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20260920 053000 UTC
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[00:00:00] Estonia. Naiskodukaitse (Women's Voluntary Defence Organization) is a
[00:00:03] special organization of the Defense League that supports the Defense League in its national defense and
[00:00:06] patriotic activities, and brings together ambitious women with similar goals
[00:00:10] throughout
[00:00:11] the country.
[00:00:14] The first film footage of Naiskodukaitse was captured in Tartu
[00:00:18] in December 1925, when the then
[00:00:21] Minister of the Interior, Kaare Leenpalu, donated flags to the Defense League battalions.
[00:00:25] Naiskodukaitse was established as an independent
[00:00:28] central organization in
[00:00:32] 1927, but the women's units of the Defense League are three years
[00:00:35] older. The Kalevimaa division's company of nurses
[00:00:38] was founded already in December
[00:00:41] 1924, shortly after the Bolshevik uprising attempt.
[00:00:45] Naiskodukaitse members were again in front of the film camera
[00:00:47] in 1929, when the Swedish king
[00:00:51] visited Estonia. In two years, Naiskodukaitse had grown into one of Estonia's
[00:00:54] largest women's organizations, to whom national
[00:00:58] representation tasks were entrusted. Before the Second World War, Naiskodukaitse was
[00:01:02] a true mass organization, where, alongside national defense, national culture
[00:01:06] was also pursued. Presumably, Estonia's first major
[00:01:09] dance festivals were initiated precisely by Naiskodukaitse.
[00:01:12] During the period of the first Republic of Estonia,
[00:01:15] Naiskodukaitse had quite
[00:01:19] different goals than it does now. We
[00:01:23] had our own, meaning,
[00:01:26] well, purely home defense.
[00:01:31] "We were assistants to
[00:01:34] the Defense League, and
[00:01:36] Naiskodukaitse primarily had
[00:01:40] such a principle that
[00:01:43] we must
[00:01:46] be economically able to cater, if
[00:01:50] needed, in training camps.
[00:01:54] Then, we had to complete Samaritan courses, and if
[00:01:57] there were training camps
[00:02:01] where men were in
[00:02:05] polygons, or learning in those places, then a group of
[00:02:08] Samaritans was always with them. All the men of
[00:02:11] the Defense League had weapons, as many weapons as they had, and
[00:02:15] those who had been given them, they had weapons at home.
[00:02:18] Women didn't deal with
[00:02:20] weapons, no. Then such
[00:02:24] common handicrafts were made,
[00:02:27] gloves were knitted, socks were knitted.
[00:02:30] "Which were donated again,
[00:02:33] yes. But weren't there really women who wanted to shoot with men,
[00:02:37] like now,
[00:02:39] like today's Naiskodukaitse participates
[00:02:43] in military competitions? No,
[00:02:47] there weren't. For that, we had
[00:02:50] men who carried rifles. But if the men
[00:02:53] had been in some state of alarm,
[00:02:57] well, at that time, thank God, everything was...
[00:03:01] if there had been an alarm, women would have had to keep their homes in order and
[00:03:04] support their men, at least
[00:03:07] morally, yes, that don't worry, we
[00:03:11] are, we are home, we keep the home
[00:03:14] in order, just come
[00:03:15] back.
[00:03:18] In 1940, Europe was at war and the bases of the Soviet
[00:03:21] Union's Red Army were already in Estonia. The end of independent
[00:03:24] Estonian state and barely three
[00:03:26] months.
[00:03:30] Everyday life. In Tallinn, a joint aid collection was organized to help the poorer population.
[00:03:33] The driving force of the collection was Naiskodukaitse and the Defense League
[00:03:37] with approximately one thousand
[00:03:39] participants.
[00:03:43] Upon reaching their locations, individual houses are divided
[00:03:46] among themselves, and the golden heart collectors begin their tasks.
[00:03:49] The collection was approached with great
[00:03:53] benevolence. Over 600 packages containing various
[00:03:56] items, room and household utensils were collected.
[00:04:06] The collected donations were placed in warehouses, from where they will later
[00:04:10] be distributed, which will make many
[00:04:13] in need happy.
[00:04:37] Naiskodukaitse, which was declared criminal during the Soviet occupation, was restored
[00:04:39] by the descendants of former Naiskodukaitse members immediately after Estonia
[00:04:42] regained its independence. This was
[00:04:45] a new beginning. We think that
[00:04:49] we have a reason to continue our
[00:04:51] line. Today's women are indeed more athletic and they are
[00:04:55] also perhaps more aggressive than women
[00:04:59] 50 years ago. At the same time, we cannot
[00:05:02] take on tasks that we cannot fulfill. We must
[00:05:06] realistically understand what our benefit is, and no matter
[00:05:10] how capable a woman is, she cannot compete with men.
