Anarchism in Estonia dates back to theRussian Revolution and re-emerged after theSinging Revolution as part of theEstonian punk subculture. Estonian anarchists have been involved in political demonstrations, the conservationist movement and art collectives.
In September 1917, young socialist activists in the city ofNarva established a youth branch of theEstonian Social Democratic Workers' Party. Within a month, it came under the influence ofanarchists and took the name of the Anarchist Communist Youth Association of Narva (Estonian:Narva Anarhistlik-Kommunistlik Noorte Ühing; NAKNU). In February 1918, anarchist delegates from Narva attended a congress of social-democratic youth associations inTallinn, where they objected to the adoption of aBolshevik programme by a proposed nationwide youth organisation. They were outvoted and left the congress, leaving it to establish theNorthern Baltic Communist Youth League (PBKNL).[1]
In the 1970s, the anarchist movement re-emerged in theEstonian Soviet Socialist Republic, as part of theEstonian punk subculture. TheSinging Revolution, which brought an end toSoviet rule in the Baltic states and saw the return offreedom of expression, allowed for the complete re-organisation of the anarchist movement.[2]
In the mid-1990s, the Anarchist League of Estonia (Estonian:Maavalla Anarhistlik Liit, MAL) was established by a group ofindividualist anarchists. The MAL was loosely organised, and did not have any rigid membership structure.[3][4]Villu Tamme reported that, although he had heard of the organisation, he did not know what it did.[4] On 30 June 1996, the first anarchistpolitical demonstration in the country's history took place. The demonstration was organised byTõnu Trubetsky, who clarified that while Estonian anarchists wereanti-state, they were not specifically agitating against the Estonian state at that time and supported Estonian independence.[3][4] The march consisted of roughly 100 people, who blocked roads and expressed hostility towards photojournalists, while being monitored by police. The demonstration ended atVon Krahl Theatre, where a punk concert was held byJ.M.K.E. and other Estonian punk bands.[4]
Some years later, the Estonian conservationistJüri-Ott Salm [et] established theKorporatsioon Fraternitas Anarhensis (English:Fraternitas Anarchensis Corporation', KFA), which gained a reputation for provocative political demonstrations by wearing toilet paper rolls as makeshift clothes and carrying a pig's head as a flag. Salm did not considered his idea of anarchism to beradical, as he only sought to expand the role ofnonprofit organisations and mutual agreements in society.[5]
On 22 February 2006, the libertarian socialist organisationPunaMust [et] (English:Red-Black; PM) was established.[6] On 6 June 2007,PunaMust activists were arrested in the German city ofRostock for blocking the highway towardsLaage. After their release from police custody on 8 and 9 June, whenneo-Nazis attempted to attack them outside the jail, they received protection from local residents.[7]
In 2019, the Estonian anarchist art collective ZA/UM published the video gameDisco Elysium, which achieved critical and commercial acclaim.[8]
