Estonia eager to get five refugee families for Christmas

Photo: Allikas: «Täpsustatud tegevuskava Euroopa Liidu ümberasustamise ja ümberpaigutamise tegevuste elluviimiseks»

Responsible for reception of refugees, interior ministry migration policy vice chancellor Raivo Küüt and social ministry social domain vice chancellor Rait Kuuse say helping refugees will swallow no more resources than helping an Estonian jobless and in need for social support. It's just that integration needs to be more intense initial approach. 

- Am I getting it right that you two will be responsible for reception of refugees in Estonia?

Raivo Küüt: There are more, but we two do carry more of the load.

- How do you envision it?

Küüt: At a public discussion in Tartu two days ago, the first thing they asked me was how I was involved as an official. I said let’s talk about the human approach. Coming from police background, I see it through the security lens. These are people that have encountered such trouble at home that they had to see a secure shelter. Such need help. The key is being informed what will actually be happening. How we will behave as a state. What matters most is receptiveness in people, the general attitude. At end of October, our people will be going county to county to explain the plan of action.

Rait Kuuse: None can deal with a domain not harmonious with his inner convictions. I could not work at social ministry not believing what we do is right. My domain includes lots of such issues beginning with people with special needs to handicapped to children without parental care. These are things to be dealt with and where the society is split in attitudes.  

- This isn’t just the refugees but diversity as such?

Kuuse: Exactly, refugees is just one aspect. Will we be able to feel the problems in our society, how well will we be able to explain it, what are the values carried by the people. Here, there is lots of room for development. I think we need to help those who need help. We will not send somebody away from our door who asks for help, we will seek a solution. The refugee issue may feel distant to us but we must dig in our recent history to see what causes migration. We need to realise that in a globalised world we cannot stand on the sidelines. For Estonia, this is actually a happy situation that today we can be a helper and are not in need of help any longer. This is a giant leap for these past 20 years. We should see it as a privilege to belong to the small circle of nations who are able to help. This is Estonia’s chance to give tolerance some boost. A journalist asked me if I was willing to take a refugee in my home. Of course, if the need arises. But truth be told we do not need to take anyone into our homes. They do not want to come live at anybody’s place, but to live independently. For that, we have more opportunity than we think.

- Reading the recently completed action plan for reception of refugees, feels masses of people are needed for help?

Kuuse: Beholding an Estonian who has no work, who is on social support, needing to survive, relearn in order to find a new job. How many are involved helping such a person? The local government social worker, people involved in education, or work insurance staff, friends, community. Nothing notable in that lots of people gather around. Might be even more if we had equal amount of volunteers gather around war refugees and others in need. Social system must not be number one.

- Reading the answers by local governments to social ministry query, initially they tended to decline but at some point they begun to say we might discuss.

Kuuse: Exactly. Even the media was covering how  Põlvamaa local governments association said the county is willing to take two families, and then a local wrote he could personally receive these two families by giving them use of a farmhouse standing idle and offer support and care. The person said we input too little There’s all kinds of examples like that. Even on local level, there should be more discussions and thought. We have had very intense talks and that’s natural, every new thing needs digestion. We are on a very fast train today.

- But this is urgent!

Kuuse: No, it isn’t. We do according as we are able. It’s not somebody standing at the door, but we are talking, we are discussing, we are explaining that we are finding out who needs more help and want to have help ready as they arrive in Estonia. At the end of the year, by Christmas, we’d be ready to receive the initial five-six families. And gradually they will be arriving.

- So who are coming to Estonia?

Kuuse: Today, we are able to talk generalities, without names, backgrounds. When in November we have had more clarity there (in Italy – edit) we will be able to say we have family A, with mother, father, two children, aged so and so, such skills, such languages spoken. Then we will settle upon the address and organisation responsible. We will agree when they will arrive, who will meet them, the ambulance will perform initial health check. It will all be built on the people. What we do not want is these people constantly in focus as they are no public figures, they will want to love quietly. Then the refugees of war will develop a definite face and the human aspect will emerge.

- We do actually have refugees of war even now?!

Küüt: About 20,000, all in all, counting all legal migration. Of these, only a bit over hundred are under international protection.

Kuuse: Over these hundred, there have been no big problems in the society. We are offering war refugees no privileges, it’s the same social support as for locals. But various groups differ in needs of services. Talking about refugees of war, we will have to invest a little more in integration and language study.

- Social ministry is responsible for organising language study. Why not education ministry?

Kuuse: Education ministry organises school issues. Social ministry is seeing to reception and getting the life going. The kids get the language from school, but the rest of the family needs it also. We have the capacity to teach the language.

- We have had lots of criticism regarding language study at asylum seekers centre.

Kuuse: Here we must make a difference. At the centre, people are awaiting the decision. To 85 percent we have said they cannot stay. Makes no sense to teach them Estonian, deeply. Those that have a right to stay, and those who are now to come, it’s another matter. Riigikogu is right now proceeding a bill making study of Estonian language mandatory for those awarded international protection. Our two year goal is to provide mid-level language study.

- The people must also be ready to come into Estonia but they know nothing of the land. Have you any materials to introduce Estonia to them, videos?

Küüt: We have had the materials for a long time. In Russian, English, Arabic, and Estonian.

Kuuse: We don’t go to Greece or Italy with slogans «Welcome to Estonia!». If they are unwilling to come here, we will not force them. We expect them to come and make an input into the society. Estonia does not feel like a destination of choice for them. It is important we explain to them the basics of what Estonia means. We must organise the reception so we can offer support at time and location needed. Probably, in some cases we will have to admit failure.

Küüt: Bu the way the action plan has been compiled in cooperation of several agencies and organisations SI have gotten the confidence that we will make it.