Bronze Soldier of Tallinn

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The Bronze Soldier in Tallinn. May, 2006.

The Bronze Soldier (Estonian: Pronkssõdur), originally Monument to the Liberators of Tallinn (Estonian: Tallinna vabastajate monument, Russian: Монумент освободителям Таллина), sometimes called the Tõnismäe Monument, was a Soviet World War II war memorial with the centerpiece sculpture designed in the socialistic realist style and located in central Tallinn, Estonia. The memorial was erected by the city of Tallinn and unveiled on September 22, 1947, on the third anniversary of Red Army re-taking Tallinn from Nazi Germany in 1944.

The monument consisted of a mastaba-like stonewall structure of dolomite and a two meter (6.5ft) bronze statue of a soldier in a WW2-era Soviet military uniform. It was located on Tõnismägi (during the Soviet years: Liberators' Square) above a small mass grave of reburied Soviet soldiers' remains, created in April 1945. The statue had significant symbolic value to Estonia's minority community of mostly ethnic Russian post-World War II immigrants; symbolising not only Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War, but also their claim to rights in Estonia. (See Background) Many Estonians considered the Bronze Soldier as a symbol of Soviet occupation and repression.

Amid political controversy, in April 2007 the Estonian government started preparations for the relocation of the statue and reburial of the remains in the mass grave. Although the general intention had been public since the winter, no specific timeline was released in advance. Disagreement over the appropriateness of the action led to mass protests and two nights of the worst rioting Estonia has seen. In the early hours of the first night's rioting, the Estonian government decided at an emergency meeting to dismantle the monument immediately. By the afternoon of April 27, 2007 the stone structure had been dismantled. As of the afternoon of April 30, the statue without the mastaba had been placed at the Cemetery of the Estonian Defence Forces in Tallinn. An opening ceremony for the relocated monument is planned for May 8, VE-Day. (Significantly, Red Army veterans celebrate Victory Day a day later, on May 9.) Reassembling the mastaba and reburial of the remains of the war victims found in the graves under the monument are expected to be completed by end of June.

Building and design

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After Estonia re-established independence in 1991, a footpath was made across the memorial area, where once an eternal flame had stood.

Construction plan of the monument site from June 12, 1945

The monument, with its figure of a soldier against a stone background, was created in 1947 by the Estonian sculptor Enn Roos and supervising architect Arnold Alas. It was unveiled on September 22, 1947, on the third anniversary of the Soviet Red Army entering Tallinn in 1944. Originally intended as an official war memorial to Soviet soldiers who died fighting in World War II, an eternal flame was added in front of the monument in 1964. The Soviet liberation theme was changed when Estonia re-established independence in 1991, now stating "For those fallen in World War II"; at the same time the eternal flame was put out.

Style and prototype

The Bronze Soldier is usually referred to as an example of the socialist realism. However, the monument is arguably not a typical example of that style as it violates some important socialist realistic clichés of its time. This is a statue of a stereotypical Estonian - with every effort put to show that he is not Slav - in a Red Army uniform. The soldier does not wear any prominent communist or Soviet symbols. He is not showing triumph of victory or a desire to revenge the dead; nor his love to Stalin and communism, nor people friendship. His weapon is barren on his back and only a burden for him; and he is in a deep sorrow. There is no direct clue to the cause of his sorrow; it could be interpreted as everything from the sorrow about his fallen comrades from Soviet Army, to the sorrow about lost independence. But most significantly: sorrow is not a valid emotion regarding the World War II in the totalitarian art of the Soviet Union of 1947.

The prototype for the face and figure of the statue is not known. It has been suggested to have been the Estonian 1936 Olympic gold medal wrestler Kristjan Palusalu, as there is a resemblance. The sculptor Enn Roos denied this and instead suggested that he used "a young worker who lived nearby", and there have been claims the worker he is referring to was a carpenter named Albert Johannes Adamson. Roos' denial could however have been motivated by the fact that Palusalu was a USSR defector.

Mass grave

On September 25, 1944, the remains of two Soviet soldiers were buried in the center of the Tõnismägi hill, with additional remains of Soviet soldiers reburied there in April 1945.. After the burial of the Red Army soldiers on Tõnismägi, the square was named Liberators’ Square on June 12, 1945 with the Bronze Soldier Monument added two years later. The exact number and names of the persons buried in the burial grounds under the monument had not been established with certainty before the excavations of 2007, although the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs had ordered a comprehensive historical investigation in 2006. According to official records of the Military Commissariat of the Baltic Military District, however, the following 13 soldiers who fell during World War II were reburied in the grounds in April 1945:

• Lieutenant Colonel Mikhail Kulikov (Михаил Петрович Куликов) - commander of the 657th regiment, born in 1909 in Morshansk, Tambov Oblast. Killed on 22 September, 1944.
• Captain Ivan Sysoyev (Иван Михайлович Сысоев) - political commissar of the 657th regiment, born in 1909 in village Topsa, Arkhangelsk Oblast. Killed on 22 September, 1944.
• Gefreiter (Senior Private) Dmitri Belov - 125th division (killed in a battle 45 km from Tallinn in September 1944)
• Colonel Konstantin Kolesnikov (Константин Павлович Колесников) - second commander of 125th division (killed on 21 September, 1944 in a battle 45 km from Tallinn). Born in 1897 in Zhilaya Kosa, Stalingrad Oblast.
• Captain Ivan Serkov (Иван Степанович Серков) - chief of intelligence, 79th light artillery brigade (killed on 21 September, 1944, in a battle 45 km from Tallinn). Born in 1922, Ryazan Oblast.
• Major Vasili Kuznetsov (Василий Иванович Кузнецов) - commander of 1222nd artillery regiment. Born in 1908 in Ivanovo Oblast. Killed on 22 September 1944.
• Lieutenant Vasili Volkov (Василий Егорович Волков) - commander of mortar platoon (125th division). Born in 1923 in Kalinin Oblast. Killed on 22 September 1944.
• Captain Aleksei Bryantsev (Алексей Матвеевич Брянцев) - 125th division. Born in 1917 in Altai Krai. Killed on 22 September 1944.
• Sergeant Stepan Hapikalo (Степан Илларионович Хапикало) - tank commander of the 26th tank regiment (according to official military sources died of a disease). Born in 1920 in Poltava Oblast. Died on 28 September 1944.
• First Sergeant, medic Jelena Varshavskaya (Елена Михайловна Варшавская) - division medical assistant of 40th Guard Mortars regiment (died 22 or 23 September 1944 in Tallinn). Born in 1925 in Poltava Oblast.
• Sergeant Aleksandr Grigorov - died 7 March 1945
• Lieutenant Colonel Kotelnikov - no information available
• Lieutenant I. Lukanov - no information available

