Estonians across the globe will gather to light candles tonight in remembrance of the victims of the first mass deportation in the Baltic States. On the night of the 13th June 1941, the Red Army in Soviet-occupied Estonia rounded up 9603 innocent civilians and sent them to desolate and underdeveloped parts of Russia. Of the victims, 3512 were men, 3024 women and 3067 children. The men were sent to prison camps in Siberia and the women were forced to work in hard labour camps. May we never forget this Soviet atrocity that tore families apart ruined a generation of Estonians. There probably isn't a single Estonian family who did not lose somebody as a result of Stalin's deportations.