[00:05:13] We are much more needed and much more useful if we stick to
[00:05:17] our historical areas of activity, such as
[00:05:20] catering, rear-area work, medicine, and
[00:05:23] specifically first aid and communication
[00:05:26] specialties. First and foremost,
[00:05:28] Naiskodukaitse,
[00:05:31] these people who are here, people who have
[00:05:35] come here with the desire to contribute to Estonian
[00:05:38] society, to Estonian national defense. Uh, they are probably
[00:05:42] uh more active,
[00:05:46] uh, thinking more about their self-made
[00:05:49] citizens than the average person who walks on the street. So, actually,
[00:05:53] that line has, throughout Naiskodukaitse's history, I think,
[00:05:57] been preserved, that one aspect of the organization's
[00:06:00] nature is
[00:06:02] precisely this task-orientedness and the purposeful
[00:06:05] completion of something necessary, but on the other hand, it is
[00:06:09] organizing as women, uh,
[00:06:12] self-realization through this, that every woman who
[00:06:16] may not have the opportunity in her private life to realize herself
[00:06:18] in such a role alongside others
[00:06:22] and
[00:06:26] to participate in various things, that Naiskodukaitse offers her
[00:06:30] that opportunity. Figuratively speaking, the flag that fell from the hands of grandmothers
[00:06:33] was raised by their granddaughters, although before the Second
[00:06:37] World War, Naiskodukaitse did not yet have its own flag.
[00:06:41] The Naiskodukaitse flag is the blue color of the pre-war Naiskodukaitse
[00:06:43] uniform dress and the Estonian summer sky,
[00:06:47] with white lily flowers forming a cross as a symbol of honesty and
[00:06:56] continues. On this edge is written
[00:06:59] Jõgeva. Naiskodukaitse is divided into
[00:07:02] 15 districts according to the Defense League's
[00:07:04] divisions and Estonian counties.
[00:07:10] This is Valgamaa. Blue shoulder scarves are worn by
[00:07:13] the head of Naiskodukaitse and
[00:07:43] From repeated marching exercises, women's legs
[00:08:14] "Naiskodukaitse is a youthful organization. A spring boat trip
[00:08:17] on the small Emajõgi tests women's compatibility and
[00:08:20] endurance. By acting together, they learn to know their companions,
[00:08:23] find each other's strengths and weaknesses.
[00:08:27] From the outside, one sees that a Naiskodukaitse member can be trusted.
[00:08:30] Naiskodukaitse promotes national defense through healthy lifestyles and
[00:08:34] sports.
[00:08:38] Naiskodukaitse organizes first aid instructor courses,
[00:08:41] training people who can in turn teach the acquired skills
[00:08:45] to others. This is needed both for Naiskodukaitse to fulfill its organizational
[00:08:48] tasks and more generally for expanding
[00:08:52] Estonia's social security network. At the same time,
[00:08:55] every Naiskodukaitse member gains personal self-confidence
[00:08:58] for coping in everyday life.
[00:09:01] Volunteer Naiskodukaitse members train other volunteers
[00:09:04] in specialties where training in civil society is very
[00:09:08] expensive. In addition to first aid courses,
[00:09:11] a Naiskodukaitse in mass catering,
[00:09:15] disaster relief and mobilization organization, and in communications and staff assistant
[00:09:19] specialties. In the Defense League school, Naiskodukaitse members
[00:09:22] study and teach at high-level leadership and pedagogy courses.
[00:09:39] Also in winter camps, sports competitions are combined with training.
[00:09:43] Here's an example of a medical drill: what to do
[00:09:45] if you come home and find your neighbor lying unconscious in front of the house.
[00:09:49] Instructor Andrus Lehtmes teaches what was wrong here, first with dragging
[00:09:53] him into the room and with all these side positions and other things,
[00:09:56] and help must be called if it can be called. If help cannot be called, then don't
[00:10:00] just shake him. If you shake him like that, then if he wasn't dead before,
[00:10:04] he will definitely die from
[00:10:06] that shaking.
