- Title: ESTONIA: Controversial Waffen SS commemoration takes place in Estonia
- Date: 30th July 2012
- Summary: MEN WITH VARIOUS FLAGS STANDING DURING COMMEMORATION EVENT A VETERAN WEARING A CAP OF THE 20TH WAFFEN GRENADIER DIVISION OF THE SS (SOUNDBITE) (Estonian) WAFFEN-SS VETERAN, ERVIN PIIRSALU, SAYING: "We were out for the freedom of the state of Estonia. We had signs on our sleeves: blue-black-white (Estonian flag) and this made clear that we were for the Estonian republic. Even though we were volunteers we were mobilised into the army." REPRESENTATIVES OF ANTI-FASCIST ORGANISATIONS MESSAGE ON A VEST READING: "WORLD WITHOUT NAZISM" MEMBER OF "ESTONIA WITHOUT NAZISM" ANDREY ZARENKOV TRYING TO ENTER THE EVENT BUT BEING STOPPED (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MEMBER OF "ESTONIA WITHOUT NAZISM", ANDREY ZARENKOV, SAYING: "They have never been freedom fighters. They were serving Hitler and when they fought they fought for Hitler if you or anybody else suggests that Hitler was a freedom fighter, then I strongly disagree." PEOPLE AT COMMEMORATION EVENT BY THE MEMORIAL MEMORIAL CROSS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MEMBER OF "ESTONIA WITHOUT NAZISM", ANDREY ZARENKOV, SAYING: "This is the road Estonia has chosen today. It's glorification of SS soldiers, it is to admit that SS supporters were heroes, it's a falsification of history." PARTICIPANTS OF EVENT VETERAN STARTING SPEECH WOMEN TALKING SWASTIKA PENDANT ON WOMAN'S NECK
- Embargoed: 14th August 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Estonia
- Country: Estonia
- Topics: Conflict,History,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVAAW0JV8A1CHYWCOLN0BEEG9SAN
- Story Text: Estonian WW2 Waffen SS veterans commemorate the fallen as the meeting continues to raise controversy over whether the troops were fighting in the name of Nazism or against the country's Soviet occupation.
Estonian veterans who fought in the German army during WW2 in the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division on Saturday (July 28) gathered for the annual controversial commemoration day.
The yearly meet is organised at the venue where, in 1944, one of the most severe WW2 battles on Estonian soil took place between the Soviet and German armies. Nearly 2,500 German soldiers were killed in the battle as were more than 30,000 soviet soldiers.
For many of the participants this place symbolizes victory over the Soviet army. But for the most part, the veterans only gather to commemorate their comrades-in-arms and those who, they say, were fighting for an independent Estonia almost 70 years ago.
In 2012 the Estonian parliament officially stated that war veterans from 1944 were fighters for freedom.
"We were out for the freedom of the state of Estonia. We had signs on our sleeves: blue-black-white (Estonian flag) and this made clear that we were for the Estonian republic. Even though we were volunteers we were mobilised into the army," Estonian Waffen SS veteran Ervin Piirsalu, said.
Anti-Nazi organisations have rejected this formulation as has Russia.
Representatives of the organisation "Estonia without Nazism," attended the commemoration on Saturday, however, they were not admitted to take part in the commemoration.
"They have never been freedom fighters. They were serving Hitler and when they fought they fought for Hitler if you or anybody else suggests that Hitler was a freedom fighter, then I strongly disagree," "Estonia without Nazism" member, Andrey Zarenkov said.
"This is the road Estonia has chosen today. It's glorification of SS soldiers, it is to admit that SS supporters were heroes, it's a falsification of history," Zarenkov said.
There are fewer and fewer Waffen SS veterans still alive and many have expressed some dismay at the annual discussions on whether they were Nazis.
"They can call us Nazis, but we were not Nazis, we were fighting for our own country. we wanted to save our own land until the last drop of blood," Waffen-SS veteran Gustav Sune said.
Estonia was occupied several times during WW2. After the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact, the country was occupied by Soviet military forces in 1939. In 1941, Estonia was invaded by the troops of Nazi Germany. After Germany capitulated, the country was occupied once again by the Soviet Union.
Historian Toomas Hiio from the Estonian history museum says that Estonians cannot be called Nazis as the SS party recruited German citizens only.
However, Estonian soldiers who were fighting on Germany's side said they were still fighting not for the Nazi ideology but for their motherland.
According to Hiio, when German troops arrived in Estonia, many local residents believed that Germans were going to help liberate their country from Russian invaders, but this did not happen. Hiio says the modern discussion on the Waffen SS troops has been over over-politicized.
"Dealing with historical events from the past, is always about the knowledge and the beliefs of the time. If people believe that they are doing the right thing, then in a free world we cannot prohibit them from doing it. It is another thing when it is guided and financed at state level, then it is a state foreign policy or a political form of expression and the application of history. And this might not be in accordance with real historical facts," Hiio said.
Some individuals among Estonian soldiers are known to have carried Nazi war crimes. However, the commemoration group says they condemn those actions. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None