by Giulia Musso
One of the lecture’s subjects, which was analysed within the BAMSE week, was the role that historical memory plays in politics and in the formation of a national community. The concept of historical memory, or memory of politics, refers to the role that remembrances play in the present of a nation. Hence, it is about how countries decide to experience their past in the current moment. This is linked to what is acknowledged and celebrated and how it is done. More precisely, it is about how and which elements turn into symbols of community heritage or lieu de mémoire. An important aspect is that people remember events as a social group and this is heavily related to the cultural and social context they are living in. For instance, the high political connection to memories was emphasised in the case of Estonia during the lecture and across the NGO café. First, in Estonia, this is connected to their struggle for independence. This is an essential point of all national memories, however, in the case of Eastern European countries, this event is not so far away, and the feelings attached to it are still flourishing within the community. Second, in Estonia, political memory is also connected to the presence of a Russian minority and the threat of Russia’s interference. In this case, within a nation, how events of the past and which events are commemorated are perceived completely different by different citizens of the same state. This increases the value attached to that memory and creating contradictory narrations.
Do opposite visions on national stands need to be expelled or integrated into the national narrative?
As underlined in the NGO café, this phenomenon has major political consequences on security, the clustering of society, and the uprising of nationalism. Nevertheless, these factors can be further correlated to the aspect of integration in society as in politics. Do opposite visions on national stands need to be expelled or integrated into the national narrative? This is a highly controversial question that has been raised not only for what concerns memory but also for the growth of far-right parties in other western democracy. Given the fact that we represent democratic values, all the distinctive opinions and perspectives should equally be part of the society and be represented. Nonetheless, this underscores the necessity to incorporate actors that support ideas and visions dangerous to our freedom and security, which could possibly undermine our rights. What should be done then? What is democracy and how much is it fully applicable? Starting from a “simple” recognition of the history of a country to the acceptance of the presence of an “alternative” or conservative party in society, democracy is always the main focal point.
Crisis affects each element of our life and system, but it is how we decide to cope with them that really changes our environment.
These questions were raised within the lectures and have followed us the entire week. Crisis affects each element of our life and system, but it is how we decide to cope with them that really changes our environment. Whether the controversial aspects of the system should be eliminated or integrated represents the main takeaway of this week and an interesting starting point of reflection. Nonetheless, it could be possible to say that the rise of one party more than the another is cyclical and represents the normal flow of democracy. Hence, without coming back to old mistakes or nullifying all the steps already taken, this new political wave should be democratically integrated for the time it will be voted on. This is how democracy should work and this could also be identified as a positive trampoline for the transformation of the oppositions, which lacks appeal and understanding of the ongoing social needs.
Giulia Musso is a soon-to-graduate Master’s degree (MSc.) student of the International Relations and Regional Studies (IRRS) program at the Skytte Institut of Tartu University. Giulia’s specific area of competence concerns the Eurasian region and conflicts, with a particular focus on the role of Russia in it (Russian foreign policy, security and economy). Her Master’s Thesis is built on an analysis of the role of Gender in the implementation of security policies during international crises. Giulia’s additional professional interests cover the cross-cultural communications field, in particular the use of language in shaping the memory politics of bilingual countries.
This blog is a part of a blog series written by the BAMSE Tartu intensive course students. The blog series analyses the impact of crises on the politics of history, challenges of democracy, biopolitics and energy security. This blog is belongs to the politics of history part of the blog series. Read more about the blog series on Bamse News & Events website.