BONJOUR L'ESTONIE

Biennale of Young Artists, Tallinn 2007, 28th Sept-11th Nov.

Consequences and Proposals
28.09-11.11.2007

Rüütelkonna building, Kiriku plats 1

Participating artists : Akvile Anglickaite (Vilnius), Coolturistes (Vilnius), Nanna Debois-Buhl (Copenhagen/New York), Evelina Deicmane (Riga/Berlin) and Theo Mercier (Paris/Berlin), Gintaras Didziapetris (Vilnius), Nathalie Djurberg (Berlin), Merike Estna (Tallinn/London), Elin Hansdottir (Reykjavķk/Berlin), Tellervo Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen (Helsinki), Emma Kihl (Stockholm), Karl Larsson (Stockholm), Juozas Laivys (Vilnius), Johanna Lecklin (Helsinki), Rudolfas Levulis (Vilnius), Barthol Lo Mejor (Tartu), Andreas Mangione and Hanna Dagerskog (Stockholm), Marge Monko (Tallinn), John Phillip Mäkinen (Helsinki), Tanja Muravskaja (Tallinn), Kristina Norman (Tallinn), Stas Polnarev (Moscow), Karol Radziszewski (Warsaw), Alexander Raevski (Chisinau), R.E.P. -- Ksenia Gnilitskaya, Nikita Kadan, Janna Kadyrova, Lesia Khomenko, Vladimir Kuznetsov, Lada Nakonechnaya (Kyev), Hans Rosenström (Helsinki), Pilvi Takala (Amsterdam/Helsinki), Sigrid Viir (Tallinn), Julia Wolff (Berlin).

http://www.biennaleofyoungartists.org

Consequences and Proposals, the Biennale of Young Artists, Tallinn 2007, deals with the results of decisions made in the past and envisages possible future directions. The artists are involved as an active creative force whose role is to analyse and imagine, while standing between the fragments of dispersed histories–personal and collective, past and future.

Consequences and Proposals consists of two separate shows in one space. The first, curated by Anneli Porri, investigates silent moments in the recent history of the Baltic Sea region, addressing, often hushed up, relatively underground and invisible processes in a transforming society. This part of the exhibition questions the current state of society in the light of subjective memory. The second part of the show, curated by Rael Artel, proposes different approaches to imagining the immediate future, while hesitating between optimistic and pessimistic scenarios. Originating from the idea that all art making is political, a variety of perspectives are envisioned through a more or less political prism.

Estonia unveils memorial to Red Army and SS soldiers

TALLINN - Authorities in Vistla, in southeast Estonia, were set to unveil Friday a memorial to two groups of WW II Estonian soldiers - members of both Nazi and Soviet forces - local media said.

The recently discovered remains of five soldiers from the Nazi 20th SS division were to be reburied alongside members of the Estonian rifle corps, who fought on the Soviet side. All of the men perished during the Battle of Porkuni on September 21, 1944. The battle, in which around 500 men lost their lives, was the largest to be fought in Estonia during WWII.

The ceremony comes just a day before Estonia is due to celebrate the Day of Resistance, renamed last March from the Day of Tallinn's Liberation from Nazi Occupation.

Russian-Estonian relations hit a new low in May after Estonian authorities dismantled a Soviet-era war monument, the Bronze Soldier, and disinterred the remains of Soviet soldiers ahead of May 9, celebrated as Victory Day in Russia.

Is this really Estonia Health Service ?

Estonian doctors sell prescriptions to Finns

Doctors in Tallinn, the Estonian capital that is a popular daytrip destination among Finns, are eager to write prescriptions to Finnish tourists without examining their patients or establishing a diagnosis, Friday's issue of Finnish medical journal Mediuutiset reported.

Mediuutiset managed to acquire four prescriptions in the space of a couple of hours in Tallinn. The prescriptions were for dozens of packets of drugs that affect the central nervous system. None of the doctors performed an examination, asked questions or wrote a patient information card, which is mandatory under Estonian law.

