SALK director, Parempoolsed board member in 'culture wars' social media row
Tensions recently flared on social media between the head of think tank the Liberal Citizen Foundation (SALK) and a board member of the Parempoolsed party, mainly over accusations relating to donations to SALK and lobbying over climate change policy.
Parempoolsed board member Tõnis Kons argued SALK was in effect a political lobbying organization with its own agenda and which aimed to influence parties, including Parempoolsed, to align with their views on climate policy.
Kons wrote that Parempoolsed independently shapes its policies within the party.
Kons claimed that SALK's director, Tarmo Jüristo, had repeatedly advised Parempoolsed to reconsider their stance on climate policy, to attract more support from specific voter groups.
Kons wrote: "We have been repeatedly told that if Parempoolsed wants to grow support within certain voter groups, we should adjust our rhetoric on climate policy. These discussions have mostly concerned societal and political life themes."
For his part Jüristo acknowledged that climate issues had been on the table in talks with Parempoolsed. "Climate topics have always been on our radar," Jüristo responded.
"Voters in Estonia typically prioritize economic and security issues over climate, rendering it a secondary topic. Despite that, there are specific voter groups who find it important, and I have indeed mentioned this to Parempoolsed," he went on.
Kons also called for transparency from SALK about the origins of their donations, suggesting that Jüristo should disclose the names and sums donated on SALK's website.
In a subsequent social media post, Kons appeared to double down, charging the coalition Reform Party of intentionally pressing into use climate policy, in order to improve their recet waning ratings, by creating polarizing conflicts.
"The Reform Party, having abandoned economic issues, is now constructing a 'woke' party image," he wrote, stating that the party was engaged in so-called culture wars.
To back these statements up, he referenced recent comments by Reform's new climate minister, Yoko Alender, who had provided justification for the actions of climate activists, while Kons reference new state-funded climate courses as further evidence of the driver.
Jüristo likened this to that rhetoric used both by the Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) and by former U.S. President, and current Republican Party candidate, Donald Trump.
Jüristo claimed that even European conservatives, such as those to be found in the European People's Party (EPP) or political leaders such Ursula von der Leyen, would find Kons' statements "highly questionable."
The SALK chief also questioned whether environmental concerns make someone a "cultural warrior," identifying a distinction between genuine environmental concerns and deliberate societal polarization.
The spat arose Sunday when Jüristo tweeted concerns over businessman Raul Kirjanen becoming a significant donor to Parempoolsed.
Hea @tarmojuristo, oled asunud ehitama narratiivi, et Parempoolsete poliitikat suunavad rahastajad.
— Tõnis Kons (@tonis_kons) August 4, 2024
SALK on meile korduvalt kohtumistel mõista andnud, et PP oleks targem oma kliimapoliitikat korrigeerida.
Ei. PP kujundab oma poliitika ise, seda ei suuna ei SALK ega rahastajad. https://t.co/BLVqWkIcZy
Kirjanen donated €60,000 to Parempoolsed in the first quarter of this year.
Jüristo questioned the implications of having a dominant donor with significant political interests, drawing parallels with Isamaa, whose major donor is Bigbank owner Parvel Pruunsild.
Jüristo also stated that his conversations with Parempoolsed members about this topic had been casual in nature, and not substantive.
Kons responded that his initial social media post was a reaction to Jüristo's attempt to suggest that Parempoolsed's climate policy stance was influenced by their donors.
Kons denied Kirjanen was on the way to being the sole major sponsor of Parempoolsed, stating that the party has more private supporters than most other parties.
He stressed the party's goal of having a diverse range of supporters, both large and small.
Headed by former prosecutor general Lavly Perling, Parempoolsed was founded in 2022 and has contested two elections, to the Riigikogu in 2023, and to the European Parliament in June. While it failed to win any seats at either election, some local councilors in Estonia's municipalities have joined the party.
SALK has published a list of its backers, which for this year include Bolt CEO Markus Villig and the company itself, tech guru Sten Tamkivi and Wise co-founder Taavet Hinrikus.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Aleksander Krjukov
