BONJOUR L'ESTONIE

Key witness in human trafficking case goes missing

* A female witness who was to have an important role in an upcoming trial involving trafficking in humans has gone missing, reported the Helsinki Criminal Police on Monday.
      Estonian Anne Viilip, aged 29, has been missing for ten days, and neither her relatives in Estonia nor the Finnish authorities know her present whereabouts.
      Anne Viilip was last seen entering a car - possibly a taxi - outside Club Alcatraz in downtown Helsinki early on Friday morning on June 9th. Male voices were heard from inside the car. Viilip had been spending the night in the club with her lady friends.
    
According to the criminal police, it is possible that there is a link between her disappearance and the upcoming trial. The woman is one of the plaintiffs - or victims - in the case, and the police say that her testimony would be important.
      "It is hard evidence against certain suspects", notes Detective Chief Inspector Seppo Sillanpää. He also says that it is unusual that a witness goes missing just before a major trial.
    
It is obvious that Viilip has not vanished on her own initiative, as she has had a habit of contacting her family almost every day. Neither does she have a lot of money with her. Moreover, she is reported not to have left the country - at least not using her own name.
      The police have also tried to trace her mobile phone usage - without success so far.
    
During the preliminary investigations, Viilip did not express any concern for her safety, says Sillanpää, describing her as a courageous woman.
      In addition to Anne Viilip, 14 other women will be testifying in the court case, which is to open in ........

Estonian Kasemet's long road to racing ends with Champ Car ride

Anne M. Peterson

* PORTLAND - Tõnis Kasemets first raced at age eight, when he steered his dad's car across a frozen lake in his home of Estonia, in what was then the Soviet Union.

Since then, Kasemets has done nearly everything possible to stay behind the wheel. He even cleaned houses for a time when he moved to the United States to save up for a car.

Now, at 32, Kasemets' circuitous journey has landed him in the Champ Car series with Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports racing team.

"It's pretty unreal, because it's like you've tried to do it for so many years, and then finally you get the chance. It feels like - it's hard to explain - it's tremendous," he said.

His was not a likely career choice for someone who grew up in the Estonian coastal city of Parnu on the Baltic Sea. His father was a contractor and part-time driver in the East European Rally Cup. His mother worked in day care.

Racing was a sport enjoyed by only a lucky few. Kids joined government-supported clubs that had only two or three go-karts at their disposal. Only the very best got to race and advance.

"You had to fight with like 30 guys to be in these two go-karts," he said. "Obviously, if your parents had money you could go buy a go-kart, but if you didn't you had to go that route."

Kasemets did well .......

Estonia's Ambassador Kolbre found dead in Finland

* Priit Kolbre, Estonia's ambassador to Finland, has died. Mr Kolbre, aged 50, was found dead in his own official car at the Helsinki-Vantaa international airport Monday.

Finland's National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said in a statement late Monday night that at the moment there was no indication of a criminal act, but the exact cause of death was still being investigated.

Mr Kolbre assumed his position in Finland in October 2005. He has worked in the Estonian foreign ministry since 1990, serving as ambassador to the European Union from 1998 to 2002 and as the foreign ministry's permanent secretary from 2002 to 2005.

Challenges to Estonia in 2050

* Two years ago, before my moving to Estonia, I thought that the people who has gone through so many radical and dramatic changes is ready for as difficult future. Since 2004 many Estonians have begun to think that they live on the other side of ‘the end of history,’ in a world where radical changes are impossible,” Paul Goble says in Eesti Päevaleht. “The changes coming from the East and having impacts on Estonia can actually be dramatic. The Russian Federation is suffering from the post-Soviet syndrome and is trying to cure itself of a state that broke up in the 90s. Many refuse to admit this, but the memorable speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin has forced them to admit the collapse of the USSR.

No doubt Russia will rise to its feet in the next 50 years and no doubt its neighbors like Estonia will have to overcome the related complexes and dangers.

