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In the interview, the Minister of the Interior was asked, among other things, about the referendum initiated by EKRE, in which voters would be asked whether to include in the Estonian constitution a definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. German journalist Helmem asked if he thought “gays met and flooded the Estonian nation”. In response, Mart Helme acknowledged that he was unfriendly towards people of non-traditional sexual orientation and advised them to move to Sweden, where everyone would treat them more politely.
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In response to these statements, opposition party leaders called on Helmi to resign last week, with the Prime Minister deploring what the minister had said, and President Kersti Kaljulaida calling what Martha Helm said:just disgusting“and declared that the Estonian people deserve a better minister.
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On Thursday, the prime minister, who is also the leader of the Center Party, together with the chairman of EKRE Martin Helm and the leader of the “Fatherland” party Helir Valdor Seder issued a joint statement stating that a referendum on the definition of marriage will take place next spring.
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As Ratas said, “there are five difficult days behind, the crisis is over and the coalition is working, the coalition is moving forward”.
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He said the referendum could be held “in search of a common position, peacefully, without provoking any group of people”.
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“We call on opposition and coalition politicians, the media and interest groups to be aware of their responsibilities,” the head of government emphasized.
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Seder, for his part, emphasized that the joint statement of the leaders of the three coalition parties should not be considered a new coalition agreement, but only one of the clauses of the existing agreement.
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According to him, the crisis has manifested itself as “communication of emotionally drawn politicians”.
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The patriotic leader has indicated that none of the coalition partners wanted it to disintegrate and that there is no better version of the current parliament than the current coalition.
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EKRE leader Martin Helme, finance minister and son of Martha Helme, said the coalition party dispute was “emotional and irrational” and his party feared that one of its important points in the coalition agreement would not be fulfilled, but now confidence had been fully restored.
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Earlier this week, Martin Helme reportedly issued an ultimatum to the prime minister, announcing that EKRE would leave the government if the interior minister had to resign following a prime minister’s decision or a vote of no confidence in parliament, which would be possible if opposition members supported the opposition. He said at the time that “the question is not whether the head of government trusts his interior minister, but whether EKRE trusts the prime minister himself”.
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