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News highlights from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

News Highlights from November 30-December 7, 1998

• After more than a year of legal proceedings, a Vilnius court on December 3 found three Stalinist-era agents guilty of massacring a Lithuanian family over fifty years ago.
         The men were serving in a unit of the Soviet NKVD, a predecessor of the KGB, when they burned down a house in the Lithuanian village of Saliniu and killed four of its inhabitants, including a pregnant woman, prosecutors said.
         The incident occurred in 1945, a year after the Soviet occupation of Lithuania. Tens of thousands of Lithuanians had withdrawn to the countryside to resist Soviet rule and NKVD operations were underway to quell the dissent.
         One of those convicted, 76-year-old Kiril Kurakin, was sentenced to six years in prison. Petras Bartasevicius and Juozas Sakalys, both 75, were handed three-and-a-half year sentences. The court also ordered that all their property be confiscated.
         After sentencing, however, the judge said he would reduce the prison terms by a third because all three men were partially physically handicapped.
         The trial on genocide-related charges was the first to reach a verdict since Lithuania regained independence.
         Prosecutors have also indicted several Lithuanians for the massacre of Jews during the 1941-44 Nazi occupation. But the trials against alleged Nazis Aleksandras Lileikis and Kazys Gimzauskas, both in their 90s, were recently postponed pending a decision about whether they were fit enough for their court cases to continue.

• Estonian President Lennart Meri has set March 7 of next year as the date for regularly scheduled parliamentary elections.
         The election for the 101-seat Riigikogu legislature will be the third since Estonia regained independence in 1991.
         In a televised speech on December 1, President Meri said he hoped the election would result in a less splintered parliament and a more stable, decisive government, which he said was key to the nation’s development.
         Since Estonia regained independence, parliaments have been fragmented and several governments have collapsed after losing their fragile legislative majorities.
         "Our country needs efficient and resourceful administration, not temporary, weak or hesitant governments," Meri told a nation-wide audience.
         The president also criticized the civil service in general and made what many took for a thinly-veiled criticism of the current Mart Siimann government.
         "I would like to speak of the danger of stagnation," Meri said. "Worn-out patterns of thought, bureaucratization, routine solutions—all these things threaten a small country like Estonia which, in our open world, has to move side by side with bigger countries and maintain the strength to struggle."
         Estonia is considered one of the most successful economic reformers among the 15 former Soviet republics, though turmoil on world markets and in neighboring Russia has begun cutting into economic growth.
         Estonia has also made national security a top priority and, over Russian objections, has sought membership in the U.S.-led NATO alliance. It is also seeking membership in the European Union.
         Meri, who is not affiliated with any party and is supposed to remain neutral during campaigning, said that security questions were of paramount importance. But he added that the security issue should not be used as a political football and he called on competing political parties to form a consensus on the major defense and foreign policy issues.
         "These issues should not be used as weapons by parties against each other in campaigning," he said. "I expect (voters) to require from candidates, first and foremost, competence in foreign and defense policy."
         There are no clear front-runners for the election, though most analysts say the center-right, strongly pro-reform opposition is well positioned to make electoral gains.
         Lately, the Isamaa party, which is led by former Prime Minister Mart Laar, has been scoring well in the polls, with about 14 percent support. The main party in the country’s current minority-coalition government, the Coalition Party, has seen its support drop to below 10 percent.
         Speaking to journalists the day after President Meri’s speech, Prime Minister Mart Siimann denied that his government had been too weak-kneed or that the economy had faltered under his leadership.
         "Please decide yourselves whether or not we’re in stagnation if, in 1994, the gross national product declined, but last year it grew by more than 11 percent," he said.

• Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus has called for a national effort to reduce Lithuania’s suicide rate—which is one of the world’s highest.
         About 1700 people in this nation of 3.7 million have committed suicide so far this year, or around 45 suicides per 100,000 people, according to presidential spokesperson Violeta Gaizauskaite.
         Lithuania's suicide rate is about four times higher than the rate in the United States, which is just over 10 suicides per 100,000, according to the United Nations Development Program (the UNDP.)
         "The president is naturally very concerned about the welfare of Lithuanians, and looking at these kinds of suicide figures is very, very unpleasant," said Gaizauskaite.
         The spokesman said President Adamkus has asked various private institutes and government agencies to develop a nationwide suicide prevention program, which currently does not exit.
         The suicide rate has increased dramatically since Lithuania broke with the Soviet Union in 1991 and began implementing its free-market reforms.
         The suicide rate rose more than 70 percent from 1990 to 1995, and is particularly high among men—who account for more than 80 percent of all suicides in Lithuania, the UNDP reported. In some regions of the Lithuanian countryside, nearly 1 in every 1,000 men end up committing suicide, according to UNDP statistics.
         Neighboring Latvia and Estonia have similarly high rates of suicide, around or even slightly above the Lithuanian rate.
         The Baltic nations are considered top economic performers of the former Soviet Union. But dynamic growth in the three countries has also been accompanied by greater economic disparities.
         The UNDP speculated that increased poverty and an increase in alcoholism may be contributing factors in the rising number of suicides in the Baltic states.