On May 2, Estonian Ministry of Defence issued declaration that remains of 12 persons had been exhumed and would be reburied at the same cemetery where the statue of the Bronze Soldier was relocated. Furthermore, the archaeologists performing the digs have confirmed that no more burials have taken place on the grounds of the monument.

Controversy

Background

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A night vigil at the monument by members of the Nochnoy Dozor group on April 25, 2007 one day before its removal.

On August 20, 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Estonia adopted the Resolution on the Independence of Estonia formally “confirming” Estonia's independence (from the Soviet Union) and declaring its intention to establish diplomatic ties with foreign countries. At the time over a third of Estonia's population were descendants of mostly Russian-speaking Soviet economic migrants from post-World War II period, see Demographics of Estonia

By 1992, the pre-1940 citizenship law was reinstated, with an interpretation that reserved automatic Estonian citizenship to pre-1940 citizens and their descendants (jus sanguinis), including ethnic Russians who constituted 8.2% of Estonia's citizenry according to the 1934 census. Only Estonian citizens could vote in the 1992 constitutional referendum and the subsequent parliamentary elections, which brought to power prime minister Mart Laar's pro-restoration government. Post-1940 settlers and their descendants resident in Estonia could apply for citizenship after passing an Estonian language and history exam.

In 2006, over 16% of Estonia's residents were without Estonian citizenship. This makes Estonia one of the few countries in the world that have a major share of permanent residents without the right to vote in national elections. About a third of Estonia's Russians have Russian citizenship, another third are stateless persons, i.e. without any citizenship. While there have been calls for the return of all Estonia's Russians to Russia, the official government policy has been one of integration, expecting that Estonia's residents possess at least a basic command of Estonian language. According to Amnesty International the linguistic policy of Estonia discriminates against the human rights of the Russian speaking minority .

Interpretation of historical events lies at the core of ethnic controversies in Estonia. Many Estonian citizens regard the period of Soviet Estonia as an illegal occupation, a viewpoint that is the official position of the Estonian Government as well as major Western powers such as the USA. As a consequence, the population that immigrated during the Soviet occupation and their descendants have been labeled by some as illegal occupiers (Estonian: okupandid) or colonists. However, the Russian-speaking and non-citizen population largely views Estonia's annexation into USSR as a legitimate process; the official view of the Russian Federation. They tend to see the monument as a symbol of their purported right to live in Estonia as descendants of the "people that liberated the country from fascism".

Confrontation

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The statue in May 2006, cordoned off by police after the confrontation during the celebration of Victory in Europe Day.

Since the restoration of Estonian independence, the memorial has been a source of the controversy that intensified from time to time into direct confrontation. The Estonian authorities did not share a "liberating" sentiment that the monument symbolized at the Soviet times and downgraded the memorial significance. The eternal flame was put down immediately upon the Estonian redeclaration of independence. In 1994 the memorial underwent a "reconstruction". Following the reopening, the visitors found the bronze headstones over the tombs removed as well as the protective barrier surrounding the burial site dismantled and a trolleybus stop was installed right atop the mass grave.

World War II Soviet Army veterans and representatives of the Russian-speaking population have continued to gather at the monument on certain dates, celebrating May 9 (Victory Day) and September 22 ("Liberation of Tallinn" in 1944). The display of Soviet flags and other symbols at these gatherings has irritated Estonian nationals and the government.

A non-violent confrontation at the monument took place on May 9, 2006, when Estonian nationalists headed by Jüri Liim joined celebrating veterans. In the same month, the tensions rose again and the police kept a 24-hour patrol there, cordoning off the area until early September of that same year. A small group of Estonian Russians set up an organization Nochnoy Dozor (Night Watch), calling for nightly vigils at the monument.

War Graves Protection Act

On January 10, 2007, Riigikogu passed the War Graves Protection Act, with 66 votes in favor and 6 against, initiated by the Estonian Reform Party, Social Democratic Party, Res Publica Party and Isamaaliit Party. The preamble of the Act states:

"Respecting and recognizing Estonia’s obligation to ensure the honoring and dignified handling of the remains of the persons killed in the military action on the Estonian territory; noting that the burying of persons killed in the military action in unsuitable places is not in line with European culture and the tradition remembering the deceased and honoring their remains; Considering Article 34 of the Protocol Additional of 8 June 1977 (I) to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 On the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts, pursuant to which the state of Estonia is obliged to ensure the honoring of the remains of the deceased who died in the military actions on the territory of Estonia and respecting and marking of their grave sites, and pursuant to which the state of Estonia is justified to carry out the reburying of the remains proceeding from public interests, the Riigikogu has passed the present Act."

