What´s Up Sanna Marin

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Euroopan vasemmiston puheenjohtajien neuvoston kokous lauantaina 13.2. kävi keskustelua ajankohtaisesta poliittisesta tilanteesta, Euroopan vasemmiston taloudellisesta ja toiminnallisesta suunnitelmasta kuten osallistumisesta Euroopan tulevaisuus konferenssiin toukokuussa sekä laajentumisesta. Kroatian vasemmistopuolue Radnička front hyväksyttiin Euroopan vasemmiston jäsenpuolueeksi.  

We in Finland, Europe and in most of the capitalist world live in a 24/7 crisis. Class struggle means continuous fight against neoliberal cuts of basic services and worker´s rights. COVID-19 is no other than one more crisis to fight against. The bourgeois big monopoly capitalist machine is well prepared to act against people´s needs for the profits of big capital also now in the crises of Covid-19.  

COVID-19 has hit especially hard on precarious workers who only had security of the recent job agreement. Also unemployed people with long term unemployment history are suffering enormously.   

World-wide current neoliberal work policy function with the idea to oppress people with precarious work and forced entrepreneurship.   

But if you were poor or unemployed you had no special treatment due to the COVID-19. The Communist Party of Finland demanded at the early stages of the pandemic that the Sanna Marin government should start pay 1200 euros basic security to everybody that can´t with own work build up basic security. That is also one of the CPF basic actual demands 1200 € Basic Security for all. 

Sanna Marin´s government of hope 

Sanna Marin government surely is different from the openly austerity policy government led by centre party millionaire Juha Sipilä (2015 – 2019). Sanna Marin government gives hope to its many voters. I totally agree - It is important to hear and see young women in high political places. Anyway, in the end Sanna Marin government does not make any radical change to policy done for several decades in Finland.  

Sanna Marin government parties all accept the logics of the neoliberal market economy and capitalism. The parliamentarian left in Finland Social democrat party and Left alliance both consider socialism as an interesting philosophical issue but do not aim at constructing socialism in praxis. Imperialism is not at the vocabulary of the Finnish parliamentarian left nor the fight against imperialism.   

In the government's recent foreign and security policy report, Russia is  mentioned as the only potential enemy, which functions as almost only argument  for more militarization, building new fighters and signing more military agreements.  

The current political situation challenges us to strengthen peace work. Parliament has just given the Sanna Marin Government the power to purchase new HX fighters to replace old air fighters. According to the budget, the ordering authorisation of EUR 9.4 billion approved on 17 December 2020 can still be exceeded on the basis of changes in cost levels and due to other contracts after the contract, such as the purchase of arms and spare parts. Estimates of the lifecycle costs of the fighter jet project ranged from EUR 20 to EUR 30 billion.  

Buying new air fighters brings Finland closer to NATO and create an economy crisis. We should fly 20 more years with the same fighters and replace air fighters with updated technology.   

In Finland, we do not need a defence alliance of any foreign power. The current military agreements, such as the host country agreement (NATO), the JEFF Agreement (England), the Intervention Agreement (France), NATO friendship and partnership projects and the European Defence Fund, must be withdrawn in the name of peace-building and an independent credible defence policy.   

 I would argue that Finland's political elite will soon wake up to the cash crisis caused by the HX fighters deal unless the project is cancelled. All the parties in the parliament have years ago agreed in an siled agreement on purchasing new air fighters. Finnish peace movement is against new arms deals and the air fighter deal. The Communist party of Finland is the only party supporting the peace movements demand.  

Finland needs to break away from NATO agitation and NATO options. We need to develop an independent credible defence and security policy based on peace-building and keep our neighbours' neighbours´, and not intentionally create new enemies. 

There are municipality elections 18. April our demand in the election is to transform the air fighter millions to community services.