The Ålands islands Peace Institute presents a new report in the report series “repost from the Åland Islands Peace Institute”. The report The War of the Monuments in Estonia: the Challenges of History and the Minority Population is written by the Estonian researcher Vadim Poleshchuk and covers the overlap between on the one hand minority issues and ethnic relations and on the other hand security concerns in the aftermath of the so called ‘war of monuments’ in Estonia. For most outsiders the importance of the issue became evident in the spring of 2007 when the controversy and the clashes around the Bronze Soldier in Tallinn shocked parts of Estonian society and wider Europe
Vadim Poleshchuk gives a lucid analysis of the diametrically different interpretations given in Estonia with regard to the history of the country, in particular as regards the Second World War.
He shows also how the controversy was used for political purposes by several actors.
The report can be downloaded here.