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Hard to imagine a contemporary state without input by volunteers. People increasingly willing to donate their free time and means towards public ends is a sign of an understanding: large-scale events succeed and security grows only when we all give a try. Volunteer actions are a vital stone in the foundation of today’s civil society.
In his latest New Year interview to Public Broadcasting, President Toomas Hendrik Ilves said: «Things don’t go well by themselves; things go well when you are dedicated, when you do something.» Of volunteer work, we have many an excellent example – starting from organising popular sports and culture events involving tens of thousands (marathons, song celebrations) and ending with the Defence League. In May 2015, Estonian Neighbourhood Watch will be celebrating its 15 years – we have over five hundred neighbourhood watch areas involving 11,000 families. By now, we have gotten accustomed to seeing/hearing volunteer work all around us – even with the tragic events at Lake Tamula last week, it was the volunteers who extended helping hand to professionals [seeking those that drowned – edit].
Even so, to this very day volunteerism is spoken of as an example of the state being no good in some sphere. The mentality that somewhere there is a state that is supposed to do it all for us is no part of 21st century democracy. Sure, there are the states like that; however, citizens thereof will often discover that the state also decides what they may speak, write or even think. Neither can such states’ ordinary citizens boast of wellbeing. In his warning of a novel called Nineteen Eighty-Four, the British author George Orwell said it all; in the «care» of such a state, we have also been partakers.
There’s the other extreme, of course – turning volunteers into a kind of super humans. Often, this treatment is found in the mouth of some popularity-hunting politician. Volunteers, be they as tough and dedicated as they come, still won’t make it without state help. To take action, the needed regulation needs to be in place – the legal space – and the material support.
As at year’s end, Defence league had 14,000 members (23,000, including special organisations). Spurred by events in Ukraine, interest to join has ever increased. Step by step, the role of volunteers is being increased in national defence as well.
Meanwhile, as the talk of «input» and «capacity» is cheap, let us not forget that to expect Defence League to act, money needs to be channelled into weapons systems and continuous training. Real help, not just oratory, is also expected in ranks of volunteer fire-fighters, sea rescuers and the like.