As the monument and the square are owned by the City of Tallinn, the monument could not legally be removed without their approval without law giving it special status. Estonia has mutual war grave protection treaties with Finland and Germany but not with Russia, giving special status to many war graves in Estonia but not the one on Tõnismägi. The War Graves Protection Act's major result was to codify the international customs and practices regarding the handling of war graves (see above) into country-unspecific terms, and to extend unilateral protection to war graves not covered by mutual international protection treaties. Most 20th century battles on Estonian soil having been fought by Soviet (largely ethnically-Russian), German, Estonian armies and a formation of the Finnish volunteers under Estonian command, almost all war graves in Estonia not covered by mutual treaties or earlier domestic laws are those of the Red Army.

Another effect of the law was that it placed all war graves under the jurisdiction of the Estonian Ministry of Defence. Tõnismägi being city land, municipal cooperation would have been necessary for exhumation and/or monument removal without such legislation. As Estonian non-citizens are allowed to vote in municipal elections and are largely in support of retaining the statue, the City Council of Tallinn has a large Russian representation; any approval was unlikely in the foreseeable future. The law eliminated the need to negotiate with the municipal government for war grave related business — specifically, exhumation of the buried bodies and, if the corpses would be found, relocation of the monument which would then be considered a grave marker.

The Act came into force on January 20, 2007.

Proposed Law on Forbidden Structures

On February 15, 2007, Riigikogu approved the Law on Forbidden Structures by 46 votes to 44. This would have banned the public display of monuments that glorify the Soviet Union or Estonia's fifty years of Bolshevism. The monument itself was specifically mentioned, to be dismantled within 30 days of the President signing this into law. However President Toomas Hendrik Ilves exercised his veto and refused to sign the law, arguing that it did not comply with the constitution of Estonia. A veto override was never attempted and this bill did not become law.

Ownership

Mayor Edgar Savisaar of the City of Tallinn has expressed concern that removal of the monument might constitute a breach of city property rights and violate the Constitution of Estonia. As of May 3, no known legal claims to the effect have been made by the City of Tallinn against the Ministry of Defence, or the Government of the Republic of Estonia.

Public perception

The idea of relocation was controversial among inhabitants of Estonia. According to the study of the Eesti Päevaleht in March 2007 only 38% of respondents supported the relocation of the monument, while 44% were against the relocation and 18% had not formed opinion on the subject. Relocation of the monument had slightly stronger support from the native Estonian speakers (47% in favour of the relocation), while only 10% of the native Russian speakers supported the relocation .

According to an opinion poll conducted by daily Estonian newspaper Postimees on 25 April when preparations for relocation already begun, 85.12% of online readers taking part in the pool voiced their support for the relocation, 12.98% didn't and the remaining were uncertain.

Events surrounding relocation

Police cordoning off the statue on April 26 2007. The sign says "archeological excavation".

Estonian Police cordoned off the square and nearby streets in early morning of April 26, 2007, in preparation for archaeological excavations in search of the remains and, if found, their relocation.

Planning of the operation was made by the Security Cabinet of the Government of Estonia. According to Government press representative "topics discussed at the national security council are treated as state secret". Although the general intention was public and widely reported by the Estonian and international press, no specific timeline or plans were released in advance. A tent structure was erected to shield the excavations from weather, and from public view. Three members of protest organizers "Night Watch" who were monitoring the situation declined to leave the area and locked themselves in their car. Police had to break a side window of the car to extract them forcibly, causing slight shard wounds to one. Having been removed, Night Watch spread rumours that the monument removal procedure had started. After a few hours, around 1,000 people, mostly Russian-speaking, had surrounded the police cordon and some from the group attempted to break through it. Several meetings in protest of the removal were held. Around dusk, the mob turned more and more violent, starting to throw stones and empty bottles at the police. By around 21:20, the mob activity turned to what police considered the first night's riot.

In the early morning of April 27, 2007, at 3:40 a.m. local time, the Estonian government decided, upon advise from the Estonian Security Council, at an emergency meeting to relocate the monument immediately (as 'the ground for violent acts'). Three hours later by 6:40 a.m. the monument had been moved to an undisclosed provisional location.

The government stated that the statue would be re-erected as soon as possible in a military cemetery maintained by the Estonian Defence Forces. As of the afternoon of April 30 the statue without the mastaba had been re-erected. Reassembling the mastaba has been delayed out of concerns over the æsthetic qualities of the site on reopening, as the mastaba's weight requires a new foundation to be constructed out of concrete, and this can not be done rapidly enough. It is estimated this would be done by the end of June.

An ecumenical religious ceremony (prayer for the dead) was held on April 28 before commencing the exhumation, by a Lutheran and Orthodox chaplain. The Russian ambassador, having been invited to monitor the exhumation, or appoint an observer, officially declined the invitation.

As the former site of the monument and of the now-empty mass grave is city property, the government's position is that it is the responsibility of Tallinn Municipal Government to decide what to do next with Tõnismägi hill, former location of the monument, after the exhumation has been completed. No definite plans have been published as of May 3.

Riots and violence

Protests in downtown Tallinn after police cordoned off the streets around the memorial, driving protesters toward the city centre.

Burning kiosk, April 26, 2007.

April 26 - April 27

Estonia's authorities report that the violence started around 21:20 (EEST, UTC+3), as the protesters started to assault the policemen. Riot police responded by firing what was reported to be tear gas to disperse the crowd. However, the crowd did not disperse and started committing acts of vandalism and rampant looting of nearby shops and buildings. By midnight the riots had spread around the centre of Tallinn, with massive damage to property — a total number of 99 cases of vandalism, including cars that had been turned upside down, broken and looted shop windows, pillaged bars and kiosks.

By 2 AM, things had calmed down a little; over 100 people had been arrested. At about half past two (AM), reports came in that mass riots had ended and now the police were only looking for fugitives. The last of the violent protesters were apparently taken away by a large passenger bus. By morning 300 people had been arrested. 57 people were injured, including 14 police officers. Dmitry Ganin (Russian national) died in a hospital from a stabbing wound, inflicted perhaps by a vandal. According to the officials, his death was not the result of police activity, and the investigation continues. According to police report, pockets of deceased Dmitri Ganin were full of items stolen from vandalized stores.

