Skip to main content

In Memoriam Lennart Meri 1929-2006

It is hard to explain to people who know nothing of Estonia why the death of Lennart Meri means so much. As President he displayed an intelligence and vision that truly marked him as a great statesman. Yet he was so much more than that- he understood the character of Estonians- the bad as well as the good. He connected deeply with the culture of his country- writing of the deep roots that connected the traditions of the Estonian people with the land where they have lived for millennia. A theme of one of his most popular books was the search for Ultima Thule- a place of mystic significance as well as geographic speculation. Estonia, he thought, had a case to be thought of as that remote, mystic land.

Despite his deep passion and knowledge of Finno Ugric culture of which Estonian forms a part, Meri was in the best sense a true European- fluent in several European languages, he carried with him a full appreciation of the richness of our common European heritage. His intellect was wide ranging, his wisdom universal- his mind was paved with the literature and philosophy of Europe. Yet Meri was never ponderous- his quick humour made him a delightful conversationalist, and his wry smile was never far away. To a generation of Estonians, Lennart Meri was a puckish grandfather, humorous and kindly, but possessed of an occasionally acid tongue. After the failure of the August 1991 coup in Moscow, which put all the hopes for Estonian freedom at risk he explained why the coup could not have succeeded:
"I've never met a general yet who could milk a cow." His words were often prescient: in the mid 1990s he decried Western finance for Russia, which was mostly siphoned off into Swiss bank accounts, with a pithy and dismissive comment: "The West is making a fundamental mistake when it keeps Russia's nomenklatura fed in salami."

An intelligent and occasionally formidable man, his humour and kindliness nevertheless inspired a profound loyalty in those closest to him. He became the object of great affection in the younger generation, in whom he in turn placed much trust for the future. In later years, after he left office, he conducted himself with dignity, despite the provocations of those who opposed his vision of the future.

Lennart Meri has been voted "the Greatest Estonian". Even such an accolade sells him short. He represented the humanity of European culture, he understood the strengths and failings of our diverse continent, he spoke for the oppressed and the downtrodden in their resistance to tyranny. A liberal intellectual, he spoke with wisdom and vision: A great European and a great man.

Comments

Edis said…
Lennart Meri is the only President I have ever had tea with in a Presidents official residence. He was an extraordinary man indeed. This was reflected by the quality of the staff I met at the Kadriorg Pallace. Efficient, friendly and full of respect for people as people.

I am sad that he is gone.

Popular posts from this blog

Concert and Blues

Tallinn is full tonight... Big concerts on at the Song field The Weeknd and Bonnie Tyler (!). The place is buzzing and some sixty thousand concert goers have booked every bed for thirty miles around Tallinn. It should be a busy high summer, but it isn´t. Tourism is down sharply overall. Only 70 cruise ships calling this season, versus over 300 before Ukraine. Since no one goes to St Pete, demand has fallen, and of course people think that Estonia is not safe. We are tired. The economy is still under big pressure, and the fall of tourism is a significant part of that. The credit rating for Estonia has been downgraded as the government struggles with spending. The summer has been a little gloomy, and soon the long and slow autumn will drift into the dark of the year. Yesterday I met with more refugees: the usual horrible stories, the usual tears. I try to make myself immune, but I can´t. These people are wounded in spirit, carrying their grief in a terrible cradling. I try to project hop

Media misdirection

In the small print of the UK budget we find that the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the British Finance Minister) has allocated a further 15 billion Pounds to the funding for the UK track and trace system. This means that the cost of the UK´s track and trace system is now 37 billion Pounds.  That is approximately €43 billion or US$51 billion, which is to say that it is amount of money greater than the national GDP of over 110 countries, or if you prefer, it is roughly the same number as the combined GDP of the 34 smallest economies of the planet.  As at December 2020, 70% of the contracts for the track and trace system were awarded by the Conservative government without a competitive tender being made . The program is overseen by Dido Harding , who is not only a Conservative Life Peer, but the wife of a Conservative MP, John Penrose, and a contemporary of David Cameron and Boris Johnson at Oxford. Many of these untendered contracts have been given to companies that seem to have no notewo

Bournemouth absence

Although I had hoped to get down to the Liberal Democrat conference in Bournemouth this year, simple pressure of work has now made that impossible. I must admit to great disappointment. The last conference before the General Election was always likely to show a few fireworks, and indeed the conference has attracted more headlines than any other over the past three years. Some of these headlines show a significant change of course in terms of economic policy. Scepticism about the size of government expenditure has given way to concern and now it is clear that reducing government expenditure will need to be the most urgent priority of the next government. So far it has been the Liberal Democrats that have made the running, and although the Conservatives are now belatedly recognising that cuts will be required they continue to fail to provide even the slightest detail as to what they think should guide their decisions in this area. This political cowardice means that we are expected to ch