Report no 1-2009
This report 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. While there are many legal questions involved, some of them touched upon by the author, for instance as regards the question of occupation vs. annexation and the consequences of the one or the other position, Vadim Poleshchuk makes a forceful argument on the effects of choosing a model of an ‘ethnic democracy’ and the incompatibility of nationalist projects with modern notions of human rights and protection of minorities. His analysis gives new information and insight about current debates in Estonia and the Baltic States.