Tallinn City Council has suspended all strong alcohol retail licenses inside the city borders for a week. There have been concerns, mostly in foreign media, that the protest may escalate into an ethnic conflict between Estonians and members of ethnic Russian minority. Kavkazcenter extremists even speculate that conflicts may spark a Russian armed resistance with support from FSB (the former KGB).

April 27

The night of April 27 saw a recurrence in violence, with a second night of protests. Protesters used Molotov cocktails while police responded with CS gas, rubber bullets and watercannons. Rioting and looting in the towns of North East Estonia (mainly Jõhvi) with a majority of Russian speaking population, were also reported. Estonian sources attributed the disruptions to youths consuming stolen alcohol. In all, some 1,000 people were detained in two nights of rioting. 156 were injured (including some two dozen police officers) and numerous stores, offices and homes were damaged. As there have been too many arrests for the normal pre-trial detention centers, suspects were taken to a holding area near the Terminal D of the Tallinn Seaport .

April 28 - April 29

Calm was restored throughout the day and night of April 28 without further major incidents, but police launched a campaign to take on "police assistance" volunteers, and by Sunday evening more than 700 persons had signed up and started training.

On April 28 a declaration by a self-named Army of Russian Resistance Kolyvan started circulating in Russian language Internet forums. The declaration called for "all Russian men living in Estonia" to take up arms. It demanded that Estonian citizenship be granted to all Estonian residents by May 3, threatening to start an armed resistance on May 9. At this time, it is not clear whether this group is the one described by the KavkazCenter report (see above) or is a copycat inspired by it.

April 30

No major incidents have been reported, but some vehicle drivers have tried to block the traffic in the center of Tallinn by intentionally driving at a slow speed and excessively using car horn.

The Union of the Peoples of Estonia (Eestimaa Rahvuste Ühendus, an association of minority ethnicities living in Estonia) has published a declaration today, condemning vandalism and maraudery.

A Russian State Duma delegation led by the former FSB Director Nikolay Kovalev has also arrived in Estonia, in what was described as a "fact finding mission". While still in Russia, the chairman of the delegation had already made a declaration, asking Estonia's government (led by Andrus Ansip) to step down. Sven Mikser, leader of the of foreign affairs' commission of the Riigikogu, who was one of the Estonian politicians to meet the Russian delegation, expressed his regret that the Russians had come with prejudices and had intervened in Estonia's internal affairs (e.g. by calling for Estonia's government to resign ). Later in the day, the reappearance of the bronze soldier threw the Duma's fact finding mission off course, with delegation leader Kovalev saying that he hadn't been invited by the Estonian authorities to the ceremony at the military cemetery.

There have been some voices that call for cabinet resignation among the Estonian public as well. The most aggressive criticism has been made by members of the Center Party, who were left out of the coalition talks during the recent elections.

May 1

Russian State Duma delegation visited the new location of the statue, placed flowers and a wreath in front of the bronze soldier. The delegation members also closely examined the figure and claimed that it had been cut in pieces and reassembled. The Ministry of Defence denied those claims. "The lines on the statue are because of bronze casting technology and from the time the statue was created," said the press representative of Estonian Ministry of Defence. Those kind of statues are being made in several pieces and later assembled in one.

Estonia's Foreign Minister Urmas Paet said that the European Union has promised to help end a siege at the Estonian embassy in Moscow. Paet had spoken to his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier who "promised speedy assistance from the European Union to normalise the situation around the Estonian embassy in Moscow." Germany currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU.

The two-day visit by the Russian fact finding delegation was originally set up to defuse a diplomatic dispute over the Bronze Soldier statue, but it only appeared to have escalated the feud. Foreign Minister Urmas Paet issued a statement saying: "I will not meet with a delegation that spreads only lies regarding events in Estonia and whose objective is not the accurate portrayal of the situation, but rather election campaigning".

Claims of police brutality

The secretary of the Estonian Anti-Fascist Committee and at the same time the chairman of the Constitution Party Andrei Zarenkov claimed that as detention centers are overcrowded many of the detainees were taken to a cargo terminal in Tallinn seaport. "People were forced to squat for hours or lie on the concrete floor with their hands tied behind their backs. The police used plastic handcuffs which caused great pain," he said. "The security men selectively beat the detainees including women and teenagers. We have an account that they beat a 12-year-old girl lying on the floor for attempting to stand up. We have pictures of a toilet which is stained with the blood of the injured detainees," Zarenkov said. He said that all the accounts would be collected, documented and submitted to human rights groups.

The police has denied the claims of the Anti-Fascist Committee. A spokesman for the northern police prefecture, Harrys Puusepp, refuted the charges of ill treatment of the detainees and also said that rumors of the resignation of police officers (see below) are untrue. "Nobody has beaten them. They have been treated politely. All amenities were provided for them and medical assistance was offered. Those who spent more than 12 hours in detention were supplied with meals," he said.

The Estonian Chancellor of Justice has checked on these claims, visited all detention centres, and found no signs of violations of Constitution, nor any detainees who would support claims of police brutality or make complaints .

On May 1 Finnish tabloid Iltalehti published an interview with German nationals Klaus and Lucas Dornemanns (65 and 35 years old) . According to their story the Dornemanns were just walking in the area of Freedom Square when they were beaten and arrested by the police. However by their own later admission they attempted to cross the square between the lines of the security forces and demonstrators who were in a stand-off position. The son spent 8 hours in the terminal D and his 65-year old father 10 hours. According to them at least half of the detainees had no connection to the vandalism on the Tallinn streets. Still they were denied access to water and toilets, they were even forbidden to move. If anybody attempted to stand up they were beaten by the police. The article provides photograph of the Dornemanns showing large hematomas over their bodies.

