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EESTI ELU reedel, 6. novembril 2020 — Friday, November 6, 2020
Nr. 44
The referendum has already started Urmas Reinsalu, Minister of Foreign Affairs (Isamaa), ERR, October 2020
Capital Campaign Update: The International Estonian Centre (IEC) project team is pleased to announced that good progress is being made on all aspects of developing the new home for the global and local Estonian community https://www.estoniancentre.ca/post/planning and that the Capital Campaign is resuming. The Toronto Estonian House sale closed on September 1, 2020 and the project is proceeding with next steps toward opening the new Centre in mid-2022.
New centre will be a beacon to bring together Estonians from all corners of the world For Helve Hess Barnett and Ryan Barnett of the U.S., the decision to become Viru Vanemad donors to the International Estonian Centre (IEC) will help keep the Estonian spirit burning bright within their family and beyond. Helve and Ryan have lived in California since 2011, when a job offer from Google attracted them to the U.S. Helve is a lawyer, and Ryan is a Director on the Android team at the company’s headquarters. The donation the family made was matched dollar for dollar by Google. The couple have three children: Aksel, 5; Teija, 3; and Villem,1. Helve, whose parents are Allan and Riina Hess (the couple is spearheading the Viru Vanemad portion of the IEC’s Capital Campaign), was raised in Toronto’s active Estonian community. “Estonian activities were a big part of my life when I was growing up,” Helve noted. “We would attend guides, Estonian school, and many other events several times a week; not to mention Estonian summer camps throughout the summer months.” “Supporting this new centre makes me even more proud of my roots and allows me to feel connected to other Estonians. It will help keep our culture alive.” Ryan, who is originally from Orillia, Ontario is right in step with this decision. “When I married into the Hess family, it quickly became apparent that Estonian activities would be a big part of our world,” he laughs. “I really enjoy this part of our life. I am very proud and humbled to be part of this community.” Besides looking forward to their own personal connection, Helve and Ryan are also excited about the international aspect of the new centre’s future mandate. “The business accelerator planned to be included in the centre is a wonderful opportunity to build new Estonian business connections globally,” Helve said. Ryan points out that the IEC’s hightech features and capability will attract business opportunities as well as users who wish to rent the space. “The scale of the project, and the modern and forward-thinking way the centre is being designed, matches its international focus and intent,” he said. “It won’t just be valuable for Torontonians, it will help build worldwide connections.” The couple also plan to visit the IEC with their children during twice-yearly
trips to Toronto, as they typically participate in Estonian activities when they come back to the city. They feel the downtown location next to Tartu College, known as the Bloor Street Culture Corridor - and home to major institutions such as the University of Toronto, the Royal Conservatory of Music and the Royal Ontario Museum – is a huge plus. “It’s in such a vibrant, exciting part of the city,” Helve notes. “People will be attracted to come and see what we are all about, including Estonians who have perhaps not been active in the community.” Helve says that being connected to the IEC will help their children retain their Estonian background, something she especially thought about this year when she attended the Estonian Independence Day celebrations in the San Francisco Bay Area. “You can be sure when the kids are old enough, they will be coming, too!” She adds that it will be very positive to have all Estonian activities in one location, rather than spread out in various locations as they are now, and that this will help build interest and participation in community events and cultural activities. “It’s really something to be celebrated.” Get involved and help support our future Are you interested in helping build this spectacular new home for the global Estonian community? Please join our growing list of capital campaign donors! The International Estonian Centre’s donor categories are Kalevipoja Laud for gifts over $100,000 (including naming rights for specific areas), Viru Vanemad for gifts over $10,000, and Kungla Rahvas for gifts up to $10,000. Stay tuned for the launch of the Kungla Rahvas campaign in 2021. To make a donation, please contact Urve Tamberg at donations@estoniancentre.ca. Donations may be made as a family gift, or in honour of an individual or family. All Canadian and U.S. donations will be issued a tax receipt. Let’s keep in touch! • Visit our website www.estoniancentre.ca for regular updates • Sign up for our monthly email newsletter at www.estoniancentre.ca • Follow us on Facebook: @ EestiKeskus
The referendum’s result needs to follow a decent turnout that is significant not in terms of legal but democratic legitimacy. This is why we can somewhat paradoxically thank [opposition Reform Party chairman] Kaja Kallas for her recent call for people to vote in the referendum. The important thing now is for the “yes” camp to participate. Why this course of action? Firstly, it is because she wants to legalize same-sex marriage in the future, as she has herself said, and the referendum result coming back “yes” would block that option. However, she dares not paint that slogan on her standard and is using a different argument instead. Kallas is seeking to distort the spirit of the referendum and say that people should vote “no” if they do not like the current govern ment which the Reform Party is not part of.” The latter logic is especially peculiar and contrary to the spirit of the law as it could be used to urge the people to vote on whichever topic under the aegis of whichever formal question. This approach is wholly sur real and would allow one to claim that my vote cast during the European Union referendum in 2003 was really expressing how I feel about switching between summer and winter time. In truth, Kaja Kallas is looking to legitimize the “no” option for her supporters who
