http://defendinghistory.com/estonias-2012-valentines-day-law/36263

26 May 2012

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O P I N I O N

by Leena Hietanen and Petri Krohn



TALLINN―The rehabilitation of Nazi collaborators here in Estonia reached its climax on 14 February 2012, when the Estonian Parliament adopted a declaration sponsored by Defense Minister Mart Laar, in which all who took up arms against the Soviet Union were recognized as “freedom fighters.” The act that parliament passed on Valentine’s Day 2012 was a victory for many far right and pro-Nazi forces in society, and also a big personal achievement for Defense Minister Mart Laar in Estonian politics. Nevertheless, he had to give up his duties as minister of defense for health reasons on 6 May 2012. He is recovering from a stroke he suffered on 18 February, four days after “his” law was passed.

The new defense minister Urmas Reinsalu has welcomed the Valentine’s Day Law with a publicly stated wish to see in Tallinn “ one day soon” a new statue erected specifically for the “freedom fighters” rehabilitated by the act.