Programme of the Communist Party of Finland

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Programme of the CP of Finland June 2022 - unofficial English translation.pdf

Programme of the CP of Finland June 2022 - unofficial English translation.pdf

CONTENTS

Preface
 

I The future of humanity and the planet under threat

We blame the system
 

II Capitalism and class society in Finland

The current stage in the development of capitalism

The disastrous consequences of neoliberalism

Power is concentrated in the hands of a few

Finland as a periphery of the EU and NATO

The interests of big business and the majority of the people at odds
 

III The democratic turnabout

Decision-making must be democratised

Welfare and equal opportunities for all

Economy on an ecologically sustainable footing

Towards a different Europe

Peace and solidarity
 

IV Socialism

V Cooperation

VI CPF - the party of the future

Preface
 

We live in a time of rapid change, exceptionally strong threats and crucial choices. Climate change and the loss of biodiversity threaten the future of all humanity. The risk of war, even nuclear war, has increased. Finland and the world are prosperous and rich, but at the same time there is poverty, unemployment and inequality. Advances in science and technology have created more opportunities, but also enormous forces for destruction.

This cannot continue. It is necessary to seek alternatives and a fundamentally different course of development. There is no time to lose, as many problems have come to an ominous head.

We communists trust in humankind. We trust in people's ability to resolve problems, to cooperate, to love and to create. Our knowledge and awareness of many crises have increased. We understand that the world cannot be improved by good will alone. To overcome the crises, we need structural social change, planned action and - as experience shows - fierce struggle and class struggle against right-wing forces, big money and capitalism.

We want to build a Finland, a Europe and a world free from the power of capital, from the threats of environmental destruction, from unemployment, inequality and war. Our goals are a democratic Finnish welfare society, a democratic Europe based on solidarity, peace, a just and ecologically sustainable world and a new human civilisation, socialism and communism.

I The future of humanity and the planet under threat
 

Human beings have developed economics, science and culture in a way that provides opportunities for general prosperity and development. However, the rich elite, the 1% of humanity, owns more wealth than everyone else combined. The rich also consume the most natural resources and emit the most emissions.

Poverty, the destruction of nature, disease, unemployment and the subjugation of women deprive the majority of humanity of the opportunity to enjoy a decent life. Every day, tens of thousands of children and adults die of hunger and treatable diseases. The gap between rich and poor is widening. Wars, environmental disasters, unemployment and poverty have driven millions and millions of people to become refugees and migrants.

Human communities have always changed the local environment, but we are now in a different situation. Never before in history has humanity been able to upset the balance of the atmosphere, oceans and nature on a global scale. Our unique planet is in danger of becoming uninhabitable for humans and many species as millions of years of accumulated carbon reserves are burned into the air and the planet's treasures are plundered within a few generations. Environmental disasters will follow one another and humanity will face global ecological collapse if overconsumption of resources, climate change and the loss of nature are not halted. It is time to act, to radically change the way we produce and consume to save humanity and the planet.

The world is wasting massive resources on armaments and wars, when it should be combined to ensure the survival of all humanity and the conditions for human life. The United Nations has agreed to ban nuclear weapons and set targets for disarmament, but the arms industry and armies are developing ever more destructive weapons and methods of warfare.

However, the course of events is not inevitable and is not independent of us humans. The labour and civic movements have brought about many reforms. Through broad social and political action, we can also bring about changes that go to the root of the problems and make human and natural well-being the main criterion for development.

We blame the system

Capitalism has developed the forces of production and changed people's lives in an unprecedented way. At the same time, it has subjugated people, the economy and nature to the profit motive of private capital. Capitalism cannot solve the major social problems produced by this system, nor can it take into account the needs of human, social, ecological and global development as a whole.

The concentration of production and capital has led to monopolies that play a decisive role in the economy and the market. In a system of imperialism, financial capital, seeking quick investment profits, dominates and subjugates the rest of the economy. Its constant need to expand and extend its profit motive into new areas threatens the very survival of both humanity and nature. Multinational corporations also increasingly control technology, information and networks.

