Memorial exhibition for June deportations opened on Tallinna Mere Boulevard

The Human Rights Institute has installed a memorial installation dedicated to the June deportations, titled "Tears Carriage," along with an accompanying exhibition in front of Tallinna Mere cultural centre. On Sunday, victims of the first Soviet mass deportation, which took place 85 years ago, will be commemorated. The Foreign Ministry drew parallels to the present day, noting Ukrainian children forcibly removed by Russia.

On Tallinna Mere Boulevard, in front of the former Russian cultural centre, a memorial installation dedicated to the June deportations, titled "Tears Carriage," was opened this year along with an accompanying exhibition. The Human Rights Institute has brought this installation to Tallinn's public spaces since 2013 to keep alive the memory of the June 1941 deportations.

85 years on

On Sunday, 14 June 2026, events across Estonia will commemorate those who experienced the Soviet regime's first mass deportation 85 years ago. On the morning of 14 June 1941, an operation began in which approximately 10,000 people were deported from Estonia to Siberia, including women, children and the elderly. The deportation affected nearly every family in Estonia and remains one of the most severe crimes of the communist regime.

Visual narrative from the past

Since 2024, the installation has been accompanied by a graphic narrative created by Veiko Tammjärv, which depicts visually how the June deportations began and how they intruded into people's lives. "This series of images is not a conventional history article, but an immediate and powerful visual narrative. It helps bring the past closer to those who may not typically read lengthy historical accounts, but who are moved by images, stories and a human perspective," explained the Human Rights Institute.

Connection to the present day

The Estonian Foreign Ministry drew a parallel to the present on the day of commemoration, recalling that Russia is employing similar methods today. During the war of aggression in Ukraine, Russia has forcibly removed more than 20,000 Ukrainian children, robbing them of their childhood, home, family and often their identity. "Estonia is working actively to ensure that all deported Ukrainian children return home and that those responsible for Russian aggression are brought before an international tribunal. Only accountability can prevent such tragedies from recurring," the Foreign Ministry stressed.