Postimees Digest, Thursday, February 28
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POSTIMEES
President nominates Karis for auditor general.
President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has sent a proposal to the Riigikogu to nominate former rector of the University of Tartu Alar Karis for the position of auditor general. The president writes in the bill's explanatory memorandum that Karis has shown authority and deep knowledge of the mechanisms of state administration and the economy in his previous positions.
"I believe that we are dealing with a well-known person who is at the same time politically independent and has sufficient leadership experience," the president wrote.
Foreigners' chances to find work deteriorating.
Fresh data from Statistics Estonia suggests that even though foreigners living in Estonia have the same approximate level of education as locals, their chances of finding work have deteriorated over recent years. Chief analyst of the agency Siim Krusell said that SE carries out an annual comparison of the labor situation of people whose parents have been born in Estonia (locals) and those whose parents have been born in another country (immigrants).
This division puts the number of immigrants at 226,500 and the numbers of locals at 797,800 in 2012. The agency concludes that while both groups are on a similar level in terms of education, employment of locals was clocked at 62 percent in 2012 while that of immigrants amounted to 57.4 percent and that the latter figure is in decline. The agency also found that difficult times have resulted in more people feeling the need to learn the Estonian language as both verbal and written language proficiency of immigrants has grown from 18.7 percent in 2008 to 24.3 percent in 2012.
Tallinn applies for bars curfew.
Tallinn city government has applied for an amendment to give local governments the right to force bars and night clubs to close their doors at a specified time. The city government finds that Tallinn Old Town's notoriety as the hub of British bachelors and others looking to party all night does not make for a suitable image for a UNESCO world heritage site and that the situation has become unbearable for local residents.
City Center borough elder Mihhail Korb said that bars and night clubs should be forced to close their doors by 3 a.m. at the latest. While current legislation makes it possible to shorten the business hours of entertainment providers, municipalities would have to go after each local separately and gather a plethora of evidence whereas excess noise levels are very difficult to prove in a situation where there are several bars operating in a single building, the city government notes. Tallinn has found allies in local residents who say that the Old Town's nightlife is having a negative effect on other types of businesses as people who are not interested in clubbing and bar hopping tend to steer clear of the area in the evening. Police statistics show that the number of calls to the area in question spike at around 2 a.m., which the police believes to be the best time to close pubs and night clubs.
Editorial: Tallinn Old Ghost Town
Tallinn plans to apply for law amendment limiting open hours of Old Town bars and cafés. The request, majority backed by Old Town Society made up of dwellers therein, stresses their rights to get a good sleep – now disturbed by loud night-life. Tallinn Old Town is a value worth conserving, but not in theme park form.
As the sun goes down, theme parks close their gates. Merry-go-rounds cease to spin; the ghosts take off their white robes and head home for supper. A city, however, keeps on living no matter the night. This is the question: do we want a theme-park-hearted city, a showcase? Or do we opt for a live one? Should we go for the latter, a fact of life has to be accepted – living organisms come with more than rosy cheeks. They do have pimples… to say nothing of corns.
Sakkov sees no alternative to national airline.
Member of the management board of AS Tallinn Airport Erik Sakkov writes in an opinion piece that Estonian Air's troubles have cost the airport contracts with six airlines and that there is no feasible alternative to having a national airline. Sakkov writes that foreign airlines become interested in a destination provided it has a local carrier able to ferry their clients forward and that the survival and development of Estonian Air is in the interests of the whole of society.
"Connections determine more than the ability to backpack around interesting small towns; availability of high quality connections will decide whether we will remain in the economic and political periphery of the EU or not." Sakkov also refutes claims that Tallinn's high airport fees are keeping foreign airlines away as the latter make up only four percent of the costs of servicing a connection.