The logic of capital's profit motive is based on constant quantitative growth, accumulation for the sake of accumulation, production for the sake of production. Although there is a growing awareness of the threats of climate change, natural degradation and other environmental crises, not enough actions have been taken to stop them. Even good objectives have not been met by failing to address the power of big business and finance capital. A large market for environmental products has emerged, but this has not reduced the world's consumption of fossil fuels and other natural resources. Although military operations are among the biggest polluters, they have been kept out of environmental agreements.

Capitalist circles and elites in the major powers have joined forces internationally to strengthen their positions. They use a variety of means to pursue their interests and their domination, such as international banks, capital controls, technological control, information supremacy, corruption and breaking up the labour movement. Where these means are not enough, they resort to military force and authoritarian means to secure the privileges of big business, investors and the rich elite.

At the same time, the centres of imperialism compete for markets, natural resources, control of knowledge and technology, and influence. The collapse of the Soviet Union encouraged the United States' aspirations for hegemony. In the 21st century, the economic importance and influence of Asia, especially China, in international development has grown. China is emerging as the world's largest economy and a powerful player in international politics. Many other emerging countries are strengthening their role, too. The United States is seeking to maintain its hegemony, for example by stepping up arms build-up, expanding NATO, restricting trade in advanced technology and building an alliance against China and Russia. The Russian leadership has also pursued its great power objectives through power politics and war.

The European Union is seeking to strengthen its role in the system of imperialism and to improve the competitiveness of large companies in the region through the common internal market, deregulating national regulations, reducing working conditions and opening up more export markets for companies. The EU and the European Central Bank have channelled more capital into the market, but in many areas the EU has lagged behind the United States and China.

Through many crises, the European Union has evolved into a closer federation. The contradictions in the integration of countries with different starting points have been reflected in the protests of citizens, the problems of monetary union and the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union. As the EU's powers have been extended, legislative power has become distanced from citizens. The power of the Commission, the big governments, the European Central Bank and the lobbyists of big business has grown. The EU presents itself as a defender of peace and 'common values', but is arming itself and building walls against others. The development of military action links it to NATO, the arms industry and imperialist power politics.

Policies based on the freedom of markets and capital movements have aroused resistance and demands for a different Europe and a different world. On the other hand, it has fuelled alienation, insecurity and the rise of nationalism, the extreme right and racism. This is a major challenge to develop international cooperation of the trade union movement, NGOs, the left and other progressive parties.

II Capitalism and class society in Finland
 

Finns have built and, through many struggles, renewed this country. Our country is one of the most prosperous in the world, but wealth and opportunities are unequally distributed, people are alienated from each other, from work and from nature.

The means of production, labour and natural resources are mostly subordinated to the control of big business and capitalist profit motive. The distribution of the value and surplus value created by the workers through their labour, their welfare and their opportunities for influence are still determined today by the class struggle between labour and capital, the exploited and the exploiters, the oppressed and the oppressors.

The current stage in the development of capitalism

The capitalist development of the economy has led to the concentration and monopolisation of capital and production. The market is dominated by large companies and banks, which are intertwined in many ways with each other and with the state administration. At the same time, scientific and technological progress, environmental problems and internationalisation are emphasising the social nature of production. There is a growing contradiction between the social nature of production and private profit-making.

Capitalists always seek to increase their profits by producing cheaper, faster and more.

Capital invested in the means of production therefore tends to grow faster than the demand for labour. This is the main reason why capitalism produces unemployment and casualisation. The greatest benefit from the increase in labour productivity is reaped by big business, whose profits have increased enormously.

The accumulation of capital and the restriction of workers' purchasing power repeatedly lead to overcapitalisation and economic crises. When the economy is driven not by human needs but by the production and appropriation of surplus value, production for the sake of production, wasteful consumption and the recycling of money just to make money also develops. The share of money capital, increasingly detached from productive activity and focused on speculation and the pursuit of quick profits, has swelled. It subjugates the rest of society. Together with the deregulation of capital movements, it has increased the overall volatility of the economy.

The current development of capitalism is characterised by the growing importance of knowledge and new information technologies, the expansion of financial markets, internationalisation, many changes in the content and organisation of work, the transformation of the energy economy and the fact that nature is already in many respects beyond its limits.

Large companies combine market-driven flexibility with global value chains. At the same time, they seek to reduce labour costs by competing with workers and employees from different countries to see who can do the job more cheaply. Cheap labour has been outsourced to low-wage countries, but it is also done by migrant workers and in informal economy subcontracting chains in Finland.

