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The President of the Republic at the Festive Concert for the 85th Anniversary of the Republic of Estoniaon 24 February 2003 at Estonia Theatre24.02.2003
Dear people of Estonia!
Dear fellow countrymen!
Excellencies!
Ladies and gentlemen!
Today 85 years ago the people of Estonia realized the dream treasured through several generations: Estonia became a free, independent and democratic state. On this occasion it is only appropriate to recall the speech delivered by Friedebert Tuglas on the first anniversary of the Republic of Estonia here in the very hall of Estonia Theatre.
The distinguished author and public figure stated in his speech "we have always had deep in our blood an instinct of political and cultural independence". And he continued "As a most democratic republic, which allows maximum development of individuals and the people, which would develop national culture and would be open to ideas of the wide world, would nourish mind and body of everybody within its borders - this is the kind of state we would visualise Estonia to be. This is the kind of state we would welcome".
This is the kind of Estonia we have wished to have and wish today. Two intertwined principles - independent statehood and a democratic way of life - have served as a prerequisite for and a framework of our aspirations. The continuity of the right for national self-determination runs through 85 years irrespective of the fact that eras, which have influenced our daily way of life, have been different.
Further more. An idea of Estonia's independence got its nourishment from the rudiments of civil society born at the crest of national awakening in the nineteenth century. Building of the society and independent state developed hand-in-hand and were closely intertwined. Therefore, the Republic of Estonia proclaimed in 1918 had all the prerequisites to realise opportunities achieved through independence.
Between two world wars the people of Estonia could see independent statehood deliver fruits in nearly every field of life. Herewith I would like to underline the key issue: in 1920s for the first time in the history the Estonians became masters not only of their state but also of their land. Small farms have been and will be one of the guarantees for the maintenance of the Estonian spirit. Our cultivated landscapes, a symbol of Estonian beauty, go back to these years.
Many a fundamental value developed and became rooted in the then Estonian villages. "Here is my fate and my kin/the story of my time and life" has said Hando Runnel. Unfortunately the vitality of the Estonian village has weakened by now and therefore also values have changed.
In order to preserve our nation the preferential development of education, science and culture was crucial in the Republic of Estonia between two World Wars. The independent statehood alone is inadequate unless supported by underlying national culture. It was only in the nations' state that it became possible to support national culture. Its symbol was the opening of the University of Tartu as a national university in 1919. In 1925 the Cultural Endowment was founded. It was in this period that our science and culture became a part of common European culture.
The vitality of the Estonian cultural heritage helped us to survive fifty years of occupation. Thanks to a strong cultural and civil society dimension of sovereignty we can talk today besides legal continuity of the Republic of Estonia also of the continuity of values and ideas.
The idea of sovereignty was carried by the nationalism of the people who remained under foreign power in their homeland, disguised in different forms as well as by Estonians who being forced to leave homeland closed the ranks abroad. Equally essential were song festivals in the homeland and Estonian World Festivals. Steps taken and tradeoffs achieved to preserve the education and culture in the Estonian language in the occupied homeland and the Estonians' efforts to provide education and culture in their language abroad are both of similar significance.
The Declaration of Sovereignty of 16 November 1988 and the decision of 20 August 1991 of independent statehood adopted by the Supreme Soviet were not born from nothing. Each generation of Estonians, be it taken or left by Providence to different eras and places, have had its share in the restoration of Estonia's sovereignty. Everybody who has carried the idea of sovereignty and fought for its realisation has deserved respect and gratitude.
Contemporaneously we have to admit that we do not yet have a place where to remember and pay a tribute to people who have fought for Estonia's independence. Thus, I call once more on you to discuss seriously how to symbolically perpetuate the freedom of Estonia.
Dear audience here and at home!
Estonia has achieved a lot during the last twelve years. Our independent statehood provided an opportunity to restore a viable and competitive economy. Over the years economic choices of the Estonian residents have widened. Estonia's developments are reflected in our rapidly changing living environment and also as achievements in science, culture and sports. I would like to use the opportunity and thank Kristina Šmigun and Jaak Mae for golden and silver gifts to the people of Estonia on its Independence Day.