Members of the special fact-finding mission of Russian Federation's Duma also visited the WCs of the detention area in temporary detention area in the D terminal of Port of Tallinn, looking for blood stains caused by beatings erroneously reported by some newspapers, and found none.

Zarenkov also claimed that about 350 Russian-speaking police officers want to resign, or have already resigned, from Estonian police force so as not to participate in ostensibly violent actions to stop the unrest, such as mandatory beating of women and children. Such claims have been refuted by Estonian police.

A number of video clips, usually taken via cellphone camera, have appeared on Youtube under the keyword 'eSStonia', ostensibly to corroborate the police brutality claims. According to Estonian newspaper Eesti Päevaleht, most of them are mislabelled, apparently in an attempt to frame the incidents recorded in the clips in a pro-rioter way. For example, the clip labelled "eSStonia - Police car crushes pedestrians crowd" features no pedestrian-menacing cars.

Situation at the Estonian embassy in Moscow

In the days following the relocation, the Estonian embassy in Moscow was besieged by protesters, including pro-Kremlin youth organisations Nashi and the Molodaya Gvardiya.

On Monday, April 30, 2007, Estonia's foreign minister Urmas Paet reported that "the situation had become much worse in the previous night. The building is by now completely blocked." Paet says that Estonia's foreign ministry had sent a note to Russia's foreign ministry, due to Russia's apparent unwillingness and impotency to defend the embassy building and its staff (which violates Diplomatic law, especially the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations). Estonia's foreign ministry claims that the life and health of the diplomats and their family members residing in Moscow have been directly threatened.

Estonia's president Toomas Hendrik Ilves expressed his astonishment that Russia has - despite the promises of foreign minister Lavrov - not taken actions to protect the diplomatic personnel. In Ilves' opinion, the ostensible powerlessness of Russia's defense services (e.g. Omon) is especially surprising, given their quick work when dispersing meetings of Russian opposition forces.

On the same day, members of the crowd protesting before the embassy declared that if Estonian authorities would not set a date for the restoration of the Bronze Soldier statue in its former prominent place, they would begin demolishing the Estonian embassy building on May 1st (traditionally also Labour Day, important in Russia and the former Soviet Union). The building itself was covered with graffiti and stones were thrown at it.

During the night, protestors, both from pro-Putin and Communist parties, were playing and singing aloud famous Soviet war marches of the Red Army. They called the Estonians Fascists.

On May 2 the protestors attacked the Estonian ambassador, Marina Kaljurand, despite diplomatic immunity. The vehicle of the Swedish ambassador was also attacked. Family members of the embassy staff have been evacuated. During the night of May 2 - May 3, the Estonian embassy in Moscow was stoned by unknown vandals; there were also protests around the embassy of Georgia (Georgia has expressed support for Estonia) .

On May 3, the ambassador Kaljurand left Moscow on a two-week vacation. The protesters ended their blockade the same day. There has been speculation that the vacation was suggested by Germany's Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier (by means of behind-the-scenes realpolitik) to soothe Russian-Estonian tensions.

Threatened and alleged sanctions

On May 2, Estonian foreign minister Urmas Paet made a proposal to the European Union to bring down sanctions against Russia and to postpone the Russia-EU summit which is scheduled for mid-May.

On May 3, 2007, Russia suddenly announced plans for repairs to railway lines to Estonia, disrupting oil and coal exports to Estonia. As a result, oil companies scurried to secure alternative export routes. Normally Estonia's ports handle about a quarter of such shipments from Russia to world markets. Although Russia denied it was imposing economic sanctions or taking politically inspired action against Estonia, it is suspected that the sudden railway repair plan is connected to the row over the war memorial.

The Russian transport firm Severstaltrans says it is suspending construction of an $80m (£40m) car plant in Estonia.

Claims of pro-rioter propaganda

During the events, a number of propaganda efforts were undertaken by various people and groups of people that served to muddy the issue, confuse the state of the monument, and inflame the pro-monument (mostly Russian-speaking) population. Even before the first riot, rumours were circulated that under cover of the tent, the monument had been demolished and the war victims buried underneath thrown out as trash. These rumours were supported with a fake photo depicting the statue sawed off above feet. Picked up by Russian media, the rumors were sometimes falsely attributed as public statements of "Estonian government press service".

After the first night of rioting, the direction of the propaganda changed towards attempts to justify the rioting, declaring the rioters to be peaceful demonstrators and the arrested suspected vandals political prisoners, and making various accusations towards the government of Estonia.

Leader of the Constitutional party Andrei Zarenkov claimed on Friday morning that the bones had already been dug up and thrown away and the statue cut to pieces and scrapped. He was sure, it was never going to be restored . A day later the same man claimed that more than 350 ethnic Russian police officers have already or will be resigning shortly in protest to having to discipline rioters. His claims were soon said to be an outright lie by police officials.

According to Estonian Minister of Justice, Rein Lang, several websites of Estonian government agencies had been attacked from a number of sources, and some of the IP-addresses belong to state authorities of Russian Federation .

Claims of pro-rioter propaganda in Russia

Russian news sources have reported various rumours mentioned above as facts. This has caused confusion of the situation among people served by Russian-language media, and may have influenced the severity of the situation at the Estonian embassy in Moscow.

Distinctly, many participants in the blockade believe that what were characterised as "riots" by Estonian official sources were actually a peaceful political demonstration and that Dmitri (or Dmitry) Ganin, the man that died in the riots died through police brutality while attempting to defend the monument. He has been declared a "hero of Russia" by activists involved in the blockade.

These views were also reflected by the special fact-finding mission of Russian Duma members who, upon arrival, declared the head of the Nochnoy Dozor advocacy group Dmitri Linter, who is arrested under suspicion of causing riots, a political prisoner and demanded to visit him.

