EANC was represented over the weekend of February 22^nd at three events celebrating the 101^st anniversary of Estonia’s independence.  Washington, DC Director Karin Shuey attended the Estonian embassy’s commemoration on Friday, held at the Embassy of Finland in Washington.  She was the keynote speaker on Saturday at the Connecticut Estonian Society’s celebration.  She also spoke at the Lakewood Estonian House at their event on Sunday.

The embassy event was attended by over 200 Estonians, Estonian Americans and friends

Ambassador Vseviov giving keynote address at Estonian Embassy’s Independence Day celebration

of Estonia from throughout Washington’s diplomatic circles.  Finnish Ambassador Kirsti Kauppi and her staff were gracious hosts in their beautiful building on Massachusetts Avenue.  She and Estonian Ambassador Jonatan Vseviov gave remarks emphasizing the close relationship between their nations and also stressed the importance of their partnerships with the U.S. Ambassador Vseviov noted that:

“in good days and bad – Estonia has always been able to depend on American support.  Americans fought in our war of independence… American leadership paved our way back into Western institutions…Our relationship is built on the shared values upon which our very societies are built…as Allies we defend each other, we fight for each other, because securing freedom in Estonia is as much in American interests as securing freedom here is in Estonia’s.  We are part of the same free world, the same transatlantic community.”

The program also featured musical performances by Endrik Üksvärav and Peep Lassmann and was emceed by Estonian Deputy Chief of Mission Marko Koplimaa.

Karin Shuey giving keynote address at Connecticut Estonian Society’s Independence Day celebration

The Connecticut Estonian Society held an evening event that included singing and dancing by the community’s younger generation and by-name honoring of their military veterans.  Karin gave an overview of EANC’s mission and support for Estonian American language and cultural preservation,  then focused on its advocacy work in Washington.  She provided information on the Senate Baltic Freedom Caucus and the House Baltic Caucus, along with the membership status of Connecticut’s lawmakers, and encouraged the audience to contact their offices regarding the caucuses and legislation relevant to the region.

The New Jersey event featured international IT security specialist Merike Käo and Estonian Consul General in New York Kairi Künka.  In her greetings Kairi introduced the Estonian Integration Foundation’s new Estonian language house in Tallinn, where people of different backgrounds and native languages can learn and practice Estonian, and receive practical information on living, studying and working in Estonia.  She quoted Minister of Culture Indrek Saar, who at the house’s opening ceremony said, “Every person who speaks Estonian is important and valuable as someone to pass on our culture.  The community of people speaking Estonian does not necessarily have to be restricted to the ones living in Estonia.”  She emphasized the contribution of Estonian Americans in preserving Estonian language and culture.  She also recognized the importance of events like ESTO and global participation in Estonia’s song festivals, which play a vital role in keeping Estonia’s nationality and community alive.

Merike Käo giving keynote address at Lakewood Estonian House Independence Day celebration

Merike gave a presentation on how Estonia became a world leader in creating a trusted digital society.  By the time the cyber-attacks took place against Estonia in 2007, the government already had experience in managing cyber related crisis due to its prior experience with electronic voting and its move to utilizing digital identities.  They were able to successfully coordinate a response working with collaboration between government, private and public sector organizations. She noted that “now Estonia is the poster child” for what governments and law enforcement should do to combat cyber crime.  She pointed to the Riigi Infosüsteemi Amet (www.ria.ee) as the ultimate authority on Estonia’s cyber capabilities but noted that there isn’t parity between the comprehensive information that exists in Estonian and what is translated into English.   International press should be careful about just taking information out of context if they only see it in English.  She ended with advice on how to protect our own online presence, including using strong passwords and never trusting links in e-mails even if the source looks legitimate.

Participants in Lakewood Estonian House Independence Day program featuring (adults from left): Ülle Bucholz, Luule Prima, Viiu Vanderer, Andres Simonson, Karin Shuey, Merike Käo, Kairi Künka, Tõnu Vanderer, Helica DeShaw, Ilmar Vanderer, and the children of the Lakewood Estonian School.

Karin provided a brief overview of New Jersey’s political landscape, the relevant legislative issues working through Congress now, and the Independence Day celebrations earlier in the weekend.   Her next presentation is on the KLENK-IEP cruise March 2-10.