Judging from articles I read it hasn’t changed.
I’ve been a bit disturbed lately by the quality of translation of some of the Estonian English language material on line, but after reading translations from Russian in PRAVDA, I don’t think the Estonians are doing that badly, at least their stuff makes sense even if it’s a bit stilted at times.
“Anti-Russian Massacre In Estonia Can Be Repeated” screamed the headline! I must confess that this was the first time I had ever felt inclined to read PRAVDA but this gripping headline intrigued me since I was unaware of anything this serious being reported by the other major news media. I read further and found out that some Estonian armed forces trainees at Paldiski naval base had a bit too much to drink one night and had set up an unofficial roadblock with a couple of jeeps. In order to get through the roadblock one had to satisfy the boys as to the password. The question posed was “Do you speak Estonian?”. Some (number not specified) people didn’t pass this informal language test and got roughed up. According to the article even some women got roughed up although it’s not clear to what degree. The boys must have really been plastered to take on Russian women-I remember some of them from my trips as being so big and tough looking that I sure wouldn’t want to tangle with them in the dark. I gather from the article, although it’s not entirely clear, that the admiral commanding the Estonian forces personally ordered an investigation and 6 servicemen eventually got discharged. PRAVDA went on to thunder that “this example demonstrated the fruits of Russophobian activities of Estonian politicians and that seeds of hatred sown some ten years ago finally bore their rotten and stinking fruits” (at least I think that’s what was meant, its hard to tell). The article concludes with “And usual discharging looks like open sneer of the authorities at the massacre’s victims” (sic).
No kidding, this was for real! I thought journalism like this only existed in those trashy tabloids trumpeting sensational stuff like “Saddam’s hairy half-ape baby found”, or “I was abducted by Martians” that you see at the supermarket check out counter. The scary part is that some people actually read and believe this stuff.
The second article I read was headlined “Does Estonian Independence need a scapegoat” and was written by someone with what appeared to be an Estonian name, living in Tartu, Estonia. This article was a bit easier to read but the basic premise hard to take, namely that Estonia has “de facto” retained the infamous Soviet penal code article 58 and that the current Estonian government represents Stalinism at its worst. It’s also somewhat difficult to believe the bald assertion that the Soviet occupation was completely legal given the historical fact of the rigged referendum where people were forced to vote with only one choice on the ballot. I suspect that the author probably never tore up his Party membership card or took down the picture of Brezhnev in his office.
No, the leopard has not changed its spots.