Law enforcement response

The police are treating the riots as disorderly conduct (a misdemeanor under Estonian law) or group disorderly conduct (a felony under Estonian law), depending on the circumstances of any particular incident, and are proceeding accordingly. About 1,000 suspected rioters were arrested. Acts of vandalism and looting are treated separately, and processed as criminal incidents separate from the rioting.

Three men have been detained under a court order for up to 6 months, pending investigation of the suspicion of organising riots (a felony under Estonian law punishable of imprisonment of up to 5 years).

Since the riots took place in the centre of the city, after hours of tension, many thousands of frames of photographic and video material of the events are available, both from journalists and security cameras and from witnesses among general public (who usually used cellphone cameras). The police have gathered a number of such photographs depicting unidentified suspects on a website at [5] (not available from outside Estonia while a foreign DDoS attack on Estonian government servers is underway) and asked the public to identify such unidentified people.

The police have also called for rioters and looters to turn themselves in voluntarily. Aiding law enforcement in investigating one's own unlawful acts, including turning oneself in before an arrest warrant has been issued, is considered a meritorious deed and grounds for lessening punishment under Estonian law.

Political reaction

Estonia — President Toomas Hendrik Ilves appealed for calm and denounced the rioters as "criminals" due to the damage they had caused:

"All this had nothing to do with the inviolability of graves or keeping alive the memory of men fallen in World War II"… "The common denominator of last night’s criminals was not their nationality, but their desire to riot, vandalize and plunder".

Estonia — Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said in a televised address, in Estonian and Russian, that he was forced to remove the statue after the first riots on Thursday night. He said the statue was under police guard and was safe. It and any remains would be moved to a military cemetery.

"We must not let the sowers of hatred become the ones to split the nation or to plant prejudice," he said. "All nationalities were respected" ... "but violence was not". The memory of dead soldiers was not served when "a picture of a drunk shoplifter is being shown all over the world."

Russia — The Federation Council, on April 27, approved a statement concerning the monument, which urges the Russian authorities to take the "toughest possible measures" against Estonia:

The dismantling of the monument on the eve of Victory Day on May 9 is "just one aspect of the policy, disastrous for Estonians, being conducted by provincial zealots of Nazism,"… "These admirers of Nazism forget that politicians come and go, while the peoples in neighboring countries are neighbors for eternity. The dismantling of the monument and the mockery of the remains of the fallen soldiers is just more evidence of the vengeful policy toward Russians living in Estonia and toward Russia".

Russia — First Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov said that adequate measures, primarily, economic ones, should be taken against Estonia:

"In particular, Russia must speed up the construction of modern ports on Russian territory on the Baltic Sea, in the towns of Ust-Luga, Primorsk and Vysotsk. Thereby, we will handle our own cargo flow and not allow other countries, including Estonia, to benefit from its transit. I have already ordered and instructed the Minister of Transport accordingly."

European Union — Although the EU has not issued an official statement, foreign policy chief Javier Solana has voiced support for Estonia and denounced violence in the wake of a night of unrest in Tallinn:

"Solana phoned President Toomas Hendrik Ilves today and said the EU understands and supports Estonia", the president's adviser Toomas Sildam said.

European Union — At 2nd May, EU demanded Russia to implement the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and secure proper protection for the Estonian embassy in Moscow. EuroCommission spokesperson Christiana Homan said:

We share the concern about the growing tension around Estonia’s embassy, and demand that Russian authorities implement their obligations within the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,

NATO - NATO statement on Estonia:

NATO is deeply concerned by threats to the physical safety of Estonian diplomatic staff, including the Ambassador, in Moscow, as well as intimidation at the Estonian Embassy. These actions are unacceptable, and must be stopped immediately; tensions over the Soviet war memorial and graves in Estonia must be resolved diplomatically between the two countries. NATO urges the Russian authorities to implement their obligations under the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations.

UN — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on Russia and Estonia to resolve their dispute over the removal of a Soviet war memorial from the Estonian capital:

The Secretary-General regrets the violence and the loss of life in Tallinn, Estonia. He appeals to all concerned to deal with the issues at hand in a spirit of respect and conciliation.

Latvia — The Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs "strongly condemns acts of vandalism in Tallinn which took place over night between 26 and 27 April" according to their press release:

"In a democratic country, any group of society which disagrees with government decisions is free to express its own opinion, however, it must not violate the law. Acts of vandalism which pose a threat to the life and health of people and damage and destroy property have nothing in common with the democratic forms of protest."

Lithuania — President of the Republic of Lithuania Valdas Adamkus announced that Lithuania is concerned and watching over the events in Tallinn and that it fully supports the positions of the Estonian government.

"There is no doubt that respect should be shown to the memory of the fallen soldiers. However, the Soviet Army didn't bring freedom to the Baltic states, so can we blame Estonia if the Soviet soldiers' remains from a central Tallinn square are reinterred in another cemetery? "

Lithuania — Lithuanian Sejm unanimously passed a statement in Estonia’s support, calling Russia’s response to the Bronze Soldier’s removal an:

"interference into Estonia’s domestic affairs”. “Considering the events in Tallinn, and the interior and international tension they caused, Sejm of Lithuania stands together with the Estonian government on the issue of moving the monument to Soviet soldiers from the center of Estonia’s capital to a war memorial,"

Finland — Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen noted that the "...demonstrations and riots are of course an interior matter of Estonia," in an interview given to television:

"Finland nor other countries do not have to get involved. As they are occurring in an area near Finland, then we will of course keep a very close eye on them."

"It is not part of international etiquette for politicians to request the resignation of a foreign government's ministry, it just doesn't suit"

Poland — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement, hoping that clashes in Estonia would calm down. The ministry also called on the European Union to show support for Estonia, saying:

"[Estonia] should not be left to stand alone" ... "Yet again the difficult history is casting a shadow on relations between states and nations and ethnic groups".

