Estonia’s choices
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Member of the 20th of August Club
The last century placed Estonia repeatedly in front of difficult decisions.
The writer recalls that even in the years in which we nurtured the hope in light of the collapse of the Soviet Union that we would again enjoy independence, the decisions were not easy or simple. The nationalist radicals saw the Soviet institutions of authority, including the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR, merely as the occupation’s tool, and believed the Republic of Estonia could be restored only by the Congress of Estonia, as the representative body elected by its citizens. The pragmatic forces also made restoration of the Republic of Estonia their credo, on the example of the radicals, but considered the most realistic path to achieving it to be continuing to act within the limits of the authority given to them by the constitutional powers of the period, so that it would not be possible for Moscow to ignore Estonia’s political deci-sions. The majority of the people saw precisely the Supreme Council as the actual restorer of sovereignty and supported all relevant acts adopted by that body. Indeed, on 20 August 1991 at 11:04 pm, the decision on restoration of state sovereignty was adopted on Toompea. Time thus showed that the parliament of the people the Supreme Council of the Republic of Esto-nia, elected in March 1990 in the form of the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR, did not betray the hopes of the people.