Peeter Mardna, a high-ranking civil servant at Estonia's social ministry, was quoted as saying by Mediuutiset that it was estimated that half of the about 100 private-sector doctors in Tallinn were selling prescriptions.

Bankas Snoras to reorganize Tallinn office into branch

The board of Bankas Snoras has decided to reorganize the bank's representative office in Tallinn into a branch from the beginning of next year.

Raimondas Baranauskas, president of Bankas Snoras, said : "In carrying out international development, bank Snoras in the first instance seeks to adopt tenable positions in the neighbor markets. Having the representative office in Estonia, our bank has been carrying out financial operations in this country for three years already and has implemented a number of profitable credit financing projects together with Estonian customers."

"On starting activity of the branch, we will put great emphasis on available and new customers, legal persons. We definitely have ambitions on the retail banking market as well, where we have acquired sufficient experience in Lithuania and Latvia and this experience holds out a hope of successful beginning of business," he added.

Why WiFi phones aren’t scaring anybody

By Joel Alas

TALLINN - It looks like a chunky and clunky mobile phone from the late 90s, but this piece of technology is far more advanced than its design.

It’s a mobile phone all right, but instead of accessing a traditional network, this device locates the nearest WiFi hotspot and connects to Skype, the free Internet telephone system. In theory, the arrival of WiFi mobile phones should have traditional network operators quaking in their boots.

But nobody in the industry is overly concerned. It’s largely believed WiFi mobiles will remain a niche product.

Estonia refuses survey for Russian-German pipeline

By Peter Fedynsky

Estonia has refused permission for a geological survey in its territorial waters for a proposed gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea. But VOA Moscow correspondent Peter Fedynsky says the Russian-German project will likely proceed with an alternate route.

Estonia says issues of sovereignty and national interest were behind a government decision to deny permission for a geological survey in the country's territorial waters for a gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea. Nord Stream, a Russian-German consortium, applied on May 31 for permission to conduct the study. Nord Stream hopes to open a 1,200-kilometer pipeline in 2010 to transport gas from Russia to Germany.

Estonian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ehtel Halliste told the VOA that Nord Stream's request covered a large area of the country's economic zone, territorial waters, and continental shelf in the Gulf of Finland. "That kind of survey of the continental shelf requires drilling, and would provide information of the amount of Estonia's natural resources," said Halliste.

WWII anniversary splits Russia and Estonia

MOSCOW (RIA Novosti political commentator Yelena Shesternina) - On September 22, Estonia will celebrate the Day of Resistance.

But this is not a new anniversary ; for more than 60 years, it was the Day of Tallinn's Liberation from Nazi Occupation, but last March Estonian President Toomas Henrik Ilves signed amendments to the Law on Holidays and Memorable Dates.

In order to leave no doubt as to their reasons for the rechristening, the authors of the draft explained in a note that on September 22, 1944, Estonia was re-occupied by the Soviet Union rather than liberated. They wrote : "After the withdrawal of German units as a result of the Soviet onslaught, the national blue-black-white tricolor flew over the Long Hermann Tower in the Estonian capital. But on that very day, the Red Army seized Tallinn and replaced it with the red flag of the occupiers."

Estonian policymakers debated the need to rename the holiday at great length. Numerous variations on the theme of "restoring terminological and historical justice," were offered, such as "The Day of Mourning" and "The Day of the Victims of Occupation." Eventually, the authorities chose the current version, which seemed to them a compromise. We should thank them for that, and also for declining the proposal of some over-zealous MPs to ban all commemorative events on the day in question "incompatible with respect for the memory of the resistance fighters."

Tartu faces number crunch

By Joel Alas

TALLINN - The bustling university city of Tartu faces a major slowdown in the coming years because of a demographic squeeze.
Student enrollments are expected to fall drastically due to shrinking birth rates, threatening the viability of both the prestigious Tartu University and the city that supports it.
Tartu University’s new rector Alar Karis told The Baltic Times much had to be done to ensure academic standards and course offerings were maintained during the student dearth, which is expected to hit by 2013.