[00:10:11] Approximately 10 years ago, Naiskodukaitse was more than three times smaller than
[00:10:14] it is today. The almost non-existent size of the first budgets is
[00:10:17] astonishing today, yet they
[00:10:20] managed. We have four active members. In addition, we have
[00:10:23] supporting members and there is
[00:10:27] a reserve. The reserve consists of women who are at home with
[00:10:30] small children or have gotten married or have just started studying and
[00:10:34] changed their place of residence. We don't count them, we only count our active members, and
[00:10:38] there are currently 400 of them. The annual budget of Naiskodukaitse is 600,000
[00:10:41] kroons, it could certainly be more, because we are growing so
[00:10:45] rapidly. Last year's growth percentage was
[00:10:48] 56.8, so it will probably be
[00:10:52] difficult this year if so many women join, but
[00:10:55] we hope that
[00:11:16] fantastic people, that the more you are, the
[00:11:20] more friends you get and
[00:11:22] you come to such gatherings with joy because
[00:11:26] you see people from all over Estonia, it's such a joy to meet people.
[00:11:29] I have so many friends from all over Estonia that if an event is canceled, if one spot becomes free, then
[00:11:33] you start to think that there's nothing to do. My whole
[00:11:36] life, my whole work schedule revolves around Naiskodukaitse events,
[00:11:40] so I'm very grateful to my colleagues,
[00:11:43] who always come forward, that they are willing to swap
[00:11:46] shifts with me so I can go everywhere and
[00:11:49] and it is, if you
[00:11:52] actively participate, then that free time,
[00:11:56] then it's already a beautiful day, then it's already a beautiful day, yes, that's your free
[00:12:00] time.
[00:12:02] Sakala always manages. Sakala, Sakala,
[00:12:06] always manages.
[00:12:08] Sakala.
[00:12:11] In the old days there were pioneer camps, children were there, no more pioneer camps,
[00:12:15] now there are Home Daughters and Young Eagles, now children need to be sent
[00:12:18] there, but then mothers have to come along too, they then go under the wing of
[00:12:22] Naiskodukaitse and start leading the same camp. My husband, what
[00:12:25] does he say, my husband, well, if he's a good man, then he comes along
[00:12:29] and is a Defense League member, and if he's not a good man, then he goes to the sea
[00:12:32] separately, so the husband agrees exactly as
[00:12:36] the children grow up, the husband is also a Defense League member,
[00:12:40] and accordingly, the children have grown
[00:12:43] up, so there's more time to devote to Naiskodukaitse and he
[00:12:55] In 2007, Naiskodukaitse had 1100
[00:12:57] members. Naiskodukaitse is a broad-based organization, including
[00:13:01] very different people. Maire
[00:13:04] Arro, head of the Järva district, is in her private life a shop
[00:13:07] manager and a teenage son's mother, so to speak,
[00:13:11] "Maasool," who values her home region and encourages Central Estonian
[00:13:15] women to participate in national defense. Kristiina
[00:13:18] Karu is a young scientist, a doctoral student at the University of Tartu.
[00:13:21] She represents a new generation of highly
[00:13:25] educated women in Naiskodukaitse who, while already living in a new, developed and
[00:13:28] European Estonia, also value traditional
[00:13:31] values. I joined because my friends
[00:13:35] went, and I didn't even have a clear reason, because
[00:13:39] I didn't even know what Naiskodukaitse was. It's easier
[00:13:42] to talk about why I stayed there, and I think
[00:13:45] I stayed because I liked those people and I liked the principle
[00:13:49] by which Naiskodukaitse operates. Active
[00:13:52] leisure, where you can get training, you can
[00:13:55] improve yourself, you can get physical exertion, and all this can then
[00:13:58] be applied in various fields. Knowledge,
[00:14:02] for example, these exercises for searching for people, and
[00:14:06] it does take up your free time, but actually it's not like wasting it,
[00:14:10] but it's like a useful
[00:14:13] expenditure or useful
[00:14:17] self-improvement, and
[00:14:19] it basically comes to us for free, just by me investing my
[00:14:23] time here.
[00:14:27] It's like, somehow, you went to one event, then you went to the next
[00:14:30] event, and then you just started going, and then
[00:14:34] this crazy tension developed, that you want to get somewhere and participate in everything,
[00:14:38] then came all sorts of medals and awards, all possible
[00:14:41] trainings, see all these small
[00:14:44] things, yes, that everyone
[00:14:47] wanted to get, what you did was also recognized,
[00:14:50] and that is very
[00:14:51] important.