Poland — President Lech Kaczynski held a two telephone conversations with Estonian President Toomas Ilves, during which he expressed support for actions made by Estonian authorities and declared Poland will make appropriate actions within European Union to support Estonia. Among other topics, conversation also involved the situation of Estonian Embassy in Moscow..

Poland - The Polish Minister of Culture Kazimierz Ujazdowski has confirmed on 30th of April that symbols of the communist dictatorship will be removed from the streets all over the country. He said that, on May 15, a new law will go into effect that will make it easier for local authorities to remove communist symbols . However, this law will not apply to memorials which honor Soviet soldiers and will in fact specifically protect them.

Belarus — On April 27 Belarusian MFA Press Secretary Andrei Popov in his Comments on the Events in Estonia said that

"Belarus is the country that lost every third of its citizens during the Second World War. Any outrage upon the memory of the victims of that war causes us the sentiments of deep indignation and regret. ... We believe that today it is obvious to everybody that the irresponsible actions of the authorities were the major cause for such dramatic events. We regret that the Estonian leadership has failed to have enough political wisdom not to fight the dead. ... We are also outraged with the unjustified and brutal use of force by the Estonian police towards peaceful demonstrators that led to escalated violence and unrest in the Estonian capital."

Germany — Although Germany has not issued an official statement, Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat reported that German Chancellor Angela Merkel phoned both Andrus Ansip and Vladimir Putin and asked that the parliaments of the two countries start discussions over the conflict.

Ukraine — On May 1 the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk in his comments on the situation, which emerged following dismantling of the memorial of the Soldier Liberator in the centre of Tallinn, said that "Ukraine advocates the soonest resolution of temporary misunderstandings in bilateral relations of Russia and Estonia." Arseniy Yatsenyuk stressed the necessity to hold procedure of removal of the memorial in accordance with existing standards, rendering the necessary honours to soldiers of the Second World War. At the same time he urged to respect position of Estonian authorities as well.

Sweden — Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt said that what is happening in Estonia is an internal matter and that the outcome forms an intricate part of Estonia's independence. He has faith in the Estonians to sort it out and believes it to be important that they do so themselves, without international interference. Carl Bildt also pointed out that he "understands why the popular reaction about the statue has been so sharp":

"If somebody had erected a statue of King Christian the Tyrant in Stockholm 500 years after [the Stockholm Bloodbath of 1520], it would also have been a subject of controversy.

Norway — Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced that both sides should stop the violence and start respecting each other.

Kyrgyzstan — On April 27 the Kyrgyz Parliament condemned the dismantling of the monument, calling it "an act against history."

United States - on May 2, USA's State Department released a press statement, stating that "[d]ecisions on placement of the memorial to soldiers who died fighting the Nazis in World War II belong to the Estonian government" and expressing concern about continuing reports of violence and harassment, including harassment of Estonian diplomatic personnel and premises in Moscow.

United States - On May 3, the United States Senate expressed "its strong support for Estonia as a sovereign state and a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as it deals with matters internal to its country".

Georgia - Georgia expressed support to Estonia:

“Georgia categorically condemns Russia’s inability to end assaults on the Estonian embassy in Moscow and on the Estonian Ambassador”

according to Georgian Parliament’s speaker Nino Burjanadze, who added that Russia’s constant intervention into Estonia’s domestic affairs violates international conventions

Serbia - On May 3, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia issued a statement:

"The future of Europe is also based on full commitment to shared and best pages of European history, whereas the victory over Nazism and fascism more than half a century ago undoubtedly ranks among those pages deserving lasting admiration among all in Europe and in the world."

Condemning the unilateral action by Estonian authorities on the eve of 9 May as contrary to this commitment, it states: "The highest respect for such monuments in today’s Germany is noteworthy. We in Serbia shall forever place flowers on the graves of the Red Army soldiers fallen in the battles for the liberation of Serbia and Belgrade from Nazi occupiers. We shall do so also on 9 May this year."

Other reaction

Gerhard Schröder, former German Chancellor (socialist, SPD) and current chairman of a shareholders' committee of a gas consortium controlled by the Russian Gazprom, said that the removal was insulting to Russians who died fighting Nazi Germany:

"The way Estonia is dealing with the memory of young Russian soldiers who lost their lives in the fight against fascism is in bad taste and irreverent"

File:Flag of Tajikistan (bordered).svg The Tajik Council of War Veterans condemned the removal of the statue, stating, "Estonian bureaucrats are behaving like fascists."

Katyn Committee (relatives of Polish officers, who were executed on the orders of the Soviet authorities in the village of Katyn) in Poland, said:

"[Estonia] suffered from the Soviet occupation, while Soviet monuments have always been the symbol of slavery and lies, as well as Russian chauvinism. The Katyn Committee expresses solidarity with the sovereign government of Estonia and approves its decision to remove the Soviet monuments, sites of the 'Red' empire. We are indignant at Russian official statements threatening to cut off diplomatic ties with Estonia."

On April 28 three large Russian supermarket networks: Seventh Continent, Kopeika and Samokhval banned all Estonian commodities.

The Mayor of Tallinn and the oppositional Centre Party chairman Edgar Savisaar condemned the disproportional use of force by the police stating that there is no explanation why several policemen should apply physical force against a handcuffed detainee. He also stated that the central government should compensate the city of Tallinn the losses caused by the unrest over the relocation of the monument. According the Savisaar the direct losses exceed 40..50 million Estonian kroons (2.5 - 3 million EUR) As a reaction to his statement (disapproved of by many leading Estonian politicians), the Estonian National Movement started to collect signatures on Internet for Mayor Savisaar's resignation.

