“CITIZEN, THIRD CLASS”: FINDINGS FROM RI’S STATELESS PROJECTEstonia When Estonia joined the European Union on May 1, 2004, the country’s 160,000 Russian-speaking non-citizens remained in limbo. These individuals are being forced to choose between learning a new language and passing an exam to acquire Estonian citizenship; applying for Russian citizenship and thus surrendering the benefits of EU membership; or remaining stateless with limited political access and foreign travel restrictions. While Article Nine of the Estonian Constitution states that “the rights, freedoms and duties of each and every person, as set out in the Constitution, shall be equal for Estonian citizens and for citizens of foreign states and stateless persons in Estonia,” this mandated equality is not the reality for Estonia’s stateless persons. The problem of statelessness in Estonia has a long history. In June 1940, Soviet troops occupied Estonia, abolishing its independence and establishing a new Soviet order. From 1944 to 1991, Estonia belonged to the Soviet Union. During this time, thousands of Estonians were killed or deported, while Russians were forced to migrate to Estonia. The Russian-speaking population in Estonia jumped from eight to approximately 40 percent. On August 20, 1991, Estonia re-established independence. At that time, the government restricted automatic citizenship to those who held it before the Soviet occupation and their descendents, leaving hundreds of thousands of individuals stateless. Over time, albeit slowly, Estonia has taken steps to reduce the numbers of stateless people. Estonia justifies its current citizenship legislation based on the collective right of ethnic Estonians to their historical territory as well as the need to protect Estonian culture and undo the injustices suffered during the years of Soviet occupation. With tears in his eyes, one elderly Estonian man who spent time doing forced labor in Siberia, told Refugees International, “True Russians are good people, those with mixed blood are not.” Non-Estonians feel they are discriminated against based on language and the association of Russians with the Soviet occupation. They criticize Estonia for not adhering to the international standards of minority and human rights. Others see no need to acquire citizenship or believe that obtaining Estonian citizenship would hamper their visits to see relatives in Russia. The ongoing debate has left 12 percent of Estonia’s entire population carrying ‘alien’ (gray) passports. To acquire citizenship, one must pass Estonian language and constitution exams. However, it is difficult for Russians to learn Estonian since there is little mixing between the two groups, limiting opportunities for Russians to develop adequateEstonian language skills. To address this issue, the Estonian government has imposed a reform plan that increases the percentage of the school curriculum taught in Estonian. However, Estonian language teachers in Russian schools are often non-native speakers themselves. The constitution component of the citizenship exam is reportedly challenging even for ethnic Estonians. Despite access to study guides, many Russians feel reluctant to study for a test to include them into a culture they are otherwise excluded from. This makes obtaining an EU passport the primary motivation for gaining Estonian citizenship. Although Russians and Estonians have inhabited the same soil for decades, there is little intermingling between the two groups. This is demonstrated by the few marriages that occur between Russians and Estonians and the regionalization of the Russian-speaking community. Outside Tallinn, Russian-speakers live in an economically depressed area and have fallen into a socio-economic quagmire. With a lack of resources and limited hope, the Russians are over-represented in prisons (58 percent of prisoners are non-Estonian) and orphanages, and have a higher incidence of drug addiction and HIV/AIDS (approximately 80 percent of all HIV positive cases are Russian speakers), perpetuating the negative stigma Estonians already associate with Russians dating back to the Soviet era. In the predominantly ethnic Russian northeast, lack of citizenship touches the daily life of each resident. Mines, industrial complexes, and Soviet military bases have either closed or relocated. Unemployment hovers just below 20 percent. In Sampo, the local shale mines closed some six years ago. The area is now a virtual ghost town, and most of the remaining 700 residents are forced to eke out a meager existence in nearby Ufi. Eighteen-year-old Marta spends her days working alone in a sparsely stocked tin kiosk. She is one of the few employed individuals in a town that once had 1,500 residents. The Estonian government does encourage gray passport holders to apply for either Estonian or Russian citizenship. For example, in 1998 one amendment was passed to give children born in Estonia after February 25, 1992, and whose parents have lived in Estonia for at least five years, automatic citizenship. Then access to citizenship for persons with disabilities was adjusted. In 2004, Riigikogu (Parliament) passed a bill to reduce the time to gain citizenship. Legislation is currently being debated to help elderly people as well. Despite all its efforts, Estonia has continued to drag its feet over signing the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons. One reason is that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with its mandate to protect stateless people has played a very limited role. It is time to get Estonia on UNHCR’s agenda. Refugees International has recommended and is advocating that the Government of Estonia sign the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. The country should actively promote economic development in the northeastern region, so all regions have comparable rates of employment. It is also important for Estonia to ensure that Russian-speakers and Estonians alike are provided with the same level of education. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees should continue to facilitate discussions and partner with Estonian government to ensure that all individuals who wish to acquire citizenship have the opportunity to do so. |
Nationality: A Fundamental Human Right No Right to Reside: Conditions that Create Statelessness No Country to Call Home: The Scope of Statelessness Whose Job Is It Anyway? UNHCR’s Second Mandate “Citizen,
Third Class”: Findings from RI’s Statelessness Project Global Review of Statelessness --------------- |
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Lives on Hold: Estonia
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