[00:14:55] because it's such free extreme sports,
[00:14:58] alpinism became too expensive and then I thought
[00:15:00] that you can crawl in the forest, you can get
[00:15:04] adrenaline, you can get a lot of
[00:15:07] physical activity, why
[00:15:10] not? So many
[00:15:13] student corporations have members. I don't know if Marja, you
[00:15:16] came, you came through that, yes, Airi and Liisa recruited
[00:15:20] people there, who would like to go to basic training, or rather, who would like to join Naiskodukaitse and who
[00:15:24] would like to go to basic training right away. And then they probably didn't think
[00:15:28] I would be the right candidate or that I would fit into that organization, but then I heard them
[00:15:32] talking about all the things they do in basic training, all these
[00:15:34] weapon trainings and soldier skills, and then it just seemed
[00:15:38] so intriguing that I thought, I want to go there. In addition
[00:15:41] to that, we have our own
[00:15:43] shooting trainings,
[00:15:46] but exactly as much as each person wants to participate.
[00:15:50] There are people who like such a thing, and there are
[00:15:54] people who get the
[00:15:57] basic training, but they don't want to continue with it, and that's
[00:16:00] completely acceptable. I find that this is
[00:16:04] the plus of Naiskodukaitse, that you can choose
[00:16:07] what you yourself want, that nothing is forced
[00:16:10] upon you, that you have to go into the forest and you have to shoot a weapon,
[00:16:13] that is not right
[00:16:15] actually.
[00:16:19] Welcome everyone to our district's bicycle tour, and now we
[00:16:23] will start moving towards Vasalemma
[00:16:26] and make our first stop after 12
[00:16:29] kilometers. Maire Arro, head of the Järva district,
[00:16:33] organizes a bicycle tour from Viljandi to Türi. On the way, they detour to
[00:16:36] Lõhavere to see the ancient heroic Estonian king Lembitu's
[00:16:40] castle hill. The men of the Defense League, husbands, and
[00:16:44] older children also come along with the women on the hike.
[00:16:47] The Defense League is a whole-family organization precisely thanks
[00:16:50] to Naiskodukaitse. Women, mothers
[00:16:53] create a certain softer image
[00:16:56] for the Defense League, which has a military background.
[00:17:01] In Tartu, in the Naiskodukaitse district room, Kristiina is at the same
[00:17:04] time accepting membership candidates.
[00:17:08] I'll tell you what it is, right? If you
[00:17:11] fill out the application form, then that means you become our
[00:17:14] membership candidate, which basically doesn't
[00:17:17] oblige you to much
[00:17:20] yet, except that if you've signed up to come to an event, then you still
[00:17:24] have to show up, okay. Then you need three
[00:17:27] recommenders, and one must definitely be a Naiskodukaitse member, and they
[00:17:31] must have been a Naiskodukaitse member for at least a year. But, well, most
[00:17:34] of our active members have already
[00:17:40] can be Defense League
[00:17:41] members.
[00:17:47] Maire lives in Paide, today she is sending her son
[00:18:07] Maire, for years the best athlete in Järvamaa, joined Naiskodukaitse through
[00:18:48] she is often away from home for that reason,
[00:18:51] it's even good that she has something else to do after work,
[00:18:54] that for me she has time during the week, so let her
[00:18:58] go somewhere else on the weekend where they do
[00:19:01] such, I don't know, women's things, handicrafts, and
[00:19:05] they go for walks in the forest together. "Then she likes such
[00:19:08] things and she is very happy about it.
[00:19:12] Well, actually, it also comes from the structure, that we are like the
[00:19:16] subordinate organization
[00:19:18] or supporting organization of the Defense League,
[00:19:22] so, well, actually, our men from the battalion are
[00:19:25] very used to us, that if
[00:19:28] something is needed, especially regarding catering,
[00:19:32] let's say, then it's still, well, first they contact
[00:19:35] us, and they never have to be disappointed that none of us can
[00:19:39] ever come or there's some problem, well, our biggest
[00:19:43] event is in the fall, this
[00:19:45] autumn exercise, and that's also
[00:19:48] catering for 150-200 people
[00:19:52] for several days, so, but
[00:19:55] now we do all the youth camps, well, I forgot to mention earlier that
[00:19:59] Naiskodukaitse and the Defense League, but then the youth come along,
[00:20:02] right? So another part of it is helping the youth.
[00:20:06] aitamine.
[00:20:14] Maire goes to work, the Defense League has ordered food supplies for catering
[00:20:18] the youth camp through the store
[00:20:20] under Maire's management.