Estonian economy has become sustainable as during the last decade we have navigated through dangerous waters, flexibly responded to local crises and adjusted to the world market. Estonian companies can export more, pay higher wages and also transfer technology and experience. We can be satisfied with information technology applications, in the use of Internet and mobile communications we have caught up with the level of the leading countries.
At the same time we are aware that such large progress has had a regrettably high social price. I have repeatedly enlarged upon this issue in my previous speeches and the Human Development Report for 2002 all but confirms my words. We should recognise very low birth rate, interruption of education at too early a stage, dangerously high crime rate and stratification of the society as serious warning signs.
Celebrating today we should not forget threats to our people and its capability to function as an independent state. I will limit myself to just one comment on a matter of fact, which should deepen our conviction that in order to secure Estonia's sustainability, we have to contribute much more to the social environment in coming years. Briefly - we should take better care of the people.
We all know that for years the rapid aging and decrease of the population has been Estonia's main problem. This process is subject to natural factors but not only. It's only us, the state and society, who can reduce the number of lives lost through violence and injuries. Injuries have taken on the average 2300 lives a year during the last decade - five times more than in the Nordic countries. They have mostly been people in the prime of their working lives who have lost their lives either on the highway, through violence or drug intoxication.
Besides AIDS and drug addiction we have overlooked the reality that primarily alcoholism is destroying our society from inside. Dear people, let's think what we could do for more abstinent Estonia! Here we should start from the family, school and reach each and every one of us. The more balanced the society, the more we care for people and provide opportunities to enjoy life, the less there is reason to drown despair in a glass of vodka.
Eighteen months ago taking the oath of the president I said that Estonia is careening. I also said that an agreement between the political forces in the parliament would not be enough to get out of the disequilibrium. The experience shows that representation democracy implements only the decisions of the elected majority. But it is the continuous dialogue in the society and attempts to consider as wide a spectrum of interests as possible, which manifest the maturity of democracy. The more there is participatory democracy in the society, which simultaneously offsets the inevitably limited possibilities of the representative democracy, the higher the cohesion of the society.
Nowadays the participatory democracy is implemented through civic initiative and the third sector. If we want to secure our independent statehood and restore intra-societal confidence, we should agree on principles and priorities. They can be and should be formulated as a common foundation of aspirations and objectives of different interest groups, just like the initiative of our intellectual elite at the joint session of our professional associations about fifteen years ago. Also now we have to set common goals, comprehensible for everybody, and agree upon an action plan to achieve them.
We do not need such an agreement on the common foundation not only to rise above discord. Most important would be provision of social safety, which today does not stretch to all members of the society. A significant part of the working-age population is afraid to lose job. Estonia spends on public health and treatment several times less than developed countries. Access to education is becoming more and more questionable for many young people and even the dropout rate in the basic school reaches thousands. Thus, we are justified to ask whether the successful Estonia really cares for its citizens.
This in its turn will oblige us to make choices in shaping our future. Let's admit that until now we have not provided a single answer to the question whether Estonia will become a Nordic welfare society or a state in which the fate of the people is left purely into their own hands? Is Estonia a state, which will balance turmoil and setbacks arising from the changing world for its citizens or is it just a supervisor and a representative body? Ultimately, the question is whether Estonia is a home or a trade partner for its people.
The answer is not entirely born in inter party contest or ruling coalitions. Decisions underlying the answer assume a much larger support. Whereas the starting point should be the comprehension that the state is obliged to guarantee freedoms and rights for its citizens. Without this significant change in the values and attitudes there is little hope that pride in Estonia and responsibility for its well-being will spread.
It is the local government that largely determines the strength of the relationship between the citizen and the state. This is the foundation for a democratic way of life and a support for the civil society. Only the cooperation between local governments, civic associations and parties could secure that the Estonian state is a pledge to present and future generations for their social progress and welfare.
On 20 February 32 civic associations and parties, the Academy of Sciences and six public universities signed a memorandum, which will open the way to conclude a new national agreement. I take this for a significant landmark in assuming joint responsibility in order to secure Estonia's sustainable development and widening participatory democracy.
