Preamble:

The railway project Rail Baltic, in its proposed form, is in contradiction to the internationally recognised „Respect for Life“ principle and philosophy of nature, and the project will lead to irreversible environmental damage, in blatant violation of the principles of sustainable development („Our Common Future,“ United Nations, World Commission on Environment and Development, 1989).

The funding for Rail Baltic has been and continues to be at the expense of the very existence of the Estonian people. To date, for the three decades of the restored sovereignty of our nation, the existential threat posed to our indigenous people by a declining birth rate has yet to be addressed by the Government, nor has necessary funding for a solution been appropriated. An immediate halt to Rail Baltic would affirm the State’s commitment to the inalienable right of the Estonian Citizenry to exercise the right to decide its own climate policy and the fate of their own land.

The Undersigned hereby declare to the Estonian parliament (Riigikogu) and to the Government of the Republic of Estonia,

As evidenced by: 1. The five open letters signed by 101, 152, 222, 400, 500 people, respectively, have been sent to the Riigikogu and to the Government;

2. The relevant 2007 infrastructure study „COWI 2007“ which found renovation of the already-existing railway infrastructure in the Baltics to be the most cost-effective solution ;

3. The 2018 analysis conducted by the analytics group “Publicly about Rail Baltic” (ARB-Avalikult Rail Balticust) that revealed significant errors in the Ernst & Young cost-benefit analysis of the Rail Baltic project;

4. The Estonian National Court’s judgement against Rail Baltic Estonia, Ltd. (Ruling 3-18-529/137, dated May 19 , 2020) which deemed that work on certain sections of the planned RB route in Pärnu County must be cancelled because no studies regarding the potential for caused environmental damage had been conducted;

5. The 2020 European Court of Auditors Report that cited the economic irrationality of the proposed Rail Baltic project;

6. The facts brought forth in the 2017 study (Skepast& Puhkim, Tallinn) on the Viable supply of Necessary and Sustained Natural Construction „Sustainability/Security of supply of construction mineral resources, which found that the construction of the Rail Baltic project would create an irreversible local shortage of natural resources required in future construction;

7. The necessity of not encumbering the national budget with excessive commitments in the face of an unforeseen global economic crisis; and

8. The inalienable right of the Citizenry of the Republic of Estonia to decide the fate of their own Land and in doing so to not do irreparable/immeasurable damage to the natural environment of this Free Land.

The Undersigned, apply the following rights vested in us by The Constitution of the Republic of Estonia:

§ 1. Estonia is an independent and sovereign democratic republic wherein supreme political authority is vested in the people. The independence and sovereignty of Estonia are timeless and inalienable.

§ 5. The natural wealth and resources of Estonia are national riches which must be used economically.

§ 53. Everyone has a duty to preserve the human and natural environment and to compensate for harm that he or she has caused to the environment. The procedure for compensation is provided by law.

Given the irreversible damage that would be caused to Estonia's natural environment, to the economy, and to communities across Estonia, and considering the current deepening economic crisis,

We the Undersigned declare to the Estonian parliament (Riigikogu) and to the Government of the Republic of Estonia, that:

a) Development of the Rail Baltic project in its current form be ceased immediately, and

b) A cost-effectively means to modernise the existing railway infrastructure be put in place.