• Estonia has one of the most free and open economies in the world, according to a survey released this past week by the Washington-based Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal.
         Out of 160 countries surveyed, Estonia ranked 18th, above the likes of Germany, France, Finland, Sweden and Denmark. Latvia placed 61st and Lithuania 72nd.
         Authors of the survey said Estonia effectively had no duties and virtually no trade tariffs. The conservative Heritage Foundation has also praised Estonia in the past for its flat-tax system.
         No. 1 on the economic-freedom list was Hong Kong. In last place were Cuba and North Korea, who tied for 160th place. Russia was 106th on the list.
         Other countries in the top ten were Singapore, Bahrain, Switzerland, the United States and Ireland. The Czech republic, in 12th place, was the only former Soviet bloc nation above Estonia.
         The annual survey is compiled by looking at 50 different criteria, including property rights, the size of government, trade and tax policy and also the extent of black-market activity.

• At the end of two days of wide-ranging talks in Tallinn, Estonian and Russian officials announced no major breakthroughs in solving long-standing disputes. But officials insisted the discussions had moved Estonian-Russian relations forward.
         "The most important thing is the meeting itself, the fact that it even took place," Estonian government spokesman Daniel Vaarik said on December 4, the final day of discussions. "It shows Russia, like Estonia, is truly interested in improving relations."
         After the break up of the Soviet Union, relations between the two nations have often been strained. Moscow has accused Estonia of discriminating against its Russian-speaking minority. Tallinn, in turn, has accused Russia of sometimes still playing the role of regional bully.
         But Estonian spokesman Vaarik said he thought the talks in Tallinn marked a turning point in relations, with dialogue between the two countries becoming more businesslike.
         "The kind of communication between Estonia and Russia that took place here this week has been almost unheard of for at least a decade," he said. "This is a big improvement."
         But there was no announcement the countries would soon sign a border agreement. Their common border has not been officially agreed upon and the lack of a border treaty is considered an obstacle to improved relations.
         There was also no word on whether Russia would lower trade tariffs on Estonian goods. Tallinn has complained that duties on Estonian imports are much higher than for most other countries bordering Russia.
         In Tallinn, the Estonian and Russian officials did sign protocols on cooperation in cultural and educational fields. Earlier, they also initialed an agreement meant to speed up customs procedures at existing border posts.
         The large Russian delegation in Tallinn was led by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Valentina Matviyenko. The Estonian delegation was headed by Estonian Prime Minister Mart Siimann.

• The Baltic states rank among the least healthy countries in Europe, according to a survey published by the Healthcare Europe magazine this past week.
         Out of 35 European nations considered for the survey, Estonia and Latvia ranked in the bottom five, along with Belarus, Ukraine and Russia.
         The healthiest countries in Europe, according to Healthcare Europe, are Sweden, Finland and Norway, where eating habits and access to medical care were said to be exemplary. Other comparatively healthy countries were Italy, Greece, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia.
         "In general, east Europeans have the worst health because their diets are bad and their healthcare infrastructures are dominated by expensive and inefficient hospitals," Reuters quoted Healthcare Europe as saying.
         Accident and child mortality rates are also high in many eastern European nations, including Latvia and Estonia (see Weekly Crier report in October on child mortality). The Baltic states also have higher rates of smoking than in many countries in western Europe.

