Let the dead rest

From AP-

TALLINN, Estonia - Protesters gathered at a Soviet war grave in downtown Tallinn on Thursday, as authorities prepared to remove the bodies despite Russia's angry objections.

Dozens of police faced the 100 protesters at the Bronze Soldier monument as workers erected a tent over the memorial to shield the excavations from public view. Some protesters shouted "Estonia is a disgrace," and one was detained after trying to jump the police barrier.

Three other protesters were detained earlier Thursday after locking themselves in a car and refusing to obey police orders, police spokeswoman Julia Garanza said. Officers smashed the windows of the car.

Estonia's government intends to relocate the Soviet grave, believed to contain the remains of 14 soldiers, and the Bronze Soldier statue next to it.

The Baltic state's ethnic Russians — roughly one-third of the population — see the memorial as a tribute to Red Army soldiers who died fighting Nazi Germany and have vowed to protect it. Many ethnic Estonians, however, say the memorial is a bitter reminder of five decades of Soviet occupation.

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The government has said it wants to identify the remains in the war grave and then relocate the entire monument to a yet-undecided location. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said the excavations would last up to two weeks.

Just based on what is reported above, I think the Estonian government is being dumb. Identifying the remains isn't worth descercrating their graves. There are thousands in unmarked graves across Eastern Europe because of World War II. Remember all of them by letting them rest in peace

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