The situation is the result of a childbirth slump in the early 90s. The number of students finishing secondary school is expected to fall by as much as 50 percent when the post-independence generation reaches graduating age.
“It’s a huge number (and) it’s happening pretty fast,” Karis said.
Niche subjects such as languages and arts, which already struggle to attract students, could face extinction. University funding could be reigned in as student numbers fall.

Alcohol ban to be repealed

TALLLINN - Tallinn’s liquor sellers must be fed up with changing their opening hours signage. In the past four months, alcohol sale laws have been amended three times – and now another change is on the way.

The controversial 8 p.m. ban on take-away alcohol sales is set to be repealed. Economic Minister Juhan Parts wants to modify the laws yet again, this time to affect a nationwide ban on alcohol sales from 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. Parts’ amendment would override the 8 p.m. ban in Tallinn, which was introduced by the city council on Aug. 1 in an effort to curb anti-social behavior in the capital.

Sweco to transform Tallinn's Freedom square

* Freedom Square in Tallinn is due for some major changes. SWECO has been awarded a contract worth nearly EUR 1.1 million for detailed design of a rebuilding project that will give the square a well-needed facelift.

“The area to be transformed is located in the historical section of Tallinn, which is currently protected by special rules to preserve the cultural heritage and environment. It will be a major challenge to work under these conditions,” says Per Johansson, Managing Director of SWECO Eastern Europe.

Freedom Square (also known as Vabaduse Square), is located in the heart of Tallinn’s Old Town district. The existing parking spaces around the site will be moved underground to create a car-free zone with new walking streets. The area surrounding the square will also be made more people-friendly with new green zones and walking paths. SWECO has been chosen for design and detail plan the entire rebuilding project.

”The assignment is spectacular, and many people in Tallinn have opinions about how the area should be developed,” according to Per Johansson.

Imperia VIP lounge is largest and most luxurious in Estonia’s hottest Night Club

New Club von Überblingen is #1 on Estonia’s Thriving Club Scene 

Well-Known Artists from Russia, Amsterdam, London and Ibiza to Perform

Russian standard vodkas are leading premium vodkas in Estonia

Russian Standard, the number one premium vodka company in Russia, today announced that its IMPERIA VIP Lounge in Estonia’s brand new nightclub, Club von Überblingen, is now the largest and most luxurious in the country. Located in the center of Tallinn, Estonia’s capital and largest city, Club von Überblingen has become the hottest club in the country since it opened its doors on August 24, 2007, attracting partygoers from around the globe.

“The IMPERIA VIP lounge offers a luxury experience that you cannot find in any other nightclub in Estonia,” said Leonid Yangarber, Export Director for Russian Standard Vodka. “Club von Überblingen is a premium nightclub. We are very proud to participate in such a partnership and to bring Russia’s #1 luxury vodka to Club von Überblingen and to the people of Tallinn.”

Estonia told to speed up citizenship of Russians

* The head of Europe's leading human rights body said on Wednesday the Baltic state of Estonia was being too slow in granting citizenship.

The head of Europe's leading human rights body said on Wednesday the Baltic state of Estonia was being too slow in granting citizenship to members of its large Russian-speaking population.

The status of Estonia's Russian-speakers has been a constant irritant in relations with Moscow. Ties have also worsened after Estonia in April removed a World War Two Red Army statue from the centre of its capital, sparking two nights of riots.

Most Russians, who make up a third of Estonia's population of 1.34 million people, do not have citizenship.

After Estonia regained independence in 1991, it gave citizenship to anyone who was an Estonian citizen or related to an Estonian citizen before World War Two, when the Soviet Union occupied it. This meant mainly ethnic Estonians became citizens, while others had to reapply for citizenship.

Giants face fresh competition

In the Baltics, as everywhere around the globe, the mobile phone has had a profound impact on everything from office politics to dating. The world has, in the space of a decade, become utterly dependent on this convenience, and for certain companies, that dependence has translated into enormous profits. In the Baltics, however, the outlook for mobile companies isn’t quite so rosy. This week’s Industry Insider takes a look at the mobile communications business in the Baltics and the challenges it faces.

