Organisers of the Gay Pride Parade in Tallin, Estonia, are confident that the event will go ahead as planned on Saturday (August 13), despite the objections of the Estonian Christian People’s Party and the Fatherland Union.

“They are using the very same arguments as last year and, as last year, we are quite sure they have no chance of canceling the event,” a spokesperson for the organizers told UK Gay News.  “All paperwork has been done correctly, so we have left no legal grounds for them to decline or evoke any license/permission we have been given.”

However, as there are elections in Estonia later this year, political parties are looking for “causes”.

“Attacking sexual minorities in our homophobic society gives them perfect opportunity to get free publicity and media-coverage.  It is so easy to hate gays and it is even easier to spread lies or distort facts to make it look more dramatic than it is,” the spokesperson said.

“This will be the second Pride event in Tallinn and we have avoided connecting it to political demands or religion.  But only yesterday one of biggest political parties sent out a ‘public letter’ claiming we are demanding gay-marriages and if they allow us to march through the city, they are forced to legalize same-sex marriages,” she added.

Organisers say that all the required paperwork has been completed and submitted to the authorities and approval has been granted by City Hall and the police.

“We are a bit worried here that there will be organized resistance, blocking of the streets or attacking the marchers,” the spokesperson said, referring to the problems experienced in neighbouring Latvia with the Riga Pride parade last month.

“Last year in Tallin, some [Pride participants] got kicked and had eggs thrown at them.  But it was  nothing too serious.

“Our police were amazing.  They really did excellent job last year, as did the security company we hired K-grupp.”

But, referring to the problems at Riga, organizers do not believe any anti-Pride demonstration will become violent.

Political Parties in Estonia Condemn Tallin Gay Pride.  Two political parties in Estonian have condemned the Tallin Pride Parade which is due to be staged on Saturday (August 13).  The parade, the second to be staged in the Estonian capital, has been officially sanctioned by the Tallin City Council and Mayor Tonis Paltsile. (UK Gay News, August 10)

Tallin Gay Pride website (in Estonian and Russian only)

11 August 2005