News Highlights from November 23-November 30, 1998

• Latvian legislators on November 26 voted by a larger-than-expected majority to approve a minority coalition government that includes one right-wing and two centrist parties. Deputies in Latvia’s Saeima voted 59 to 24 in favor of the proposed government, which is headed by Prime Minister Vilis Kristopans of the centrist Latvia’s Way.
         The other two parties in the coalition are the centrist New Party and the rightwing Fatherland and Freedom. The three-party coalition has just 46 seats in the 100-seat parliament and it wasn’t clear they could muster the votes required to take power. But a last-minute decision by the left-wing Social Democrats to back the proposed government gave it a clear majority.
         The party that won the most seats in October 3 elections, the People’s Party, cast its 24 votes against the government. The center-right group was seen as a natural coalition partner, but efforts to bring it into the government broke down after sharp personality clashes between Kristopans and People’s Party leader Andris Skele.
         Since it regained independence in 1991, Latvia has been plagued by weak, unstable governments. It has had more than half a dozen multi-party coalitions, none of which has lasted more than two years. The new government seems to fit that pattern and looks vulnerable to being toppled at any time. Latvian President Guntis Ulmanis said he was disappointed a majority-coalition government could not be formed. He argued earlier that a government with a stable majority was key to the nation’s continued development.
         Latvia’s new prime minister said that keeping Latvia’s free-market reforms on course would be a top priority. Kristopans said his government would also continue to push hard for NATO and EU membership. He said improving relations with Russia would also be a high priority. Respected Foreign Minister Valdis Birkavs will stay on in the current government.

• The cost of environmental damage caused by the Soviet military during its 50 year occupation of Estonia is at least 5 billion dollars, the Estonian environment ministry said on November 27.
         The estimate, based on a recent study funded in part by the Finnish government, is four times the entire Estonian national budget.
         "This is not just a theoretical figure," ministry press spokesperson Kaidi Tingas said in an interview. "Estonia expects to have to actually have to pay this to clean up the damage over time."
         After being occupied by the Soviet Union during World War II, Estonia became a main Western outpost for the Red Army. Estonia regained its independence in 1991 and Moscow withdrew its military three years later.
         When Soviet forces were still entrenched in the country, they occupied more than 1,500 military sites, covering more than 870 square kilometers, or 2 percent of Estonia’s total territory, according to Tingas.
         Military objects were often located along Estonia’s Baltic Sea coast, amid the country’s dense forests or on islands. There were also some 500 military sites, including dozens of bases and underground bunkers, around the Estonian capital.
         Some of the worst environmental damage was in and around the coastal town of Paldiski, about 50 kilometers southwest of Tallinn, where the Soviet Union had a major nuclear submarine base.
         The Paldiski area is still littered with thousands of tons of oil, spent missile shells, eroding batteries and even some nuclear waste, residue from a once-active nuclear reactor at Paldiski.
         Tingas said raising money to clean the damage caused by the Soviet military posed serious challenges for Estonia. She said a special Estonian fund for cleaning old military sites amounted to just 300,000 dollars. She said Estonia has sought some international aid.
         Government press spokesman Daniel Vaarik said the Estonian Cabinet had not discussed the damages figure. He said he also didn’t think Estonia would consider asking cash-strapped Moscow to help foot any clean-up bill.
         "It is not realistic to think we would get any money back from Russia even if we tried," he said.

• Lithuania’s entire government may be forced to step down and again seek parliamentary approval after the resignation of Transport Minister Algis Zvaliauskas.
         The minister handed in his resignation on November 24 after an ethics committee ruled he had abused his position by recently spending part of a state-funded visit to Sweden on a hunting expedition.
         With the Transport Minister’s departure, more than half the ministers of the original 1996 Cabinet have been changed. By law, that could mean the whole government has to resign and again be confirmed. A court is supposed to decide the issue soon.
         But any resignation and confirmation would likely be a formality since the current government, which is dominated by the center-right Conservative Party, has a clear majority in the legislature.

• Estonian President Lennart Meri said during a state visit by his Slovenian counterpart that small nations have a right to make their own decisions about security, including whether to join the NATO alliance.
         "Every state, great or small, has the right to make its own choice of security structures," Meri said at a dinner honoring visiting Slovenian President Milan Kucan on November 24. "No country is too small or too distant to belong to NATO."
          Both Estonia and Slovenia have made NATO membership a high priority, though neither has received invitations to join the alliance. Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic are the only former communist-bloc nations that have received invitations.
         Moscow has opposed NATO expansion overall, but has been particularly outspoken in its opposition to alliance membership for the Baltic states.
          Many Balts say they fear NATO will heed Russian objections and effectively strike them off the list of potential members. But Estonian President Meri said he hoped NATO would signal at a key summit meeting in Washington in April that the Baltics were still on track for full membership.
         "The enlargement process must continue convincingly in Washington," he said.