Editorial: baddies seeking to serve Odin

Photo: Urmas Nemvalts

We don't want the thieves, the robbers and the violent to keep order in our streets, do we? 

And yet, turns out there’s at least 181 on Soldiers of Odin Estonia Facebook support group with criminal record.

No wonder that initiatives like this attracts folks with criminal past. Curiously, though, the organisation has not deemed it necessary to keep such stuff out by purring it plainly in the statutes. And, regrettably, they do not want to comment to the media.

For voluntary help to keep order, Estonia has plenty of options like enlisting as assistant policeman. The latter, however, may not have criminal records nor stand as accused or suspected in crimes. Same goes for the voluntary Defence League. Goes without saying.

By statutes, the Soldiers are to «prevent crime by activity of population». Aside the obvious racism, how could criminals going on patrol do that?

True, who could ban people from donning like coats and going about the streets until they do outright evil. Also true that scaring people by race is in no way in the interests of our people or our culture. Judging by the lists, we’d rather need the police to go patrol after the Odin people.

Whose interests does it serve? With Finland in mind, the movement is already feeding the Kremlin propaganda about neo-Nazi groupings operating at «silent state consent».

While a leading Estonian «Odin» had no problem giving an interview to a Russian TV channel, he fled from the Finnish YLE reporter. In a word: let the racism overflow into Kremlin channels, but free media strikes fear.