On the festive meeting of the German Union of Deportees, dedicated to the 50th Homeland Day, the President of the Union of Deportees Erika Steinbach, a member of the German Bundestag, conferred on President Lennart Meri the highest award of the German Union of the Deportees.

The German Union of Deportees is an organisation with cultural and socio-political aims uniting the Germans who were deported from their homes after World War II and their descendants. Earlier, the citation of honour of the German Union of Deportees has been awarded to several outstanding German politicians and economists, including Konrad Adenauer and Helmut Kohl, and of the European Heads of State, to Franz Joseph II, the Prince of Liechtenstein.

After receiving the citation of honour, the President of the Republic held a speech. Lennart Meri said that violent attempts to create nationally homogenous zones both after World War II and today ''in the name of peace and stability'' meant and will mean sacrificing both peace and stability. He added that we should discard the over-ideologised systems of values and defend human rights and democracy against totalitarianism, independent of its disguise. ''The obligation to protect human beings and to fortify the moral values of Europe will always be with us,'' President Lennart Meri emphasised.

Also the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany Otto Schily, the Prime Minister of the State of Baden-Württemberg Erwin Teufel, Freiherr Wolfgang von Stetten, who is a member of the German Bundestag and Chairman of the Baltic Support Group of the Bundestag, several members of the Bundestag and the European Parliament, as well as the representatives of the diplomatic corps participated on the 50th Homeland Day of the Union of Deportees.

Dr. Heinz-Adolf Treu, Chairman of the Baltic German community of compatriots, hosted a dinner in honour of the President of the Republic. Also, the President of the Republic made a presentation to the American Chamber of Commerce in Stuttgart.


Press Service of the Office of the President
Kadriorg, September 6, 1999

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