The technology, forestry and chemical industries, which are energy-intensive and have often neglected to invest in upgrading and energy-saving solutions, play a key role in Finland's economy. Finland's per capita greenhouse gas emissions are among the highest in Europe. On the other hand, over-felling for industrial purposes is undermining the carbon sink and biodiversity of forests. Environmental problems are exacerbated by the fact that the mining industry can exploit our country's mineral resources under lax legislation with little regard for the environment, other industries and local people.

By international standards, a small number of large companies play an exceptionally important role in the Finnish economy. They control most of industrial production, exports, financial markets, information technology and business research and development. Their ownership has become more international and investor-driven in the 2000s. At the same time, big business leaders and employers' associations have stepped up their attacks on the trade union movement and collective bargaining.

The disastrous consequences of neoliberalism

Persistent unemployment and part-time work, the high cost of housing, desolation of the rural areas and widespread poverty show how neoliberal policies based on market and capitalist freedoms are robbing many people of the chance of a secure life, breaking relationships and crushing hopes. It is a waste of resources, the flip side of which is the enrichment of the rich, speculation, conspicuous consumption and capital export. People's needs and lives are subordinated to the market.

The public sector is branded "expensive and inefficient" by the right-wing. But the public sector often works more efficiently than the private, provides essential services for all, diversifies economic development, improves society's ability to cope with exceptional circumstances and empowers citizens. Governments have privatised the most profitable parts of the public sector, converted the remaining part to market-based services and cut public services. This has made it more difficult, for example, to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and to transform the economy in a more ecologically sustainable direction.

State and municipal spending cuts, privatisation and EU’s neoliberal policies are eroding public services and social protection built through the struggles of the workers' movement and the cooperation of the left and centre parties. At the same time, however, the well-being of more and more people depends on them. Austerity policies threaten the livelihoods and well-being of the unemployed, the elderly, families with children, students and many others.

Mass media, education, science and culture have become more important, but they have also become more commercial, concentrated and internationalised. Advances in information technology and social media have increased access to events, but the concentration of ownership, the power of international giants and their commercial algorithms are reducing the diversity of information and freedom of expression.

The development of working life and society requires a broad general education, an understanding of the big picture and cooperation, but the media and often education also emphasise fragmented knowledge and the image of society as a competition between individuals, where "everyone is the architect of his own destiny". The lack of resources in education, the erosion of the integrity of primary education, the narrow focus of vocational education in particular, and the difficulties faced by many families with children, have contributed to the overall decline in learning outcomes and to the exclusion of children and young people in need of support.

Power is concentrated in the hands of a few

The struggle of the labour and civil movements resulted in universal and equal suffrage, local self-government, the right to strike and many other democratic rights. However, this did not change the nature of the state into a representative of equal citizens and realiser of the common good. Democracy and fundamental rights are also today a matter of class struggle.

The state apparatus maintains bourgeois hegemony and safeguards the functioning of the capitalist system, if necessary, by force. It masks inequalities and class conflicts based on private ownership of the means of production. While the state acts as a regulator of contradictions, it is also the object of struggles between different forces.

Power in Finland is concentrated in a small elite of the largest owners and managers of banks and companies, business federations, key ministers, the president, and top European Union and state officials. Decision-making in municipalities and welfare regions is also concentrated and distanced from the people.

The most important decisions are made in a small circle, in the chambers of business and government. The role of Parliament and the European Parliament is mostly just to give a general stamp of approval to these decisions. These decisions are presented by the mainstream media as the realisation of 'economic necessity', 'international competitiveness' and 'security'.

The extensive involvement of most parties and trade unions in state administration has disconnected them from their membership and people's daily lives. The co-operative movement has also become detached from the roots of the workers' and consumers' co-operatives.

Finland as a periphery of the EU and NATO

International interaction and cooperation have become increasingly important in the economy and in other areas. At the same time, the forces of big business and the state are intertwined at a new, supranational level in the European Union. As a small country, Finland is in a rather subordinate position in the EU and has had to adapt to the framework set by market freedom and the large Member States. The distancing of decision-making from citizens has undermined democratic empowerment.

