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EESTI ELU reedel, 20. augustil 2021 — Friday, August 20, 2021
Canada, Land of Refuge Toomas Lukk, Ambassador, Republic of Estonia
English-language supplement to the Estonian weekly “EESTI ELU” Tartu College Publications Founding Chairman: Elmar Tampõld Editor: Laas Leivat 3 Madison Avenue, Toronto, ON M5R 2S2 T: 416-733-4550 • F: 416-733-0944 • E-mail: editor@eestielu.ca Digital: www.eestielu.ca
Estonia asserts its continuity 30 years ago (III) The sights and sounds of restored independence, some personal vignettes On the morning of September 3, 1991 Minister Michael Wilson’s delegation on Cana dian military forces’ planes landed in Riga. As we finished taxiing to a distant location on the tarmac we were encir cled by dozens of men, all armed with AK-47s. Once we were out of the plane, we got a better view of the situation. The men, in civilian clothes, were not facing us. They were standing in a circle around the planes, facing outwards with weapons aimed at the rooftops of the various airport buildings. On September 21, 1991, by a vote of 133 to 13, the Latvian parliament declared the coun try’s immediate independence from the Soviet Union. This was several hours before Soviet troops began to withdraw from strategic locations such as radio stations and other government facilities of which they seized control during the attempted coup in Moscow. While there was a general ease of concern with the troops standing down, the possibility of rogue elements of the Black Berets remaining in Latvia caused lingering anxiety. After all, in January some 18 people had died in Lithuania and Latvia during fire fights with the Soviets. It was also reported that the deputy chairman of Latvia’s television committee had died as a result of the Black Beret occupation the day before. By aiming to ensure the safety of official visitors, Latvian authorities insisted that we were to be protected by armed security bodyguards, all battle-hardened in Afghanistan, when walking on Riga streets. Thus, in my few trips on foot through downtown Riga a young man, in civilian dress with an arm-band, accompanied me, holding a Kalashnikov at the ready, to which was at tached a taped-together banana clip. It seemed that the supply of extra ammunition meant he
was ready for a more prolonged fire fight rather than a few de fensive spurts. To p assers-by the Latvian colours worn by the young man probably mitigated the sense of menace in the young man’s appearance. But his substantial firepower still drew stares. The only Black Beretconnected person in Riga that I saw was the last head of Latvia’s KGB, as he walked down the stairs from the Parliament Buildings with a demeanor of total dejection and defeat. The centre of Riga is marked by the Freedom Monument, Brivibas pieminiekis, a soaring, sky-reaching needle-like struc ture, erected during the pre-war independence years. The monu ment commemorates the fallen in the War of Independence and celebrates Latvia’s freedom – clearly anti-Soviet concepts. Although it has been an imposing symbol of Latvian defiance of the Soviet occupa tion, it was never removed by Communist dictate. Some have pointed to its superb artistic value, others have suggested the fear of occupation authorities causing public unrest. In any case it was a rare situation in the Soviet Union to have such an in-your-face irritant survive totalitarian repression. The emotional significance for Michael Wilson to lay a wreath at the foot of this memorial was abundantly clear. It echoed the political support that Wilson always expressed in advocating freedom for the Baltics. The day in Riga was filled with the same visits to various ministries and capped with the signing of the diplomatic accord by Prime Minister Ivar Godmanis and Michael Wilson. On the morning of Sep tember 4, we embarked on the short flight to Tallinn. I was invited to join Wilson and his immediate advisors in the executive jet. A bottle of cham pagne was opened as we crossed the Latvian-Estonian border, a ritual that had been executed both for Lithuania and Latvia. (to be continued) LAAS LEIVAT
The erection of the memorial to the Victims of Communism is right thing to do. It reflects the history, identity and values of Canadians. August 23rd offers a stark reminder of dark times, when under the auspices of two dictators, Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin, the infamous MolotovRibbentrop pact was signed. The signing of the Pact stunned the world as an alliance be tween Communism and Nazism was inconceivable. The New York Times editorial of Sep tember 1939, however, con cluded that ideologically the Nazis and Soviets were not that far apart and depicted Hitlerism as brown communism and Stalinism as red fascism. The Pact divided Europe into spheres of influence and ultimately threw the world into a Second World War. Before, during, and after the War, millions of innocent people lost their lives due to the Nazi and Soviet anti-human ideologies. After the War, many previously independent nations lost their sovereignty as the “Iron Cur tain” fell on Europe dividing it ideologically into the Eastern and Western Block. After Hitler shot himself in 1945, Stalin continued to im plement his murderous and re pressive policies until his death in March 1953. (My own moth er-in-law, then 15 years old, had to cry at school. To drop a tear, children rubbed their un der-eyes with onion.) Stalin’s heavy hand landed not only on the “liberated” peoples of Eastern Europe but also on the Russian people themselves. It has been argued that during the Stalinist great purges in the 1930s every fourth Muscovite was killed or deported to the Gulag (the Soviet forced labor camp sys