”One can say that the tragedy of Russia is that the Russian state had become an empire long before the Russians became a nation. That’s why that regime has never been a national state. It was a state nation. On the other hand, the Russian Federation is not Russia. It is 22 peoples owning 53% of the territory. This annoys the Russians, who are facing demographic degradation. Many experts say that by mid-XXI Russia’s population will halve, the Russians will become a minority, while the Muslims a majority. The Russian Federation is not a federation. There is no agreement on who does what. This provokes conflicts between Moscow and ....

Tale about victory over fascism

* When on May 9 2005 Russian President Vladimir Putin invited world presidents to Moscow, he did it officially in order to mark the victory over Fascism/Nazism. Many presidents came and pretended they all believed in all that staff. However, there was one thing that spoiled the holiday a bit : Adamkus and Rüütel did not come.

With all my respect for the Latvian president, the step by her Lithuanian and Estonian counterparts proved more effective. For Russia it is still important to keep up the myth that the Russian/Soviet people liberated Europe from Fascism.

Stalin was Stalin, but it was we who liberated the peoples. Russia is clutching at this myth like a drowning man at a straw as this is the last thing that keeps it in the international super league, of course, except for atomic bomb and natural gas. Those celebrating the Victory near the Bronze Monument are also clutching at this myth.

However, myth remains just a myth. Germany and the Soviet Union were not enemies, they were rivals. They felt malice not towards each other but towards European democracy. Germany and the Soviet Union were like criminals, while the West – an honest person. Tyranny has never given freedom to anybody.

That war was just a settlement of accounts with the key opponent, and the countless monuments we can see all over Central Europe today are just a reminder of its destruction. The best known and the most untrue monument is in Treptower Park in Berlin. Worship of such monuments as to symbols of happiness is beyond any criticism.   

The Bronze Soldier symbolizes not the victory over Fascism but the victory of one criminal over another. Both just wanted to rule the world. Have they actually defeated Fascism after all ? No, we can see Nazi flags flying in Russia, not Estonia,” historian Lauri Vahtre says in Eesti Paevaleht.

Members of Parliament building bridges !

A delegation of the Russia-Estonia deputy group of Russia’s State Duma is to pay a three-day visit to Estonia – the first visit in the last few years. The Russian delegates will come to Tallinn on the invitation of their colleagues from the Estonia-Russia groups of the Estonian Parliament.

In an interview to BNS the chairman of the group, Reformist Sergey Ivanov says that even seven Russian members of parliament coming to Estonia after a long recess in Russian-Estonian relations is a big event. He says that the Russian delegation includes representatives of economy, culture and tourism committees, who will discuss specific problems with their colleagues from the Estonia-Russia group and with foreign ministry officials. They will also go to Ida-Virus district to consult with local governors and big businessman Tiit Vahi. Ivanov says that the Estonian MPs will certainly raise the question of the building of a new border bridge across the river Narva.

The Russian delegation is led by the coordinator of the Russia-Estonia group Svetlana Smirnova. She last visited Tallinn in 2004 as a delegate from Udmurtia at the World Congress of Finno-Ugric Peoples. In May 2006 Smirnova supported Estonian MPs from the Centrist and People’s Union parties in their objection to the proposal of Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip to transfer the monument to Soviet soldiers from the center of Tallinn to a cemetery.

The response visit of the Estonia-Russia group may take place in October-November 2006.

Consent to run for the second term has made the Estonian president more popular

* The consent of Estonian President Arnold Rüütel to run for the second term has made him more popular, reports Eesti Paevaleht.

The public opinion poll by Faktum&Ariko shows that 33% of Estonian voters support Rüütel’s decision. In April Rüüel was supported by 20%. 36% support European Parliament member, Social-Democrat Toomas Hendrik Ilves – as many as in April. “The number of Rüütel supporters is growing as the picture is getting clearer. There were more doubters before — as nobody knew if the president was going to run again,” says the press secretary of the People’s Union Agu Uudelepp.

Now that the leader of the Centrist Party Edgar Savisaar is absent, Rüütel has got especially popular among the Russian-speaker voters : 59% of non-Estonians and 20% of Estonians support him. 42% of rural residents support Ilves, 28% — Ruutel.