[00:20:24] Alongside serving large clients, Maire also has to advise ordinary
[00:20:28] customers. Her knowledge of food products and menu planning
[00:20:32] is important to clients and
[00:20:33] customers.
[00:20:37] Catering the large camp for the organizations, Young Eagles and Home Daughters, is Naiskodukaitse's
[00:20:40] summer job
[00:20:43] every year.
[00:21:14] to the camp from other Estonian cities and shops.
[00:21:18] Catering for hundreds of children in the field.
[00:21:26] Naiskodukaitse members from the Tartu district have been invited to the Defense League's
[00:21:29] soldier's test. Kristiina's task is to prepare
[00:21:32] the air rifle range, cordon off the area with safety tape, clear
[00:21:36] away obstructing bushes and grass, and be an assistant judge for the arriving competitors
[00:21:39] in fulfilling the task.
[00:21:42] Among younger Naiskodukaitse members, such soldier tests and exams are very
[00:22:25] not necessary. The soldier's trial trek consists of many
[00:22:46] want to earn the silver badge in the soldier's trial, while women from the Tartu
[00:22:49] academic unit want to pass the Defense League's basic training
[00:22:52] course exam, the same basic training that was talked about
[00:22:56] in sports camp.
[00:23:05] Among Defense League members and Naiskodukaitse members,
[00:23:08] the undoubtedly most popular event is the international long-range reconnaissance patrol
[00:23:11] competition Erna Retk. This is one of
[00:23:14] life's highlights, like graduating from university and other such
[00:23:18] events, that the soul has always yearned to do it once. Well, do you still think
[00:23:21] about going through to the end? Always, always, always to
[00:23:24] the end. If only health didn't fail, then everything would be
[00:23:28] fine. We have a very good team, everyone has to live their personal lives too,
[00:23:31] so we didn't have much time for training, we hope we'll last.
[00:23:46] Considered one of the world's toughest military-athletic competitions...
[00:23:50] the trek can also be called a great attrition game. It is a
[00:23:54] reconnaissance trek behind enemy lines, where one must move covertly and
[00:23:57] hide from counter-insurgency fighters. In this very
[00:24:01] macho special forces competition, however, it is customary
[00:24:04] every year for young Estonian
[00:24:06] Naiskodukaitse members to also compete.
[00:24:40] long and five-day trek is structured
[00:24:43] with checkpoints where various strength and
[00:24:46] endurance, but also cleverness-based intermediate tasks
[00:24:50] or even neck-breaking tasks must be completed.
[00:24:53] At the Erna hike, no allowances are made for anyone or any gender. There are only
[00:24:57] those who can cope and those who
[00:25:21] control point of the Erna trek, knowledge of disaster
[00:25:24] medicine is also required.
[00:25:55] medical instructor how the Estonian Naiskodukaitse members coped with the task.
[00:25:58] The task was set up in such a way that a
[00:26:02] casualty collection point had to be established, and this casualty collection point had to be
[00:26:05] outdoors. The men managed it in zero time. The women simply lacked the strength,
[00:26:09] which is why they were a bit behind on time, but basically they didn't do
[00:26:13] anything
[00:26:29] the women's smaller reserves of strength, compared to men, are compensated by their
[00:27:08] The only thing that competitors are allowed by the rules to be given from the side of the track is
[00:27:12] water.
[00:27:20] The Erna Retk base camp in Kautla operates thanks to
[00:27:22] the help of Naiskodukaitse. Naiskodukaitse members check documents
[00:27:26] at the gate, work as staff assistants and as communications
[00:27:30] operators in radio cars.
[00:28:00] competition of approximately 600 participants has been the responsibility of Naiskodukaitse.
[00:28:04] Catering for competitions is also practical training for Naiskodukaitse's
[00:28:07] field cook course. In the kitchen, they get
[00:28:11] women must hold all professions. Alternately, they are both head chefs
[00:28:15] and military pressure cooker stokers. Here they learn
[00:28:18] teamwork and the rapid replacement of one another.
[00:29:24] From the competition with the muscle men, the Estonian women's home guard
[00:29:27] emerges victorious. Already before the final run on the early morning of August 9th,
[00:29:30] it is clear that out of twenty-eight teams that started
[00:29:34] the competition, as many as eight were given a long
[00:29:37] beating.
[00:30:40] actually that this is such a great experience that
[00:30:44] I won't push in and take their spot, but