Duma in 1906, where he joined the Autonomist-Federalist group. Tõnisson was elected to the board of this group and he organized a separate Baltic fraction for the group. He also joined the protest movement against the actions of the Russian government, trying to protect the new rights that the Emperor was trying to take back. On 23 June 1906, Tõnisson and 177 other members of the State Duma signed Vyborg Appeal, calling for disobedience, in protest against the dissolution of the State Duma. Tõnisson was removed from the Postimees board (he resumed shortly afterwards) and in December 1907, he was put on trial. Tõnisson was sentenced to three months in Tartu prison. Prison did not inhibit Tõnisson's political activity. In the years following the revolution he concentrated on developing the Estonian school system, founding school societies all over the country and opening several Estonian-language high schools. The co-operation and agriculture policies, that Tõnisson had established, developed quickly, creating an Estonian civil society and influencing the general growth of wealth in Estonia. In 1915, Jaan Tõnisson and Jaan Raamot initiated the creation of Northern Baltic Committee for the protection of war refugees. Tõnisson serves as chairman of the committee until 1917, hoping to get closer to administrative power. Autonomy Following the February Revolution, Estonians quickly reacted and gained the rights to autonomy and to form a national army from the Russian Provisional Government. In March 1917, Tõnisson met with Prime Minister of Russia Georgy Lvov, who however couldn't promise autonomy and said that the Russian Provincial Assembly. In the debates about the autonomy, Tõnisson supported the current division of Estonia with two governorates, only with autonomy for each. Konstantin Päts's idea of a single Autonomous Governorate of Estonia went through and Tõnisson, among some other Estonian politicians, was chosen to compose the draft of self-government reform. Tõnisson was often among the few politicians, who contacted directly with the Russian Provisional Government in these questions. Eventually, the Autonomous Governorate of Estonia was created and Tõnisson was elected to the Estonian Provincial Assembly (Maapäev) in 1917. His party, renamed to Estonian Democratic Party (Eesti Demokraatlik Erakond – EDE), achieved 7 of the 55 seats. At first, Tõnisson proposed the idea of a Scandinavian superstate, that eventually involved into supporting total secession from Russia. However, in late autumn 1917, Tõnisson was among the first Estonian politicians, who started demanding full independence for Estonia. After