Soviet Statues

Yesterday I finally made it to The Estonian History Museum in Pirita, somewhere I've been meaning to since I first came to Estonia. I actually went there when I was studying in Tallinn, but it was closed, and have never made it back until now. The museum had a good exhibit on the 90 years of the Estonian Republic, but what most interested me was the Soviet statues placed around the back of the museum. Far out of sight, without any signage, you can see Lenin, Stalin and a range of more obscure Estonian communists dumped in random piles.

Dumped Statues

This is the sort of thing that many tourists would love to see, but Estonians just don't realise it's value. We got talking to a security guard, who said that there are plans to place them all in a park nearby, but they are just waiting for funding from the government. The security guard was there because one Estonian activist has recently removed some Soviet monuments and dumped them there. This is risky business given the consequences of moving statues in Tallinn in the recent past!

Stalin - Once stood proudly near Balti Train Station

This is typical of Estonia's complete lack of interest in preserving their Soviet past. I know it wasn't a pleasant time, but it is a part of their history, and for me its sad that the country sweeps its communist past under the carpet.

Lenin - removed from tartu and dumped here. At least he's standing

Communist Mural inside the museum. From 1987, did
anyone actually still believe at that stage??!"!

Corruption in Estonia

This weeks edition of the economist has published an article about corruption in Eastern Europe, in which it singles out Estonia as "probably the cleanest country in the region." It was interesting to read this. I don't have experience about corruption in any other Eastern European countries (except the one time I got fined in Sarajevo for not validating a tram ticket and had to pay a cash fine, which I knew was going straight into the dodgy inspectors pockets) but I would believe that Estonia is not a particularly corrupt place. Real Estate and local government seem to be two areas that are a dodgy as hell, but otherwise most activities seem pretty clean cut. A friend of mine wanted to participate in an auction of a property repossessed by a bank last week, but was prevented from bidding. He was persistent enough to discover that there was one bidder, who was going to buy the property for about half what it was valued at. The solicitor acting for the bank, who should have been seeking the highest price possible, was doing everything possible to prevent my friend placing a bid. Obviously the one bidder was giving the solicitor a kick back. One wonders what the bank would think if they learnt this, and the Economist!