire society: people adopt values of consumer society following of which results in living beyond the means and in debt. The today's success criteria might not be sufficient for everyone. We can recognise mistrust and political alienation.
The Institute of National Development and Co-operation, which I had the honour to chair before being elected President, two years ago published a collection of works ''Estonia on the Verge of the New Millennium''. The works published in this collection already then anticipated that Estonia's human resources and sustainable development as well as the national culture, being a factor relieving economic fetishism and the social cleavage, would determine her sustainability. The importance of social partnership and the more general agreements for ensuring the balanced development in Estonia were also accentuated.
For this reason the professor of philosophy Ene Grauberg wrote that in the open world of today Estonia's development must be autonomous and take into consideration our national goals and basic values; this development should not put us in opposition with each other, this development ''means satisfaction of the basic needs of people, without impairing the development possibilities of the generations to come.''
The understanding, that in order to ensure such developments the increase of the solidarity within the society is needed, is acquiring an ever-increasing appreciation. This has been understood both by a part of the Estonian business elite, as well as a number of citizens' associations.
Already in my inauguration speech in October 2001 I noted the need for the re-starting of the social dialogue. Today, at the initiative of the President's Academic Council and with the assistance of our business community and top executives we have arrived at formulating the memorandum of the new social agreement.
This memorandum urges conclusion of an agreement that would focus on the identification of the ways for further actions and on the solution of problems in the following spheres: 1) the demographic situation in Estonia; 2) the education and innovation; 3) the stability and sustainability of the economic environment, and 4) the social guarantees.
Within these priority issues it is necessary to find solutions for initiating long-term population policies, allowing to achieve actual results; for ensuring the increasing financing of the development of education and scientific research work from the state budget, from the support funds of the European Union, as well as from the private sector; for deciding which should be the boundary rates of the general tax burden in order to secure enterprise-friendly economic environment; for the identification of the frameworks required to guarantee continuing improvement of the wellbeing of the Estonian people, and for the recognition of the mid-term dynamics of the main proportions of the national budget that would ensure that the potential political changes do not impede the continuation of the achievement of the main goals of the development.
Dear ladies and gentlemen!
As you may see Estonia has not been blinded by its successful development. On the contrary - throughout the history our farmers have constantly been worried and troubled about the tomorrow. A small nation cannot survive otherwise. It must continuously think about how to face the coming day, how to be safeguarded against potential setbacks, how to create the conditions for the further generations allowing to preserve life in Estonia.
In the Estonian folk architecture a barn occupies a major place beside the house. Figuratively speaking - now that we have managed to re-erect the house of the Estonian State, we must focus on building the barn. It is very important that the barn be spacious and sturdy. This obligation has been handed down to us by the generations that came before us, who have been living for the sake of the restoration and the continuation of the Republic of Estonia. This obligation has been handed down to us by the idea of statehood that, in less than a month, on 24 February, celebrates the eighty-fifth anniversary of its realisation.
I take this opportunity to congratulate you all on this occasion, and to thank you once again for your support and compassion.
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