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Revision as of 20:48, 20 April 2011 by Pantherskin (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Lia Looveer (née Saarepera; 5 October 1920, Narva – 8 November 2006; also Lia Looveer-Saarepera) was an Estonian émigré political activist in Australia.
Biography
Looveer was born in Narva, but the family moved soon to Tallinn. As her mother was active in YWCA, Looveer become involved with YWCA in a very early age. Lia Saarepera graduated from the E. Lenderi Tütarlaste Gümnaasium (E. Lender Girls High School in Tallinn) in 1938 and then studied law at the University of Tartu from 1938–1943. She worked for Eesti Riigi Ringhääling (Estonian National Broadcasting).
In the autumn of 1944, Lia Looveer escaped to Danzig (Gdańsk) in Germany, where she married Leonid Looveer (Looberg) in September. She worked as an announcer for Balti Raadio, a station based depending on the war situation in Danzig, Thorn and Rostock. Baltic Radio was a Nazi propaganda station broadcasting in Estonian, Lithuanian and Latvian.
In 1945, the couple moved to Austria and 1949, Australia. At first they were in the Greta Army Camp, where Looveer became general manager (1949–52).
Lia Looveer was the founder of the Joint Baltic Committee of Sydney and its secretary from 1952 to 2002. Lia Looveer arranged a number events that introduced Baltic culture and history to the Australian public. In 1953, she joined the Liberal Party of Australia New South Wales branch. At the federal level, Looveer participated in Liberal Party's Advisory Committee on Ethnic Affairs and similar bodies, that dealt with immigrants' issues. Looveer was part of the inaugural executive of the Liberal Ethnic Council created by the State Council of the NSW Liberal Party and chaired by Lyenko Urbanchich (a right-wing politician who was later exposed as a Nazi war criminal). She was acknowledged in the Legislative Council of New South Wales by the David Clarke. She was also secretary of the United Council of Migrants from Communist Dominated Europe in Australia which included Australian state politicians Douglas Darby and Eileen Furley, and Federal politician William Wentworth.
Looveer worked in the fund-raising Appeals Bureau of the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children from 1957 to 1985. Lia and Leonid Looveer had a daughter Hille Reet (03.07.1945 - 30.07.2004) and a son, Juho Looveer (born in 1952), PhD.
Awards
- British Empire Medal (1978), as a resident of the state of New South Wales, "for service to the community and the ethnic community".
- Estonian Republic Order of the White Star, V class
- Heritage Award (Liberal Party of Australia, N.S.W. Division, 2002)
- Cross of Merit of the Estonian Ministry of Defence, 29.06.1998
References
- ^ "LOOVEER, LIIA". Academic Library of Tallinn University. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
- ^ Nikki Henningham (4 September 2006). "Looveer, Lia". The Australian Women's Register. University of Melbourne.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ Helm, Inna (2000-10-25). "Lia Looveer B.E.M. 80.a.". Meie Kodu (in Estonian). Sydney, Australia: Estonian Council of Societies. p. 4.
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(help) - ^ Slamer, Ülle (1995-11-08). "Lia Looveer BEM 75. aastane". Meie Kodu (in Estonian). Sydney, Australia: Estonian Council of Societies. p. 4.
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(help) - Diller, Ansgar. Rundfunk in Deutschland: Rundfunkpolitik im Dritten Reich (in German). pp. 404–406. ISBN 9783423031844.
- "The Joint Baltic Committee (1952 - )". The Australian Women's Register. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
- Ian Hancock, The Liberals: a history of the NSW division of the Liberal party of Australia, 1945-2000, Federation Press, 2007
- Hancock, p197
- Hancock, p219
- "Ardent Nazi took Liberal to extremes,". Smh.com.au. 2006-03-04. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
- "Joint Baltic Committee Of New South Wales Annual Commemoration". David Clarke MLC. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
- http://www.iseansw.org.au/officers.htm
- Faith, Hope, Charity - Australian Women and Imperial Honours: 1901-1989. The Order of the British Empire (Civil), Looveer listed
- London Gazette, issue 47723 29 December 1978, p. 28
- "The resolution of the President of the Republic of Estonia on awarding Decorations of the State". Office of the President of the Republic - Press Releases. Office of the President of the Republic. 1998-02-10. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
External links
- Passing of Lia Looveer BEM JP - Michael Darby's
- The Australian Women's Registry. The Joint Baltic Committee