The first round of the presidential election in Estonia is scheduled for August 28.

Levadia Tallinn lumbers on .....

* by Margus Luik

As their rivals continue to drop points, leaders FC Levadia Tallinn keep on winning and tightening their grip on the Estonian First Division.

Winning streak
Still unbeaten after 15 matches, they are nine points clear of second-placed FC Flora with champions FC TVMK Tallinn a further point adrift having played a game more than both the sides above them. Dauntingly for their challengers, Levadia have won their last five fixtures.

Vassiljev impressive
Part of the credit for that must go to captain Konstantin Vassiljev, the league's Player of the Month for May. His goals and astute passing have helped Levadia thrive while earning the 21-year-old his international debut in a friendly against New Zealand on 31 May.

Crushing victory
June has seen Levadia's most emphatic victory yet as they crushed FC Ajax Lasnamäe 8-0. Vassiljev and company are on an unbeaten run of 19 games in all competitions, although they have some way to go to beat their 49-match sequence between 1999 and 2001.

Inconsistent rivals
TVMK and Flora's inconsistency has given Levadia even more cause for confidence. Having halted a streak of three defeats with a 1-0 win against Flora, TVMK went off the rails again in their next game as Oleg Gorjatšov's 63rd-minute penalty condemned them to a 1-0 reverse at JK Trans Narva. .....

NAPA : Tõnis KASEMETS uses it, why not You .... ?

NAPA Filters celebrates 40 Years : 1966-2006

NAPA Filters is celebrating its 40th Anniversary by paying tribute to the reason they've succeeded in business for so long—loyal NAPA Filters fans. The NAPA FANNIVERSARY celebration gives consumers a chance to win a slew of collectibles and prizes awarded every day for 40 days, plus a race weekend trip to Homestead, Florida .

Consumers who register online or in person can win :

• 40 tickets in pairs of two for a race weekend at Homestead, FL
• 40 prizes per day for 40 days with winners drawn from ALL entries (mail in and online registrations)
• 40 weekly FANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION Backyard BBQ prize packages awarded every week for six weeks of the promotion
• 1 instant winner per day selected from online registrations for the 40 days of the promotion.

Champ Car

• Rocketsports Signs Kasemets : Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports Racing announced last week that it has signed Atlantics veteran Tonis Kasemets to drive its No. 18 entry for a minimum of six races. Tõnis Kasemets, a native of Estonia, won three races in the Atlantic series last year, finishing second in the championship, and will be a teammate to Nicky Pastorelli. His debut with the team will be at Portland.

Check NAPA for yourself :

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Karmen Kass, Anand et Spassky pour le jeu d'échecs à l'ecole

* Carmen Kass, Anand et Borris Spassky  seront présents à Valence pour une méga simultanée avec 500 enfants.

Marca qui souligne que le jeu d'échecs est recommandé par l'UNESCO, souligne que l'Espagne avance rapidement vers une adoption massive du jeu d'échecs dans le programme scolaire officiel alors qu'il est déjà une activité extra scolaire très pratiquée.

The worst of Estonian Air .. so far ... !

But I guess this isn't the end ... ! Poor "Ourselves" and poor Estonia ..

* This weekend's news of another maintenance fault at Estonian Air reminds writer Inga Raitar of her own experience with the airline a week ago. Her flight from Portugal arrived in Tallinn 11 hours late, at 5.30 am.

Most passengers had to go to work the next day. The reason for the delay was that the company was not able to complete reconstruction of the kitchen on the plane.

Raitar is very surprised that so much attention was being given to the kitchen in the middle of the busiest working period. Estonian Air can talk about gulls that fly into planes and kitchen redecoration, she says, but it is obvious that the company is making excuses.

Not to mention the company’s impolite attitude toward its customers.