Riga - The mobile phone industry in the Baltics is under a squeeze. While phone users reach for their handsets at an ever-increasing rate, tough competition and new players have put a pinch on profits.

That’s good news for consumers however, who are being offered a wider range of products at ever-decreasing costs.

A recent Eurobarometer study found that Latvia and Lithuania have the lowest mobile phone use prices in the European Union, and Estonia comes in a close 7th. Low prices are fueled by increasingly intense competition that shows no signs of slowing down.

“The mobile communications services market operates under severe competition. Even more rapid decreases of tariffs may be expected in this market,” Raimonds Bergmanis, director of the communications division at the Latvian Ministry of Transport and Communications, told The Baltic Times.

Tonu Grunberg, board member of the Estonian Association of Information Technology and Telecommunications, or ITL, said theirs was one of the few sectors where prices dropped each year.

Ilves sowing the wind !

TALLINN - Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has once again rattled Russia’s cage by drawing a direct comparison between the country’s experience of Nazi and Soviet regimes.

"From the Estonian viewpoint, there is no difference between Nazis and Communists. Both acted brutally and repressed Estonians. Neither the Nazis nor the Communists tolerated democracy, and that's a fact any Estonian knows," Ilves said, Sep. 18.

"The Germans arrested those they could, and when the Russians arrived, they arrested them again. Neither Nazis nor communists tolerated Estonia or democracy," he said.

He was speaking at an event to mark the short-lived independent Estonian government which was ousted by the Red Army on September 22, 1944, after Nazi troops retreated from a Soviet advance. A photographic exhibition featuring the members of the Otto Tief government is being staged at the Bank of Estonia

On September 18, 1944, a government was formed under the leadership of prime minister Otto Tief. It lasted a mere four days before being crushed by the Soviet advance, but as Ilves pointed out,"By the time the Soviets returned, an independent government had been in office for four days. And it was an Estonian flag, not a Nazi flag, that the Red Army took down."

Estonia wavers on permission for Nord Stream’s geo-survey

TALLINN - Plans to survey the Estonian seabed for the Russian-German gas pipeline edged a step closer when the Estonian Foreign Ministry recommended the consortium be granted permission to begin exploration.
The Cabinet will meet on Sept. 20 to consider the proposal for the project, dubbed Nord Stream, which has been a source of controversy since it was raised in 2005.
Nord Stream has applied to conduct geological surveys of the Gulf of Finland within Estonia’s economic zone.
Several government ministries and other expert panels have now submitted their recommendations to the Cabinet, but the Foreign Ministry’s positive assessment is likely to be the deciding factor.
However the government has reiterated that granting permission for the surveys doesn’t mean that Estonia is granting final permission to build the pipeline in its economic zone.

Development of Russian-Estonian Border Regions

The Baltic Euroregional Network (BEN), supported by the Nordic Council of Ministers, CBSS and EU, fosters constructive dialogue between Russia and Estonia.

Following a period of misunderstandings between the EU and Russia as to unfriendly actions from Russia towards Estonia this spring and summer, relations seem to be warming up on a local and regional level between Estonia and Russia. As a step towards constructive dialogue Valga County Association of Local Authorities (Estonia) in cooperation with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Office in Estonia will arrange a joint seminar 'Development of Strong Self-governance in Russian-Estonian Border Regions' in the framework of the CBC project BEN, on September 24-28 in the town of Valga, Estonia.

Speakers and participants of the seminar will be some 30 representatives of local authorities in the Russian-Estonian border area. The seminar aims at developing local and regional administration in the border areas between Russia and Estonia. In addition to the role of local authorities in promoting development in the border regions and legislation covering the planning of the budget of local governments, there is much attention dedicated to some practical issues for local authorities.

Red October : Russia, Iran and Iraq

By George Friedman

The course of the war in Iraq appears to be set for the next year. Of the four options we laid out a few weeks ago, the Bush administration essentially has selected a course between the first and second options -- maintaining the current mission and force level or retaining the mission but gradually reducing the force. The mission -- creating a stable, pro-American government in Baghdad that can assume the role of ensuring security -- remains intact. The strategy is to use the maximum available force to provide security until the Iraqis can assume the burden. The force will be reduced by the 30,000 troops who were surged into Iraq, though because that level of force will be unavailable by spring, the reduction is not really a matter of choice. The remaining force is the maximum available, and it will be reduced as circumstances permit.

