Trial begins in Tallinn against alleged organisers of April riot

Four ethnic Russians charged with inciting violence

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Four ethnic Russians were in the dock in the Estonian capital Tallinn on Monday in a trial in which they face charges of organising riots sparked by last year's decision to move a statue depicting a Soviet soldier. Under Estonian law, the men could face up to five years in prison.
     The dispute strained relations between Estonia and Russia after the Estonian government decided to move the bronze statue from its previous location in the centre of Tallinn to a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
     In the rioting that followed, windows of banks and stores were smashed and shops were looted.
     For Estonians, the monument in the centre of the city symbolised the beginning of the Soviet occupation, while Russia, and many ethnic Russians living in Estonia, saw it as a symbol of the victory over fascism in the Second World War.
     
The trial got of to a slow start; the interpreter became exhausted during the reading of the indictment, which lasted several hours. The reading of the indictment continues today, Tuesday.
     
Prosecutor Laura Vaik says that preparations for the unrest began already in the summer of 2006. Vaik said that the defendants continued their provocative action after the first night of rioting - April 26th.
     On the first day she managed to read about half of the charges, which contained detailed information on the exchange of e-mails among the defendants, and their telephone conversations.
     According to the indictment, one of the men had made preparations to encircle the statue already on September 22nd, 2006. The date is commemorated as the day of "liberation against fascism". He had promised to recruit athletes, wrestlers, and boxers to guard the facility.
     Another defendant had said that he could organise 100 people to guard the statue at short notice.
     
Estonian leaders and security police had previously hinted that they might charge representatives of Russia itself with incitement. However, prosecuting authorities decided against it.
     Three of the defendants, Dmitri Linter, 34, Maksim Reva, 33, and Dmitri Klenski, 62, are leading figures in the "Night Watch" movement that was set up to oppose plans to move the statue from the centre of Tallinn.
     The youngest defendant, 18-year-old Mark Siryk was charged with organising rioting as a representative of the pro-Kremlin Nashi youth movement.
     Nashi youth held a demonstration in Moscow on Monday.
     All of the defendants except Reva are citizens of Estonia.
     "The new location of the bronze statue isn't so bad", Reva said during a break in the trial.
     He added that moving the statue could have been agreed on through negotiations. On the first night of rioting, he was at the statue himself. He said that the rioting was sparked on both nights of violence by people who started throwing bottles at police from inside the crowd.
     
Estonia's Ministry of Finance calculates that individuals and companies have received EUR 1.7 million worth of compensation for property damage in the rioting. Nearly EUR 5 million in costs were incurred from moving the statue and the graves of buried soldiers to the new location.
      Estonian Railways says that transit traffic from Russia has declined by 17 per cent in the past year. Before the statue was moved, rail transit was growing.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Soviet memorial in Tallinn moved after night of rioting (27.4.2007)
  Estonian Parliament endorses removal of statue of Soviet soldier (16.2.2007)
  Tallinn memorial: Vanhanen emphasises non-interference, Kanerva calls for EU solidarity (30.4.2007)
  Finnish PM denounces Russian demands for resignation of Estonian government (2.5.2007)

Helsingin Sanomat