30 March 2025 Delfi reports of vandalism towards Tehumardi memorial:
Saaremaa municipality is still looking for a solution to modernise the Tehumard red monument.
On Thursday, red graffiti was spray-painted on the Tehumardi monument in Saaremaa with the poem: “Call, Saaremaa! Let’s take down the red pillars of the patriots! Let’s knock out their teeth!”. On the other side was the chant ‘Let’s take them down!’.
The mayor of Saaremaa, Mikk Tuisk, told Delfi that it is not yet known who put the rhyme on the monument, but the police have started criminal proceedings.
According to the mayor, many locals continue to believe that Tehumardi’s ‘broken sword’ should be taken down completely. However, as the monument has been recognised as a cultural monument, the heritage authorities will not allow it to be removed.
The saga surrounding the ‘Broken Sword of Tehumardi’ – a concrete sword that glorifies the Red Army soldiers who fell in the night battle of Tehumardi – has been going on for more than a year. Last summer, the Estonian War Museum reburied the bodies and removed the grave markers. Instead of a war cemetery, there is a lawn around the monument.
In the run-up to the tourist season, the municipality covered the propaganda texts
On 21 March, Saaremaa municipality covered the monument with propaganda texts and red emblem plates. Tuisk admitted that the municipality took this step on its own initiative and did not coordinate the move with the heritage protection authority.
In a letter to the heritage authority, Tuisk said that despite the efforts of the parties, there seemed to be no new solution for the monument, and the municipality could no longer oppose a new tourist season with such a symbol.
The heritage authority initiated a follow-up procedure, but concluded that such a covering of inscriptions was acceptable as a temporary solution. ‘We found that it had been solved in a relatively dignified way, so let it be and we will look for a more permanent solution,’ Tuisk explained to Delfi.
According to Tuisk, covering the letters has also brought satisfaction to many locals. “Many have accepted, let it [the monument] be. At least the letters have been covered.”
The mayor could not say how long the temporary solution would be in place. At the moment, the municipality is looking for funding for a new solution.
Last year, the EAA and the heritage authority organised a competition to give the Tehumardi monument an artistic makeover. The municipality’s current plan is to continue with the EAA’s artistic solution ‘Words’.
The ‘Words’ project envisages carving an alphabet on the monument, which carries the meaning that words are only words, ERR reported.
Tuisk said that the EAA’s solution has not been very well received by locals. “They see it as a bit too artistic. Rather, a lot of locals want it taken down and done with.”
Rethinking the monument will require a big outlay
However, the plan is to go ahead with the promised solution and the municipality is seeking funding for the ‘words’. According to Mr Tuisk, it would cost €22 000 to reinterpret the monument in this way. The EAA is prepared to contribute €12 000, with the Saaremaa municipality covering the remaining €10 000. In his appeal to the Ministry of Culture, Tuisk wrote that the municipality could cover €5,000 of this.
The municipality also sought support from the Cultural Endowment, but at the end of March the application was rejected. Tuisk said he still hoped that the heritage protection would be willing to support Saaremaa municipality in this respect.
Delfi was unable to get a comment from the heritage preservation authority at the time of writing, but on Thursday, Mari Rebane, a spokeswoman for the heritage preservation authority, told ERR that the authority had not yet discussed allocating the money.
Rebane also said that she was still willing to work with Saaremaa municipality to find the best solution for permanently covering the Tehumard memorial’s propaganda symbols and texts.