Sunday, December 20, 2015

Max Kaur became a sponsor of the SOS Lasteküla Children's Village


At the end of the year Max Kaur, the Mayor of Mustvee, joined the ranks of the sponsors of the SOS Lasteküla Children's Village.
"Christmas is coming, and it should be a time for good deeds. We must come to the aid of children without parental care. The SOS Children's Village has chosen the right path: to form a large fund from small donations made by many people. That is why I joined the ranks of contributors of the SOS Children's Village. Let our children have a wonderful Christmas", said Max Kaur, the Mayor of Mustvee, capital of Peipus region.
Four years ago, the SOS Children's Village had 400 regular sponsors - now the number of those who make small monthly contributions to the cause of the SOS Children's Village has already exceeded 4,000. This year, the family of the SOS Children's Villages in Estonia celebrated its 20th anniversary. The idea to create the SOS Children's Villages emerged after the World War II in 1949, when the Austrian doctor Hermann Gmeiner began looking for a solution that would help war orphans and homeless children and provide them with the best possible home environment. The idea was materialised in the form of the first Children's Village in Austria, in the town of Imst. Today, the SOS Children's Villages operate in 133 countries and almost 80,000 children have found a new home full of love.

Monday, December 14, 2015

The Mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur was titled "Peipus region Person of the Year"

Continuing the tradition that started a few years ago, every year the newspaper “Chudskoye Poberezhye” names "Peipus region Person of the Year" choosing among the most active people in the local governments of our region, whose work results are obvious and become a common value. At the end of the outgoing 2015 this title was presented to the mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur.

“The Capital” of  Peipus - Mustvee city, which has a more than 500-year history, is developing today most intensively. The priority of development is tourism. Recently several new objects have been built here, i.e. a modern port building, a boat dock, one of the most beautiful bridge in the country, a lighted promenade along the beach, a sidewalk on one of the oldest street of the city – Tartu street. Not long ago a new hotel has been opened in the city, where it is possible to adequately accommodate tourists and businessmen. In Mustvee one can visit interesting museums, unique temples of different religious confessions, listen to organ music in the Lutheran church. It is also possible to enjoy the unforgettable fishing or organize romantic yachting on one of the largest lakes in Europe - the Peipus Lake.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Mustvee Town has now got a fashionable Hotel

Ankur Hotel was opened in the capital of Peipus, Mustvee town on the 27 of November, 2015. According to the European hotel classification, it corresponds to a three star hotel.
Ankur Hotel is located in the central square of Mustvee, opposite the Palace of Culture and the town park, close to the international bus station. The new hotel features a restaurant and a bar, where you can enjoy breakfast, lunch or a hearty meal. There are also shops that sell everything you need including suits and evening dresses.
“This year was very successful for Mustvee: in addition to the opening of a renovated port and the most beautiful bridge in Estonia, we now have the most fashionable hotel in the region welcoming both tourists and businessmen. Tourism is being developed year after year. In Mustvee you can see interesting landmarks and enjoy an organ recital in a church. You can also visit museums, go on an exciting fishing trip in summer or winter or take a romantic pleasure boat trip on one of the biggest lakes in Europe”, says Max Kaur, the mayor of Mustvee.
In recent years, Mustvee town is developing especially in the sphere of tourism. The town with over 500 years of history, two languages, three cultures and five churches has received the most beautiful bridge in Estonia, a new port building and berth, a slipway and a luxury boathouse. The Lutheran church in Mustvee has received a magnificent organ, which now grants both citizens and guests of the town the opportunity to attend organ recitals.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Max Kaur, the Mayor of Mustvee: the capital of Peipus is moving steadily forward

In the recent years, Mustvee, the capital of Peipus, has made real progress with the help of the residents. The folks around here call it the 500-year-old town with two languages, three cultures and five churches.
It is no coincidence that last year the most beautiful bridge in Estonia was built exactly here. A new main building, northern quay, ramp and an impressive boat harbour were built in our port, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year. The plan is to also renovate the southern quay, marina and seawall promenade in the future. 
The construction works of the lake promenade will continue, and the town pavements will be covered with beautiful paving stone. We are proud of our Peipsi Upper Secondary School, which, as of this year, is a bilingual educational institution. Our School of Music and Arts will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, and we are very pleased to say that a record number of children have decided to improve their knowledge of music and art this year. 
In the autumn, in cooperation with the Estonian Road Administration, we will start constructing a modern and safe well-lit pavement in Tartu street. Lights will be installed at the pedestrian crossings by the Mustvee Upper Secondary School and the Culture Centre, which is bound to make the journey to school safer for our children. 
Next year, in cooperation with the Estonian Road Administration, we will reconstruct the Mustvee-Tartu-Jõhvi and Jõgeva-Mustvee intersection where extra lighting will be installed to make the place safer for everyone. I am also glad to say that the Lutheran church of Mustvee has received a grand new organ. Now the residents and guests alike can enjoy organ recitals. 
We have many plans, but we can only make them come to life with the help of the residents. I would like to sincerely thank all our residents for your trust and support. Together we will accomplish a great deal!