27th -30th of July : ETC SUMMER 2006

Estonian Fair-Hall C-hall, Pirita, Tallinn

www.fair.ee

Places : 664

Registration and entry fee sellings start at 01.04.06   00:00.
Entry fee prizes will be progressive, so the sooner they’re bought, the cheaper.
Since it’s a 4-day event the attending prices are:

April - 20.- €
May - 20.- €
June - 20.- €
July - 20.- €
On the premises - 26.- €

Organizers : ETC Computerclub in cooperation with EAK (Estonian Computerclub)

Project Manager : etc_Marc ([email protected] )
Head Organizer : etc_Gaits ([email protected] )

Information : [email protected]
www.clubetc.ee

ETC SUMMER 2006 IRC channel : mIRC #ETC_06 @ QuakeNet

Forum in English :
http://www.clubetc.ee/foorum/viewtopic.php?p=1527#1527
Forum in Estonian language :
http://www.arvutikasutaja.ee/foorum...opic.php?t=5495

1360 births registered in May

Press release n° 96

* According to the data of the Population Facts Department of the Ministry of the Interior, 1360 births were registered in May by the vital statistics offices of Estonia ; 692 of the babies were boys and 668 were girls. 30 pairs of twins were born in May (18 pairs of boys, 9 pairs of girls and 3 paternal twin pairs).

The most popular names given to boys in May were Karl / Carl, Aleksandr / Aleksander, Martin, Martti, Marcus / Markus and Oliver. The most common girl’s names were Mia / Miia, Laura, Lisete / Lisette, Kristiina / Kristina / Kristin, Sandra and Liis / Liisa / Liisi.

According to the statistics for May 2006 compiled by the Population Facts Department of the Ministry of the Interior, 510 births were registered in Tallinn, 156 in Tartumaa, 135 in Ida-Virumaa, 105 in Harjumaa, 91 in Pärnumaa, 46 in Viljandimaa, 66 in Lääne-Virumaa, 28 in Järvamaa, 30 in Saaremaa, 29 in Raplamaa, 44 in Valgamaa, 33 in Võrumaa, 25 in Läänemaa, 25 in Põlvamaa, 28 in Jõgevamaa and 9 in Hiiumaa. 3 babies were stillborn.

360 marriages took place in May, 30 of them contracted by ministers of religion. The vital statistics offices registered 270 divorces.

32 persons were granted new names by a directive of the Minister for Regional Affairs, 1 of whom changed their first name, 26 their surnames and 5 both first names and surnames.
1506 deaths were registered in the population register in May.

1181 births were registered in April 2006, 644 of them boys and 537 girls.
In May 2005, 1280 births were registered, 681 of them boys and 599 girls.
You can view the names given to children on the website of the Ministry of the Interior at www.sisemin.gov.ee by going to the Kasulik teada /Useful to know/ menu, selecting the Names Act section and opening the first names statistics.

Survey : support for Estonia's EU membership at 62%

* Estonia's membership in the European Union is backed by 62 percent and opposed by 30 percent of the country's population, a survey by TNS Emor showed.
The study revealed that 42 percent of Estonians aged 15-74 have a firm opinion on the EU, with 30 percent of them backing and 12 percent opposing membership.
Half the population is of two minds - 32 percent rather support and 18 percent rather do not support membership, the State Chancellery reported.

Supporters of the EU are mostly found among the highly educated and well-to-do people who live in the capital Tallinn or other larger cities.

Revenues of Estonian state budget EUR 89 mln higher than expenses

* The Estonian Finance Ministry said that revenue intake into the state budget in January-May totalled 24.5 billion kroons (EUR 1.56 b), 39.9 percent of the annual revenue target and 1.4 billion kroons higher than the expenses as of the end of May.

Compared with January-May 2005 the intake of the state budget improved by 19.5 percent - the revenue intake by the end of May 2005 was 20.5 billion kroons, the Finance Ministry said.
The state budget's intake in May was about 5.5 billion kroons.

During the five months expenses to the tune of 23.1 billion kroons were financed from the state budget, 37.6 percent of the budgetary target.