tem) in Siberia. At its height, the Gulag network included hundreds of labor camps where many died of starvation, disease, exhaustion, or were executed. The atrocities of the Gulag system have had a long-lasting impact that still permeates Russian society to day. The Russian Federation, the legal successor state to the Soviet Union, has never recog nized the Soviet regime’s de portations, which are interna tionally regarded as crimes against humanity. President Putin’s view that the collapse of the Soviet Union was the “greatest geopo litical catastrophe” of the twen tieth century disrespects those nations that were forcibly an nexed and suffered under the communist yoke. Clearly, the collapse of the Soviet Union was the collapse of a regime ruled by a sham communist ideology. The disintegration of the Soviet Union was indeed not a great “geopolitical ca tastrophe” but instead a triumph of freedom and the most signif icant liberation of captive European n ations after WWII. Today, although originating from Ancient Greece, the pre vailing system of governance is democracy, the rule of the people. Since those times, the notion of democracy has taken a number of forms, both in theory and practice. Some regard their democracy “sovereign” or attach other “characteristics”. Regardless of manifestation, the meaning of democracy cannot be underestimated since antonyms to it are despotism, dictatorship, totalitarianism and tyranny – words which need no explanation. For Aristotle, how ever, the underlying principle of democracy is freedom, since only in a democracy can the citizens have a share in free dom and enjoy liberty.
Black Ribbon Day
Ribbentrop Pact and the events will be produced and published.
TORONTO – August 23, 2021 marks the 82nd anniversary of the signing of the infamous Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact which allowed Hitler and Stalin to carve up Central and Eastern Europe between them and enabled them to coordinate the start of WWII. In Canada, this day is known as Black Ribbon Day, A National Day of Remem brance for the Victims of Nazism and communism in Europe. The Central and Eastern European communities invite all Canadians to join the millions of Canadians whose families were victims of Nazi and Soviet tyranny by wearing a black ribbon and joining commemora tion events across Canada. Events will be held on August 22 and 23 in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver, and a video about the Molotov-
“While Western Europe was liberated by the Allied forces in 1945, most of Central and Eastern Europe remained cap tive behind the Soviet Iron Curtain until the early 1990s,” said CEE President, Marcus Kolga. “Today, the people of Belarus and Russia remain victims and prisoners of their authoritarian rulers and we stand with them today, as we remember the victims, in soli darity and hope that they too will once become free and democratic nations.”
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According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index for 2020, Canada ranks as one of the strongest democ racies in the world. Living in a democracy can help ensure that a person will be protected from arbitrary detention or death caused by a tyrannical regime. Democracies do not go to war against each other but uphold and protect human rights and the right to life. The Soviet communist regime, however, deprived millions of people of that right. Canadian Parliament’s unan imously adopted resolution in 2009, introduced by Ambas sador Bob Rae, calling on all Canadians to recognize August 23 as the Black Ribbon Day proves the strength of Canada’s democratic credentials. Who else but Canada, a land of refuge, knows better the price of human suffering and the hope and freedom it has pro vided for so many people. The families of millions of Central and Eastern Europeans who fled communist and Nazi terror have helped build the modern, vibrant and tolerant nation Canada is today. In this respect, the memorial to the Victims of Communism is the right thing to do. It is not a controversial issue since the victims cannot speak for them selves. It is a moral issue re flecting the history, identity, and values of Canadians. Many Central and Eastern European communities appre ciate the decision to erect the monument and anxiously await its completion. All victims – Belarussians, Estonians, Jews, Latvians, Lithuanians, Ukrai nians, Russians and others – deserve to have their memory honored and celebrated. The monument will remind us of the price of crimes against hu manity, which are timeless, and the value of human life.
The CEEC represents the i nterest of 4.5 million Canadians of Central and Eastern Euroepan heritage. Visit BlackRibbonDay.org for more information. Black Ribbon Day Events: Ottawa – Parliament Hill, Center Block Lawn, August 23, 2021, 4pm Toronto – Nathan Phillips Square Freedom Arches, August 23, 2021, 7pm Vancouver – Jericho Beach, August 22, 2021, 3pm
