13.9 percent less democratic? – Sideline REVOLUTION

Estonian version:

After the Citizenship Act was enacted in 1992, 90% of ethnic-Estonians automatically became citizens while only 8-10% of non-Estonians received citizenship. This is due to the law that gave permission to become citizens of Estonia before 1940, which was the year of the occupation of the Soviet Union. [3] Due to the law, those who moved or were born in Estonia after 1940 during the Soviet times had to apply for citizenship. New numbers show that ‘as of April 2012, 93,774 people (6.9% of the population) remain stateless, while around 95,115 (7% of the population) chose Russian citizenship as an alternative to statelessness’. [4] Due to the fact that many Russian speakers were not able to obtain citizenship, this combined 13.9% of the population does not have the right to participate in Estonian democracy.

Here are more details. I believe that in 1992, during the first election, about forty percent of the citizens, corresponding to the age, were not eligible to vote. I’m not sure what the percentages are right now, but I know the same basic plan is going on.

I won’t by myself oppose these policies (fearing the Russian bear), while noting that I don’t have enough experience to evaluate all the trade-offs involved. Still, it’s interesting how much attention the “defection” of democracy in Hungary and Poland gets, compared to this. The EU country which has the best standing in the world, on the basis of nationality, denies a large part of its citizens the right to vote.

Two other points. First of all, you should be concerned about this issue, as a Russian nation, unless your ancestors arrived before 1940. So the concern here is not only about newcomers, but it is possible that your grandparents were born in Estonia, maybe even your great-grandparents. Second, Russian nationals have a path to normal Estonian citizenship, but it is difficult, especially the language requirement, which I am told is very difficult.

I heard a lot of Russian walking the streets of Tallinn, and above all in the ballet. I have seen estimates that one-fourth of the population of Estonia is Russian, and in the big city it is certainly more than that.

Garrett Jones, call!


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