Inflow of tax revenue in January-June totalled 19.5 billion kroons, 39.7 percent of the target, of this 4.2 million kroons in May. Compared with last year, inflow of tax revenue has increased by 2.9 billion kroons or 17.6 percent.

The ministry said that very good intake of individuals' income and social tax continued in May, the main reason being favourable developments on the labour market.

The inflow of non-tax revenue totalled 910.2 million kroons in May and 2.3 billion kroons in January-May, amounting to 43.7 percent of the annual target.

The size of the state budget for 2006, including foreign subsidies, is 61.4 billion kroons.

Estonia to let Slovenia use its VAT information system

* The Estonian Government decided to give Slovenia the right to use the Estonian Value Added ax Information Exchange System (VIES) for a symbolic price of one Euro.

Finance Minister Aivar Sõerd explained that Slovenia does not have a system of similar level and therefore it turned to Estonia for help to be able to comply with EU requirements.
"The Slovenians have got familiar with our system and are appreciating it very much. Their finance minister has already filed an application to adopt parts of the VIES," Sõerd said.
Estonia previously has granted the right to use the VIES system devised by the Estonian Tax and Customs Board to the Latvian Tax Board.

In accordance with the government's decision, Slovenia will be able to use the system under a simple license issued for an indefinite period. Slovenia can upgrade the system but not sell or hand it to third parties.
The symbolic price tag of one Euro was needed because the Estonian law on state property doesn't allow giving it away for free.

PM : Estonia must Become one of the world's development centres

* Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said the government had set itself the aim of turning Estonia into an attractive innovation environment known throughout the world by 2010.
"Our only choice to achieve ambitious aims is innovation. An attractive innovation environment recognized throughout the world must be created in Estonia by 2010," the head of government said addressing the parliament this morning.

Ansip said that this would mean changes in principle in the structure of the economy, and even more in attitudes and ways of thinking as well as in the politics of science and development activity.
In the years 1998-2004 expenses on scientific and development activity have grown from 451 million to 1,294 million kroons (EUR 82.8 mln), nearly threefold. In 2004 Estonia spent 0.91 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) on scientific and development activity.

Ansip said, however, that the aim of spending 3 percent of GDP on scientific and development activity by 2010, an aim adopted by heads of European governments, was not realistic. It is realistic to achieve that aim by 2014, Ansip said, as the role of the private sector in the financing of development activity must grow much more than it has done by the present, Ansip said.

Estonian and Russian border guards satisfied with cooperation

* The Estonian-Russian standing working group on border guard cooperation found during a meeting in South Estonia that cooperation between the border guard services has helped to reduce the number of potential violations and ensure a stable situation at checkpoints.
Members of both delegations said joint activity at border checkpoints met the expectations and needs of both sides and that remarkable success had been achieved thanks to such cooperation.
The parties spoke about cooperation at border checkpoints and measures to increase the efficiency of the fight against cross-border crime and illegal immigration.

Also discussed was joint activity by Estonia and Russia in guarding the border on sea, on lakes and rivers during the current navigation season.
The standing work group for border guard cooperation, set up under a protocol of cooperation between the border guard services of the two countries, meets four times a year - twice in Estonian territory and twice in the territory of Russia.

The next meeting will take place in Russia in October.

Yet another bad mark for Estonian Air ! Will it ever stop ?

* Rock fan furious about late Estonian Air flight

An Estonian's expensive plane ticket from Brussels to Tallinn, which he thought would take him in time to see the recent Metallica concert was a waste, as Estonian Air’s flights were late again and the plane reached Tallinn only at 03:00.

And last week, an Estonian Air plane that flew from Tallinn to Faros was late by 11 hours.

Odd joke leaves Estonian passenger in airport

* When a security guard asked Taavi, an Estonian passenger about the chain on his hip, he replied that he was protecting himself against Germans.

The security guard called the police, who took Taavi to a police station and refused to allow him to board his easyJet flight.

According to Kou Lipp, head of Estair, which represents easyJet in Estonia, the passenger has only himself to blame : “All sorts of jokes and hints about racism and terrorism do not end well.”