Friday, September 11, 2015

Our Queen

It went relatively unnoticed, but Queen Elizabeth II eclipsed the record set by her foremother, Empress of India and Queen of England, Victoria. Victoria’s record reign, which lasted from 1837 until her death in 1901, and which seemed like it would never be broken, was quietly eclipsed by Elizabeth II, who shows no signs of slowing down.
Victoria’s ascension to the throne was dramatic, even though England has never had the tradition that the monarch must be male. If the monarch has no son, the crown is inherited by the nearest collateral line, regardless of whether the heir is a man or a woman. Even though Victoria’s male relatives were alive and well – and they also had their own successors – as the monarch’s closest living relative, Victoria inherited the crown. Elizabeth II earned the crown as the King’s daughter, even though the King had brothers who in turn had a number of male successors.
But who could have guessed that her reign would last longer than Victoria’s? In 1952, it would have been hard to believe. Today it is much easier to believe, since her mother, who was also named Elizabeth, lived to the age of 101. 
Long reigns are the trademark of a number of the forefathers of Elizabeth II. One of her forefathers was Peter August Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, and Governor-General of Estonia. He ruled Estonia for nearly 50 years in the 18th century. Longer than Ivan Käbin. It is astonishing that Elizabeth II married Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, whose direct male line forefather was also Peter August Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, and Governor-General of Estonia. Prince Philip is already 94 years old! It’s no wonder that the Queen expressed such a keen interest in visiting Tallinn; even though, as we all remember, the Queen suffered from severe back pain during her visit and underwent surgery after her trip to Estonia. As you can see, curiosity won out. From the window of the Three Sisters Hotel, in Tallinn, she saw what it was that her forefather, Peter August Friedrich, had ruled over here. 
Estonia has been ruled by other relatives of the British royal family, which makes the historic connection between our countries a strong one. May God grant many years to Elizabeth II, our Queen!

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Mustvee, the capital of Peipus, is celebrating the Day of Restoration of Estonian Independence

On 20 August 2015, Mustvee, the capital of Peipus, will be celebrating the Day of Restoration of Estonian Independence with a festive ceremony, raising the national flag in the town’s central square. In addition to the performance by the town’s brass band at the festive ceremony taking place in front of the town’s cultural palace, speeches will be made to residents by the town's leaders, Mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur and Chair of the City Council Riina Pajula, as well as Pastor Enok Haamer from the Mustvee Lutheran Church.
The Day of Restoration of Estonian Independence is a public holiday in the Republic of Estonia. Celebrated on 20 August of each year, it marks the date on which the de facto restoration of the Republic of Estonia was declared with the decision on the Independence of the Estonian State by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Estonia, which was approved by the Estonian Committee at the session of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Estonia on 20 August 1991.
The Public Holidays and Days of National Importance Act was adopted by the Riigikogu on 27 January 1998. The Act was subsequently amended, with the Day of Restoration of Independence being set as a public holiday and day of rest, the first celebration of which took place nationally on 20 August of that year. 

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Mayor of Mustvee: the capital of Peipus will get the most beautiful bridge in Estonia

At the beginning of July, there will be a new bridge opened in Mustvee, the capital of Peipus, that was built by the Estonian Road Administration and cost nearly 700,000 euros. The earlier bridge had been built in 1934 and opened by Konstantin Päts, President of the Republic of Estonia.
„This is a historical event, bridges are built to last for centuries and the event is not only important for the Peipus region, but for all of Estonia. Mustvee, the capital of Peipsu, has clearly started moving upward after its 500-year-long history. From the capital of Peipus, Estonia and the European Union begin. We are proud that the capital of Peipus will get the most beautiful bridge in Estonia. It will be the most beautiful concrete building in Estonia both architecturally as well as aesthetically, both lighting-wise as well as safety-wise,” stated Max Kaur, Mayor of Mustvee, the capital of Peipus.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

