Session Profile: Helle-Moonika Helme
The 15th Riigikogu, 4th session, plenary sitting.
2024-09-16
Political Position
The political focus is strongly directed toward supporting birth rate growth and solving the demographic crisis, which is considered the key to preventing the destruction of the national fabric. Furthermore, the government's actions are sharply criticized concerning opaque expenditures (2.4 billion) and the handling of historical monuments (the Lihula column), emphasizing a value-based and results-oriented opposition. The speaker is strongly opposed to the government's tax policy and the cutting of family benefits, deeming these actions hostile toward children.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Topic Expertise
The speaker demonstrates knowledge of demographic processes (migration, aging, and out-migration) and their impact on the "national body," presenting these three factors as death blows. He also possesses a detailed understanding of the Riigikogu's working order and the procedural bottlenecks encountered during the discussion of draft legislation, criticizing the way questions are effectively "tossed in the trash." Furthermore, he is familiar with specific cultural conflicts (the Lihula monument) and the government's actions taken to resolve them.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Rhetorical Style
The style is extremely combative, emotional, and forceful, employing heavily charged and polemical language (e.g., "child-hating government," "class-hatred agenda," "insane actions"). Emphasis is placed on national ruin and injustice, appealing to the listeners' emotions rather than detailed data. The speaker uses irony and sharp accusations to highlight the immorality and instability of the government's actions.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Activity Patterns
The Member of Parliament is active during the Riigikogu plenary session, submitting interpellations to the minister and introducing the faction's draft resolution. They actively engage in procedural debates, criticizing the rules for conducting the session. No other patterns of activity are evident from the data.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Opposition Stance
The primary opponent is the government (Kaja Kallas’s current administration), which stands accused of an "anti-child" family policy, illegal activities (the Lihula monument incident), and the surrender of Estonian territories to foreigners. The resistance is highly intense, encompassing politics, values, and procedures, with the government being accused of pushing a "class hatred agenda" and engaging in "theft." The administration is labeled "globalist," facilitating the transfer of Estonian land and sea to outsiders.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Collaboration Style
The speaker is acting on behalf of the parliamentary group, presenting a draft resolution. He is asking for support from all Riigikogu members for the demography bill, in order to "push the government onto the path of common sense." There are no references to cooperation with the governing coalition or willingness to compromise.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Regional Focus
The focus is predominantly national (demography, taxation, state credibility), but specific local conflicts are also mentioned regarding monuments (Lihula, Sinimäed) and land ownership (areas designated for wind farms). Emphasis is placed on the exclusion of communities through national special planning.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Economic Views
Strongly opposes general taxation and the idea of "taxing the rich," calling it a "socialist class-hatred agenda." It argues that the nation’s true wealth comes from population growth and investing in children, not from new taxes. It criticizes the government’s cuts made at the expense of families (parental benefits, large family allowances) and the opaque distribution of 2.4 billion.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Social Issues
The central social theme is the dramatic decline in the birth rate, which, coupled with migration and aging, is viewed as "a death blow to the national body." It supports freedom fighters and criticizes the government's stance on historical monuments, which is seen as conflicting with national values, specifically referencing the veneration of Red Army soldiers. It also criticizes the media for indoctrinating young people into believing that children are a burden.
8 Speeches Analyzed
Legislative Focus
The main legislative priority is the draft resolution introduced by the faction, which proposes that the government develop legislation aimed at supporting birth rate growth. The speaker is also strongly opposed to the government’s austerity policy and new state fees in higher education, which, in his estimation, drive young people out of the country.
8 Speeches Analyzed