March 25th marks the anniversary of the start of a three-day operation by the Red Army and NKVD to deport over 20,000 people from Soviet-occupied Estonia to the vast hinterlands of Russia. The tradition, since the re-establishment of Estonian independence in 1991, is to light candles in memory of those deported. All Estonian families have relatives, close or distant, or know of some others who were affected by Soviet deportations that lasted from 1940 to 1951. Students of the Toronto Estonian Schools join in this candle-lighting tradition.
Photos: Eesti Elu