The state should protect opposition leaders

The thoughts and questions of Mart Ummelas, the editor-in-chief of Tallinn Television, about the issues concerning Edgar Savisaar, have given the opponents an opportunity to reprimand the members of the Estonian Centre Party for falling into conspirology. Indeed, conspirology seems like a postmodern pastiche, a laugh over the discourse of the whole rational and positivistic history of the Enlightenment era, politics and culture. However, times may change, a man may step out from the dark and offer an alternative for rationalism. The unthinkable will be realised. And it is the job of journalists to ask questions, they are not some kind of private investigators from a detective bureau. Instead, it immediately arises a wider problem. Let's imagine a theoretical case that something happens with the leader of an opposition party of some large Western country. You may be certain that the law enforcement authorities of this country would immediately be alarmed. Why? Since in Western democracy the opposition — Her Majesty's Opposition — is an inseparable part of the power structure and as important as the ruling party. Factually the opposition serves as the superior of the law enforcement authorities, just like the ruling party does. The opposition is protected as watchfully as the government because the interest of foreign countries is not only to affect the politics today but also tomorrow. It does not smell like a Western country here in Estonia. The leaders of the opposition party are subject to constant stalking, investigation and prosecution. And if something happens to them, the law enforcement authorities do not even react. So you ask where is the Estonian Internal Security Service statement regarding what happened to former Prime Minister Savisaar? You are correct, there is none. And believe me, this is not normal. What happened to Edgar Savisaar is undoubtedly important. However, even more important is that a democratic country should react to what happens to its most important opposition leader. In a normal situation a respective authority investigates the matter and makes a statement. For instance that the matter was investigated and nothing suspicious was found. This is done in order to inform the general public and to eliminate unfounded suspicions. It does not matter whether something suspicious happened to a government member or a member of the opposition. For instance, after the death of the Bundestag member Andreas Schockenhoff in Germany, which was considered to be a natural death, the matter was immediately thoroughly investigated and the court issued an order for an immediate autopsy. We now live in a world similar to the world of murders and poisoning of the Cold War. A person, a problem, no person, no problem. Take the latest news from London about a well-known person being poisoned with Gelsemium elegans. No, I do not read conspiratorial stories, this is real news from the real world. We must realise that even in a country like Estonia there is a clear and constant threat that external forces may attack and manipulate even with opposition members, not to mention the politicians at power. This threat is constant and permanent. Therefore, the proper behaviour patterns of Estonian special services are of utmost importance. It is not too late for the state to take these matters seriously. 

Friday, May 22, 2015

British lion’s fangs come out

Parliamentary elections in Britain ended unexpectedly. The majority of political observers forecast the disappearance of conservators and liberals of the crisis period. If you followed the leading TV channels, you could probably see how politic observers explained, that polls are insignificant and Laborites are on the way to success. At the same time the studies constantly showed a small gap between Laborites and conservators. The reality was even tougher – the Workers' party has failed completely, the conservators won the hands down. The Workers' parties are not that popular anymore. And the conservators were able to assume power, because they succeeded in suppressing Scottish separatism. Furthermore, the conservators promised to organize a referendum concerning exit from EU. That’s why they were elected. ‘No to independence of Scotland, exit from the EU’ – it will evidently be the headline of the new parliament’s policy for the next five years.
But our people haven’t notice important news, namely discovery of new oilfields near London… Nonetheless, the British lion starts losing his fangs on the world arena. The generals admitted that the British army is in a deplorable state. It is not ready for a world war. The importance of Britain has reduced so much, that they do not even participate in the Ukrainian events, although they are the guarantees of Budapest memorandum that must guarantee the territorial unity of Ukraine. They have no influence in the EU. The former world leader assumed secondary position. That means that they do not retreat into itself, into its own problems. Obviously, rich Russian businessmen, that are hiding in London, and Saudi Arabian order to Muslims to vote for conservators have tipped the scale on this elections. So is the world. 

