Rein Lang (born 4 July 1957) is an

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n politician, a member of the

Estonian Reform Party The Estonian Reform Party () is a liberal political party in Estonia. The party has been led by Kristen Michal since 2024. It is colloquially known as the "Squirrel Party" () or as "the Squirrels" (), referencing its logo. It was founded in ...

since 1995, and a

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. He was the

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organiza ...

Andrus Ansip's third cabinet The Andrus Ansip's third cabinet was the Cabinet of Estonia between 6 April 2011 and 26 March 2014. It was a coalition cabinet of the free market liberal Estonian Reform Party (7 portfolios) and conservative Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica ...

until his resignation.

Personal life

Lang was born at

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

. His father was appointed to work at the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

embassy in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

; consequently, Rein Lang grew up partly in Finland, becoming a fluent speaker of Finnish. He has championed Finnish-Estonian relations. Lang received elementary and high school education in

Tallinn English College Tallinn English College () is a coeducational general education school in Tallinn, Estonia with in-depth education in English. It has elementary, middle, and senior levels with students 7 to 18 years old. History The history of the college sta ...

(then known as 7th High School of Tallinn) and graduated ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' from the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; ; ) is a public research university located in the city of Tartu, Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is also the largest and oldest university in the country.

in 1980, acquiring a degree in

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

.Justiitsministeerium
Lang cohabits with Ulvi Kuusk, whom he met in 1979, and as of 2007 has one teenage daughter.

Career

In the later years of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, starting in 1986, Lang worked in the entertainment business. He was a deputy director of the Linnahall and in 1989 became a deputy director of the club 'Muusik' (Estonian for 'Musician'). In 1990, he became

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of AS Laulusillad (Estonian for ''Song Bridges''), and from 1991–2001 served at various positions in AS Trio LSL along with Hans H. Luik, establishing and running the first politically independent radio station in post-Soviet Estonia,

Radio Kuku Radio Kuku (, also called ''Kuku-raadio'') is an Estonian radio station. It was the first politically independent privately owned radio station in post- occupation Estonia, established in 1992 by a media businessman and later politician Rein La ...

. Over the next several years, Lang launched two more radio stations: Radio Uuno, a music-only radio station, and the

Russian language Russian is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language belonging to the Balto-Slavic languages, Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. It is one of the four extant East Slavic languages, and is ...

Radio Tallinn (later renamed Radio 100). In 2002, Lang and Luik sold their radio interest to their then co-partner from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Metromedia International Group Inc. During his years at

, Lang regularly appeared on

talk show A talk show is a television programming, radio programming or podcast genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Show', pp.3-4Erler, Robert (201 ...

s, gaining considerable reputation as a political commentator.

Eesti Päevaleht (Estonia Daily) is a major daily Estonian newspaper, from the same publishers as the weekly '' Eesti Ekspress''. Another newspaper under the same name is published weekly in Stockholm, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is ...

30 June 2007
Rein Lang (50)
/ref> His most popular programme, the weekly 'Midday Hour' (), has become legendary, and a subject of a number of jokes mostly associated with Valdo Jahilo. 'Of the state of the state' () was also popular. Following his departure from the media business, Lang served as deputy mayor of

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

from 2001 to 2003 and was a member of

Riigikogu The Riigikogu (, from Estonian ''riigi-'', "of the state", and ''kogu'', "assembly") is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. In addition to approving legislation, the Parliament appoints high officials, including the prime minister and chi ...

from 2003 to 2005. He served as the Deputy Speaker of Riigikogu and chairman of its European Affairs Committee. In 2005, Lang was the

Minister of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

for two months, from February to April. With the resignation of

Juhan Parts Juhan Parts ((, born 27 August 1966) is an Estonian politician who was Prime Minister of Estonia from 2003 to 2005 and Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications from 2007 to 2014. Juhan Parts is a member of Isamaa party. Education Born ...

, the

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

at that time, a new cabinet was proposed by

Andrus Ansip Andrus Ansip (; born 1 October 1956) is an Estonian politician, a member of the European Parliament, the former European Commissioner for Digital Single Market and Vice President of the European Commission, in office from 2014 until 2019. Previo ...

; there, Lang served as the

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

, a position he officially took when the new cabinet took an oath on 12 April 2005. As the Estonian Minister of Justice, Lang was involved in the Constitutional Pilsener project. From 21 May 2009 to 4 June 2009 he was also the acting

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

Controversies

Press enemy of 2004

In 2004, the Estonian Newspaper Association () labelled Lang the 'Year's Press Enemy'. The explanation provided in the press release cited Lang's

snob ''Snob'' is a pejorative term for a person who feels superior due to their social class, education level, or social status in general;De Botton, A. (2004), ''Status Anxiety''. London: Hamish Hamilton it is sometimes used especially when they pr ...

bish attitude towards the press, exemplified by an

email Electronic mail (usually shortened to email; alternatively hyphenated e-mail) is a method of transmitting and receiving Digital media, digital messages using electronics, electronic devices over a computer network. It was conceived in the ...

response in which Lang asked a county newspaper's correspondent to "not bother" him with any more requests for information. Lang has disputed this characterisation, and implied that Toomas Leito, leader of the Estonian Newspaper Association, was following a policy of "lynching Negroes".