This should also be an endeavour to carry out an idea put forward by a great Estonian - Aino Järvesoo who has recently passed away. As an honorary member of the President of the Republic's Academic Council Aino Järvesoo was concerned not only about our rising generation. She was adamant in demanding what we should ask now and again from ourselves and our fellow countrymen: what is the significance of Estonia, what is the independent statehood for, how long will we last and what should we do for the sake of lasting? We can only hope that future will bestow upon us many personalities like Aino Järvesoo. While the Republic of Estonia was born of idealism, its lasting will also depend on the height and strength of noble ideas.
Ladies and gentlemen!
In a week the elections to the Riigikogu will take place. The supreme power of state is vested in the people and it will entrust decision making for four years to its representative body. Behind the external noise and alluring slogans characteristic of a young democracy, choices for the electorate are still distinguishable.
Now the responsibility and choice of each citizen will determine how capable the next Riigikogu will be and whether it will bear the responsibility to implement a plan of action justifying the confidence of people. I believe that the citizens of Estonia are neither tired of democracy nor afraid to take the responsibility and will exercise their right as the carriers of the supreme power of the state on 2 March.
The eighty-fifth year of the Republic of Estonia was promising. Estonia received invitations both to the European Union and to NATO. We maintain stable relations with our close neighbours as well as with more distant ones. Estonia's foreign policy has been continuously led by a need to secure the survival, security and national welfare of the independent state.
However, the question asked in discussions what would happen to the sovereignty of the Republic of Estonia after accession to the European Union and NATO, is also appropriate. According to the constitution the sovereignty of Estonia is an inalienable right of its people. Our descendants and we will carry on the ultimate right to decide, which our ancestors strived for, dreaming of and building up the state of Estonia, like a genetic code.
Sovereignty has acquired renewed contents in the modern society and requires also new safeguard mechanisms. A simplified treatment of sovereignty involves a danger of isolation. In today's world sovereignty means also regional or institutional solidarity, well known in the proverb "union is strength".
Already in early years of independence Estonian governments considered extended cooperation with the Republic of Finland and Baltic states as a guarantee of independence. Estonia was an active participant in the Pan- European movement. Restoring the Republic of Estonia, we attempted to implement the solidarity looked for in 1930s, establishing the Council of the Baltic States and later the Baltic Assembly. Now this is broadening into fruitful cooperation with the Nordic Council and the EU Member States.
Today we see guarantees of safe development and safeguards of sovereignty primarily in the European Union and NATO. Neither of the associations can be taken as static. The Convention on the future of Europe is working to develop an efficiently functioning European Union, which takes into consideration interests of all its Member States. Estonia is small but can share our specific experience and ideas. We have also wishes, which we hope to help to carry out. And of primary importance is the European Union as a sovereign union of states.
Definitely, objectives and principles of cooperation will change and Estonia has to take it into account. Here our good guide will be our adaptability, flexibility and opportunity to have a say in issues determining the development of Europe and the world. Preserving in both of the accession processes our ethnic as well as national self-esteem; our conscience will remain clean for the history.
The historic experience of Estonia as a small state tells also that regional and institutional forms of cooperation will falter, should the authority of the UN, established to secure international peace and security and to solve disputes in a peaceful way, be jeopardised. Its predecessor, the League of Nations, became inoperable having turned into a battlefield of interests of large countries.
The annexation of Estonia in 1939 and loss of independence would not have taken place if several large states had not ignored noble principles of the League of Nations and acted alone. Therefore the credibility and competence of the United Nations is so important for Estonia. We should not spare any opportunity to support UN resolutions, as well as US and other NATO-allies' joint efforts to eliminate the potential threat to the people of the world.
However, the international credibility of Estonia will depend on meeting the obligations undertaken in order to secure internal and external peace of our society. We have done it and continue doing it. However, to make justified choices, it is necessary to be widely informed and conduct a dialogue in the society. Only in this case the people of Estonia can express their opinion on the joint future of Estonia and Europe on 14 September.
Dear people!
85 years ago the Manifesto to peoples of Estonia formulated both the noble ideas and the vision of future for Estonia. The Manifesto told of a state as a home to everybody who as citizens have related themselves to the Republic of Estonia. To a state, in which peace, mutual respect and security of future, govern. Let's prove to us and show the world that we wish and continuously deserve such a state.
I would like to congratulate all of you on the birthday of the Republic of Estonia and wish faith, hope and love to all of us.
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