Top U.S. commander in Iraq Gen. David Petraeus and others have made two broad arguments. First, while prior strategy indeed failed to make progress, a new strategy that combines aggressive security operations with recruiting political leaders on the subnational level -- the Sunni sheikhs in Anbar province, for example -- has had a positive impact, and could achieve the mission, given more time. Therefore, having spent treasure and blood to this point, it would be foolish for the United States not to pursue it for another year or two.

Estonia can turn into European dead end

Read it in Russian

After the April events (dismantling of the Bronze Soldier Monument — REGNUM), Estonia lost half of the transit, which immediately resulted in sharp slowdown of the GDP, Academician Mikhail Bronshtein said in an interview to Pohjarannik commenting on the situation in the Estonian transit business. According to Bronshtein’s estimation, transit takes 25-30% of the Estonian GDP: “Transit means not only cargo flows, but what is manufactured and exported on the basis of Russian raw materials at Ida-Virumaa. Transit is financial resources and logistics as well… Transit is a balancer of the economy, which is especially important in the current situation of economic depression.” According to the academician, the cause of the recession was the April events in Estonia: “I warned our statesmen then that sanctions will be a follow-up to those actions, however, my warnings were not heard. For today, the Bronze Soldier is the past. Now, it is another matter. I met Russian experts not once, including those of high level. Even after the April events, we have agreed with the Russian experts that we would start talks on lifting the sanctions and so on. However, most harm is caused by the constant hostile rhetoric of both our and Russian politicians.”

Small Estonia a big leader in global IT revolution

Tallinn -Estonia may be the original home of the revolutionary internet communication company Skype, but it's hard to find a completely Estonian business among the numerous information technology (IT) companies in the Baltic state. With Skype being its hottest calling card, tiny Estonia has transformed itself into a something of a Silicon Valley of Eastern Europe.

However, the company's two founders are not even Estonian. Niklas Zennstrom is a Swede, and Janus Friis is a Dane. Skype's legal headquarters are now in Luxembourg; its sales and marketing office is in London.

Part of the problem for Estonia's entrepreneurs is the nation's inexperience in capital markets and marketing. The Baltic nation of 1.3 million people regained its independence in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union and joined the European Union in 2004.

Estonia's software development industry employs roughly 3,500 people.

IT entrepreneurs tend to focus on niche products or on business models that, like Skype, can expand from a small base by word of mouth.

Oliver Wihler, 36, a Swiss software developer, moved to Tallinn from London 8 years ago, drawn by the heady professional atmosphere and the aggressive use of Internet technology even in the last years of the previous century.

Local entrepreneurs working in various companies grow out of an energetic, youthful society, which has embraced technology as the fastest way to catch up with the West. This is one of the reasons why Wihler decided to move to Estonia in 1999.

Baltic workers increasingly productive

By Mike Collier

Workers in the Baltic states are among the most productive in Eastern Europe, according to new data from the UN’s International Labor Office.

Leading the way by a clear margin is Estonia, where each person adds value equivalent to 43,232 US dollars to the economy each year. Latvia ranks next with 28,650 dollars and Lithuania is not far behind on 24,877. With the exception of Slovakia (28,209 dollars), the Baltic states trump all other Eastern European states including Hungary with 23,788 dollars, Poland with 23,667 dollars, the Czech Republic with 23,452 dollars, Bulgaria with 16,218 dollars and Romania with 10,196 dollars produced by each employee.

While productivity levels have increased worldwide over the past decade, gaps remain wide between the industrialized region and most others.

The ILO report, published Sep. 5, entitled “Key Indicators of the Labour Market (KILM), fifth Edition” indicates that the U.S. still leads the world in labour productivity per person employed in 2006 despite a rapid increase of productivity in East Asia where workers now produce twice as much as they did 10 years ago.