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Yeltsin’s successor killed in front of Kremlin

Boris Nemtsov, former governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, the first Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, and the long-time possible successor to Boris Yeltsin, was killed in front of the Kremlin. The latter was an honour he never received because the Federal Security Services (FSB) recorded conversations where he spoke poorly of Yeltsin. Instead, Vladimir Putin became Yeltsin’s successor. Nemtsov was supported by billionaire Vladimir Potanin (Norilsk Nickel), who is also a former Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. Nemtsov was also a billionaire in Russian roubles.He was a man of action. After that, when Nemtsov distributed copies of his book “Putin:” The Final Result" in Triumfalnaya Square, the result was a “monkey cage”. Putin became President and Nemtsov received a “monkey cage”. Nemtsov’s private life was also the subject of a great deal of attention. Nemtsov was of Jewish heritage and he enjoyed spending time in Israel. His weakness was young women, which is why he also has illegitimate children in addition to the children from his legal marriage. Nemtsov was able to remain a politician during the reign of Putin. He ran for Mayor of Sochi. He was last elected to the Yaroslavl Oblast Duma. I met Nemtsov personally in 2003, when he gave a lecture in Tallinn; I was contacted, and I invited him to visit the Tallinn City Government (photo). Namely, I organised a personal meeting for him with Edgar Savisaar. On a Sunday morning, we held a reception for him on the third floor of the Tallinn City Government. An unexpectedly amazing, emotional politician – whose friends included many world leaders – he spent an hour with us. He spoke sincerely and broadly and was truly similar to Yeltsin. But at the same time, I would say that I am not surprised at his current twist of fate.

Saturday, February 28, 2015

The Port in the town of Mustvee earned the deed of the year award

Within the framework of the competition “Jõgeva County Recognises 2014” the jury selected the deed of the year – the completion of the Mustvee port terminal in the capital of Lake Peipus – which was supported by the Mustvee City Government.
“This is an acknowledgement of all the people of the capital of Lake Peipus and the good teamwork in the Mustvee City Government and the City Council. Estonia’s eastern sea must develop quickly, since it is no longer only a gateway to Estonia, but to the entire European Union,” believes Mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur.At the end of 2014, a new port building of modern architectural design had been completed, the main wharf had been renovated, and a new boat harbour built. The new pier is 168 metres in length and has room alongside for landing nearly 30 boats. In the new two-storey port terminal, the Mustvee city government has set aside rooms for the harbour master as well as the Environmental Inspectorate. The construction of the Mustvee Port cost nearly EUR 1.1 million. Slightly more than EUR 1 million came from the European Union, via the Estonia-Latvia-Russia cross border cooperation Programme «Economically and environmentally sustainable Lake Peipus area». Vessel traffic took place at the Mustvee passenger port during the tsarist-era and during the era of the first Republic of Estonia. During the Soviet-era, hydrofoils could also be found at Mustvee. The goal of the competition “Jõgeva County Recognises 2014” is to recognise important deeds that have affected the county’s development. Awards will be presented on 21 February, at the festive reception dedicated to the 97th anniversary of Estonia’s independence.

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Major U.S. exhibition in Mustvee, the capital of Peipus

On 2 February 2015, the Embassy of the United States, in cooperation with the Mustvee Cultural Centre, opened the major exhibition “Picturing America”. On display are 40 pictures in the form of works of art and historical events, providing an introduction to America.

“Without a doubt the United States cultural exhibition is an important event in the history of the capital of Peipus. At the Mustvee Cultural Centre, one can see a cross-section of U.S. history through art. Taking into consideration that the capital of Lake Peipus is bilingual, tri-cultural and home to five churches, then this diverse U.S. cultural heritage is of great interest to us. We must keep in mind that Estonia, the European Union and western culture all begin on the shores of Estonia’s eastern sea,” said Mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur.
Last year, on 3 December 2014, an historical event took place in the capital of Peipus, when Mustvee was visited by United States Ambassador Jeffrey D. Levine, along with other U.S. diplomats from the world’s only superpower. 
“The visit by the U.S. Ambassador was an important event for the town of Mustvee, since the people living along the shores of Lake Peipus are hoping for strong cooperation with the United States to improve their quality of life. The completion of the Mustvee passenger port will significantly alter the status of the town. The capital of Lake Peipus is developing much more intensively than at any other point in its 500 year history,” noted Mayor of Mustvee Max Kaur.
During his visit, the Ambassador paid a visit to the Mustvee Russian Upper Secondary School. In the Mustvee Cultural Centre, which was renovated with the help of European Union funds, the Ambassador visited the Heino Lubja Museum of Scales and Balances. The Ambassador also inspected the new Mustvee passenger port, financed by the European Union. The Ambassador also reviewed the situation along the Mustvee Border Guard cordon, on the shores of Estonia’s eastern sea.