Controversial "Delfi bill"

In autumn of 2005, Lang initiated a bill that would have allowed penalising web portals for anonymous comments left by their visitors. The bill, nicknamed the " Delfi bill" () after the Estonian web portal Delfi.ee, which is commonly associated with offensive user comments, was widely criticised and ended up rejected by the

. Among other concerns, critics commonly pointed out that Delfi belonged to a media concern competing with AS Trio LSL, and questioned the minister's neutrality. The bill became law in June 2006.

Eesti Ekspress ''Eesti Ekspress'' (''Estonian Express'') is an Estonian weekly newspaper. Founded in 1989, ''Eesti Ekspress'' was the first politically independent newspaper in the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic during the Soviet control of Estonia. Th ...

6 November 2008

The first lawsuit involving the Delfi bill was brought by Leo Pulst in late 2008.

Birthday party controversy

On 4 July 2007 Rein Lang celebrated his 50th birthday at a beer restaurant in Tartu, Estonia.

July 4, 2007
Langi juubelil "Adolf"
by Alan Proosa The party featured a performance of the play '' Adolf (drama), Adolf'', an award-winning

anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

July 9, 2007
REIN LANG: Mis siis tegelikult toimus?
/ref>

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

by Pip Utton, featuring a Nazi banner as a stage

prop A prop, formally known as a (theatrical) property, is an object actors use on stage or screen during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

. In an additional note on the invitation Lang pointed out that the event was not intended as a fancy dress party; specifically, guests would not be expected to arrive in uniforms or bearing Nazi symbols. The Russian media

spun ''Spun'' is a 2002 American black comedy crime drama film directed by Jonas Åkerlund from an original screenplay by William De Los Santos and Creighton Vero, based on three days of De Los Santos's life in the Eugene, Oregon drug subculture. I ...

this event as the minister "decorating his birthday with

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍, ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few Indigenous peoples of Africa, African and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely rec ...

s",

Postimees is an Estonian daily newspaper established on 5 June 1857, by Johann Voldemar Jannsen. In 1891, it became the first daily newspaper in Estonia. Its current editor-in-chief is Priit Hõbemägi. The paper has approximately 250 employees. ''P ...

July 6, 2007
Rein Langi juubelipidu äratas huvi Vene meedias

July 6, 2007
Vene meedia haaras Rein Langi sünnipäeva mõnuga hambusse
edited by Tuuli Aug citing an Estonian newspaper which recalled a scandal that happened three years ago, when

Prince Harry Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. As the younger son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales, he is fifth in the line of succession to ...

had a swastika on his sleeve during a birthday party.

REGNUM Regnum may refer to: * Latin for kingdom or dominion, see realm * ''Regnum'', Latin word for Kingdom (biology) * REGNUM News Agency, a Russian news agency * '' Champions of Regnum'', a computer game * An online database for PhyloCode The ''Intern ...

July 5, 2007
Estonian justice minister “decorates” his birthday party with swastika
This distortion was widely covered in the Estonian news media. The Nochnoy Dozor group has, in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n media, made calls for the Minister of Justice to resign over the event. In an explanatory

opinion article An opinion piece is an article, usually published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about a subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals. Editorials Opinion pieces may take the form of an editorial, ...

, Lang stated ''"The Republic of Estonia has condemned Nazi crimes and my birthday was attended by people who, without exception, despise fascism."'' Trivimi Velliste, speaking on

TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to: Television *Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso * Canal 3 Niger, a commercial television channel in Niger * Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala * Can ...

, has called Russian media's distorted coverage of this incident a case of

psychological warfare Psychological warfare (PSYWAR), or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations (PsyOp), has been known by many other names or terms, including Military Information Support Operations ( MISO), Psy Ops, political warfare, "Hearts and Mi ...

"Wikigate" incident

On 23 July 2007 Lang's article on

English Wikipedia The English Wikipedia is the primary English-language edition of Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia. It was created by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger on 15 January 2001, as Wikipedia's first edition. English Wikipedia is hosted alongside o ...

was edited by a user identifying as "Kairioun", removing a large section on Lang's birthday controversy. After these deletions were consistently reverted, another user by the alias of Gerog112 performed a similar deletion many times, resulting in a 24-hour restriction of editing privileges (sometimes mistakenly reported as a three-month restriction), and made a number of bizarre statements in Estonian. News media quickly traced the user Kairioun to Kairi Õun, an advisor of Lang, leading to considerable coverage of the incident, which Henrik Roonemaa, in an analysis session in Tehnokratt, dubbed "Wikigate".Tehnokratt 28 July 2007
tehnokratt vikipeediast ja reeglitest
Gerog112's real life identity remains unknown.

References

External links

Official blog
sponsored by the

*
news item
by Rossiya, the national TV channel of

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, Rein 1957 births Living people Politicians from Tartu University of Tartu alumni Estonian businesspeople Government ministers of Estonia Estonian radio personalities Estonian talk radio hosts Psychological warfare Justice ministers of Estonia Estonian Reform Party politicians Members of the Riigikogu, 2011–2015 Ministers of foreign affairs of Estonia Ministers of culture of Estonia 20th-century Estonian politicians Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 2nd Class Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 4th Class Members of the Riigikogu, 2003–2007 Members of the Riigikogu, 2007–2011