75 Years Since the Great Refugee Flight to the West
75 years have passed since the Great Refugee Flight to the West, during which close to 80 000 people fled Estonia in the fall of 1944. The event is being commemorated from September 18 to 22 in Tallinn, Tartu, Haapsalu and in many places worldwide, where families of people who fled now reside. The annual commemoration is the successful initiative of the Estonian World Council.
First Meeting of Estonian Government Committee for Global Estonians in Tallinn
The first historic meeting of the Estonian government committee of global Estonian affairs and cooperation took place in Tallinn on September 18 led by the Minister of Population Riina Solman. The committee will be comprised of many ministers and representatives of organizations of Estonians living abroad in the U.S, Canada, Sweden, Australia and beyond. The goal of the committee is to develop a new national program for the development of global Estonian identity and the utilization of the potential of Estonians living abroad for the benefit of Estonia (language, culture, security policy, economic relations, etc.).
Estonian Expatriate Children in 31 Countries Commence Virtual Studies
On September 15, the global school for Estonian-speaking children living outside Estonia “Üleilmakool” (World-wide School) began its seventh academic year online with 205 students registered from 31 countries. Elementary school students can study Estonian language and literature, Estonian history, Estonian geography and mathematics.
Archbishop Commemorates Great Refugee Flight on Board “Admiral Bellingshausen”
The crew of the Admiral Bellingshausen, on an Estonian-led expedition to Antarctica, hoisted the Estonian flag upon arrival in the misty port of Porto on September 17, gathering on deck to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Estonians’ flight to freedom from Soviet terror. The crew bowed their heads in memory of those who died at sea while the ship’s whistle sounded a long call.
The voyage of the Admiral Bellingshausen, a 24-metre Dutch-built ketch, marks the 200th anniversary of the discovery of Antarctica’s ice shelf by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, a Captain in the Imperial Russian Navy and Baltic German native of Saaremaa.