Greens’… (Continued from page 8)
The Rahvaalgatus.ee portal allows people to write proposals, hold discussions, compose and send digitally signed collective addresses to the Riigikogu. Proposals can be submitted to the Riigikogu to amend existing regulations or improve society. “As a result of the collective proposals sent during the four and a half years that the plat form rahvaalgatus.ee has been operating, many laws, directives and policies have been amended and introduced,” Org said. The Greens’ petition is open until December 24 and once the appeal has been handed over to the Riigikogu, it will be checked to see whether it com plies with the law. After that, the Board of the Riigikogu will appoint a steering committee, which will discuss the appeal. At present, Section 1 of the Family Act says that a marriage is contracted between a man and a woman. The Estonian Greens say they support mar riage between two adult people, regardless of their gender. Next year a referendum is due to be held on the concept of marriage which will ask voters
feel they want to say “yes” to the referendum question (of whether marriage should only be between a man and a woman – ed.). Let’s summarize. We should not kid ourselves – the media will support Kallas’ position and promote it. We need to be fair and say that it was Kallas who put pressure on the media to adopt this hard line. The same opinion leaders who ridi culed the coalition partners’ agreement for a certain culture and behavior as concerns the referendum are the ones pour ing fuel on the fire today. Our reply should be: when they go low, we go high! Firstly, we need to keep the referendum on point and refrain from attaching any additional meaning to the “yes/no” choice. Secondly, we need to keep this matter separate from narrow party politics. While political parties have their positions, this vote does not directly concern them. For that purpose, I propose the creation of a supraparty yes campaign advisory chamber made up of politicians of par ties that support the yes-cam paign, representatives of NGOs and volunteer leaders. The yescamp needs to work together, keep the campaign separate from other topics and party- political skirmishes and coordi nate its messages and argumen tation. It is important to com municate a positive as opposed to a mean-spirited message! Thirdly, it is imperative to demand from the media every thing a democratic citizen can demand: for it to be objective in
if they want to change the constitution to add a definition stating marriage can only be between one man and one woman. Same-sex marriage is not legal in Estonia. Survey: Most Estonian citizens against amending law to allow same-sex marriages According to a poll taken for the Institute of Societal Studies in summer, 55 percent of Estonian citizens are against amending the Family Act to allow for marriages between people of the same sex. In the survey conducted by Norstat Eesti AS interviewing 1,000 adult citizens of Estonia in the first half of June, respon dents were asked to say how much they agree with the state ment that the Family Act should be amended to allow for mar riages between gay couples. The responses that respon dents could choose from were “I fully agree,” “I rather agree,” “I rather do not agree” and “I absolutely do not agree.” The fifth option available was “I cannot say.” “I fully agree” and “I rather agree” responses accounted for 38 percent of the total number of responses, versus “I rather don’t agree” and “I absolutely
Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu on “Otse uudistemajast”. Photo: Siim Lõvi /ERR
its presentation of the facts and provide a platform for counter argument. And fourthly, do not doubt that massive pressure can make a lot of people rethink their stance even if public polls have shown support for the yes-camp so far. No referendum vote has been cast before it has been cast. Fifthly, we need to honestly admit and keep in mind that should the “no” answer prevail, it will be a political, if not legal mandate for the legalization of same-sex marriage. And sixthly, we must also understand that the referen dum’s result needs to follow a decent turnout that is significant not in terms of legal but demo cratic legitimacy. This is why we can somewhat paradoxically thank Kaja Kallas for her recent call for people to vote in the referendum. The important thing now is for the “yes” camp to participate. Seventhly, everyone, no matter how different can vote “yes” because saying “yes” is not intolerance, saying is “yes” simply means supporting mar riage as it is today.
don’t agree” responses making up 55 percent combined. Re spondents who didn’t have a definitive opinion on the issue made up 7 percent. When looking at the party preferences of the respondents, it showed that voters of the ruling coalition members Con servative People’s Party of Estonia (EKRE), the Center Party and Isamaa were against changing the Family Act, whereas voters of the opposi tion parties Reform Party and the Social Democratic Party (SDE), as well as of the non-parliamentary Estonia 200, were inclined to support the notion that the Family Act should be changed. The Family Act currently states in its opening section that “a marriage is contracted be tween a man and a woman.”
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