On May 1 Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov has proposed to boycott everything related to Estonia for "actions taken against the Bronze Soldier Monument and graves of our soldiers". He said that Russian companies should cut their relations with partners in Estonia. "One should tell our business: stop contacts with Estonia. The country showed its negative, and I would say fascist face," the mayor said, adding: "No one will be able to re-write the history."

International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights:

"According to media reports as well as reports received by the IHF, police in some cases used disproportionate force against riot participants. Some protesters were reportedly hit with batons, beaten and mistreated after being taken into custody in a temporary detention facility established in a terminal at the Tallinn port. Some cases of apparent police brutality were documented by TV broadcasts and cell phone recordings.

The riots in Tallinn and other Estonian cities have served to highlight remaining problems relating to the integration of the country’s Russian-speaking minority, which constitutes about one third of the 1.4 million residents. Despite a number of important legislative reforms since the first years of independence, this minority is still not officially recognized as a linguistic minority and continues to face discrimination and exclusion in everyday life, thus fostering frustration and resentment among its members. Many Russian-speakers still lack Estonian citizenship, Russian-language education has gradually been reduced and stringent language requirements restrict access to the labor market for Russian-speakers. "

The veteran politician and human rights activist Sergey Kovalyov writes in the Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza that Russia's position is hypocritical and implies double standards. In his opinion Russia opposes the removal of the monument because it is still led by successors of the Stalinist era, who have never apologized to the Eastern Europe for having turned it into a concentration camp.

Estonian media expert Tarmu Tammerk compares heavy criticism and calls to discharge of sociologist Juhan Kivirähk, who called for resignation of Estonian government, to an attempt of the Ansip government to establish "üks rahvas, üks riik, üks juht" ("one people, one state, one leader") ideology referring to the notorious citation "Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer" by Adolf Hitler and states that sociologists must have full freedom of speech .

Andres Põder the current Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Estonia, said that it was right thing for defending grave peace to rebury Soviet soldiers' remains to cemetery and also remove memorial which had became symbol of occupation and ground of political provocations..

Artur Taevere, founder of Heateo Sihtasutus, and other young volunteers have started a campaign "Valge tulp / Белый тюльпан", asking Estonians and Russians to place white tulips at sites that are of emotional value to members of the other ethnic community to counteract the bad feelings that the events have caused.

On May 7 Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar has called on the Estonian authorities to review their position regarding the reburial of the remains of Soviet soldiers in Tallinn. He said that "When Nazism unfortunately rears its ugly head in Europe today and as there have been attempts to deny the Holocaust, Estonia is acting in a manner that insults memory, which alarms us". He added that "The Jewish people will always regard what the Soviet soldiers did as a heroic feat" In addition, Jews consider remains of those people "holy, and reburial is allowed only in exceptional cases."

On May 1 Patriarch Alexius II of Moscow and All Russia, who was born in Tallinn, said after a service at Moscow's Intercession Monastery that The Estonian government's struggle against the memory of soldiers who fell in battle against fascism is indecent. "Fighting against the dead, against the soldiers who have always been honored by all nations, is the most unworthy deed. It is immoral to profane the memory of the dead", he said. "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. This is what Christ our Savior said." The Patriarch added that "When (Estonian) political leaders use the words as “drunkards” and “marauders”, it is unworthy of the politician or a statesman.

On May 3 The Russian Congress of Jewish Religious Organizations and Associations (KEROOR) issued a statement criticizing the Estonian government for relocating a Soviet WWII memorial in Tallinn and for alleged Nazi sympathies. "The demonstratively defiant form in which the Estonian authorities have dismantled the Monument to the Liberator Warrior and are relocating the nearby grave of soldiers who gave their lives fighting fascism is not an accidental or spontaneous act," the KEROOR said in a statement. "Estonian authorities prefer to gloss over the fact that punitive detachments and the Estonian SS legion killed between 120,000 and 140,000 Russians, Jews, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Gypsies, and people of other ethnic groups during 1941-1944."

On April 30 Simon Wiesenthal Center criticized the removal from the center of Tallinn to a military cemetery by the Estonian government late last week of a Soviet memorial commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany, which had stood for decades in the center of the Estonian capital. In a statement issued in Jerusalem by its chief Nazi-hunter, Israel director Dr. Efraim Zuroff, the Center noted that the removal of the monument minimizes the severity of the crimes of the Holocaust in Estonia and insults the Nazis‘victims in the country. Estonia received an “F” or failing grade in the Wiesenthal Center’s last (2007) Annual Status Report on the worldwide investigation and prosecution of Nazi war criminals.

See also

• History of Estonia
• Holocaust in Estonia
• Baltic Russians
• Socialist realism
• Freedom Monument (Riga)
• Monument of Lihula
• Khimki War Memorial
• Kopli cemetery

External links

Photos and Videos

• QTVR fullscreen panorama near Bronze Soldier Monument (May 9, 2005)

Opponents of the relocation

• bronze-soldier.com - (Forum)
• Protest against removal of the monument Template:Ru icon
• Declaration of Estonian Left Party
• Petition of the "night patrol"

Supporters of the relocation

• An article depicting the views of the monument opponents
• The Independent: 'Don't let Russia bully the Baltics'
• Shawn Macomber, "Another Red Square Bites the Dust", The American Spectator, May 2, 2007

Neutral views

• News about Estonian events on 26 April 2007 and comments from residents of Tallinn about what happened
• Scientific study (translation into English) about the historical background of the monument - offline due to DDoS attack, (Google cache)
• Statue Symbolizes Grudges Against Russia - Associated Press
• Government compensates owners for damage caused by vandals - Press release of the Government of Estonia

Protest and riots

• Tiblad Tõnismäel 26.04.2007 - Photographs of mass protests at monument (Note: Tiblad from Russian "you whore!" has replaced okupandid as the most common derogatory term used by the Estonina population and press for the non-citizen population.)
• Pictures of looters on the homepage of the Estonian Police
• Postimees newspaper pictures of riots

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