EU policies based on market freedoms and fiscal austerity have increased pressure in Finland to reduce working conditions, cut public spending and privatise. It has also accelerated regional concentration and rural depopulation. However, in circumstances such as the Covid-19 crisis, the EU has been forced to abandon some of its economic discipline, the harmfulness of which has become obvious.

Finland's political leadership has, step by step, tied foreign and security policy more closely to US policy and NATO. Through military cooperation agreements, arms procurement and military exercises, progress has been made towards NATO membership. Parliamentary parties have raised military spending to the top level in the EU. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Finland abandoned a security policy based on the primacy of foreign policy and military non-alignment and moved towards a policy based on armament, NATO and the US nuclear deterrent. Finland's eastern border is becoming NATO's border against Russia, and tensions are rising in Finland's neighbourhood. Commitment to NATO weakens the possibilities of implementing a peace policy and to promote actively disarmament.

The interests of big business and the majority of the people at odds

The key role in the development of production and society plays the wage-earning working class, which does not own the means of production and has no independent status in its work. The share of traditional factory and construction workers has declined, while the share of service, information and expert tasks has increased. Work is often carried out in smaller units, subcontracted, part-time, temporary, freelance and self-employed. Job insecurity affects young people in particular, but unemployment, part-time and casual work and forced self-employment have become a problem across a wide range of ages and sectors. Immigrants play an important role in many sectors, but also face many difficulties in joining working life and obtaining decent working conditions.

The level of education and skills of the workforce has risen in line with scientific, technical and social developments. The share of information work and intellectual work has increased. But many changes are taking place in contradictory ways. While, for some, work autonomy is increasing and working conditions are improving, for most others the pace of work is accelerating, work is becoming more fragmented and contractual security is weakening. Access to knowledge and training is unevenly distributed. The labour market remains largely segregated along gender lines, perpetuating inequalities for women.

The number and share of people with a university degree has increased. In particular, more and more people working in technical fields and in state and local government have a university degree. Most of them approach the working class status. The power of big business also limits the autonomy of creative work and increases the precariousness of the position of graduates.

The erosion and privatisation of public services that began in the 1990s is making it harder for families with children, pensioners and people on low incomes to prosper. At the same time, they reduce women's opportunities for equality. Pension funds have been multiplied while small pensions prevent a growing number of pensioners from enjoying their right to a secure old age. Inequalities in health, housing and education are growing, increasing the heritability of poverty and deprivation. High-income earners, on the other hand, are increasingly purchasing health and social services through private insurance.

The work of farmers and farm workers is the foundation of our country's food supply. EU agricultural policy, the burden of debt and the conditions imposed by the food industry and retail chains are increasing the difficulties faced by most farmers. This concentrates production on large farms, reducing the opportunities for smaller farms to develop more ecological and animal-friendly production.

The majority of enterprises in Finland are so-called micro-enterprises and the number of self-employed persons in particular has increased. But most small entrepreneurs are in a dependent and subordinate position in the clutches of banks, wholesalers, large firms and state bureaucracy.

All in all, the interests, aspirations and desires of the vast majority of the people clash with the power of big money. Awareness of the common and convergent basic interests of this majority will not happen by itself. It is made more difficult by the diversity of experience, the employers' attempts to undermine collective bargaining and pit workers against each other, the lack of trade union organisation and trade unionism, the bourgeois mainstream media and the individualistic consumerism fuelled by the market. People are also tied to the financial markets through bank loans and investment. Many people feel insecure, powerless and isolated.

Another difficulty is the denial of equal opportunities in information and social activities. The opinions of the left, the trade union movement and NGOs are silenced, their activities are hampered and many of their activists are discriminated. Prejudices against other peoples, ethnic groups and cultures are used to pit working people and people with fewer resources against each other. Many are discouraged by the constant competition, the trampling on human dignity and the mental defeat.

Few people, however, want to be content with the role of a subject and what the elite want people to think. Most want to influence decisions about themselves, do meaningful work, care for the environment and belong to a community that cares for others and builds a better future. We communists are engaged in this action and in the debate about alternatives - about how we can solve problems, what kind of society and world we want.

III The democratic turnabout
 

The serious problems of Finland's and the world's development cannot be solved by subordinating politics to the market or reducing it to a parliamentary power game. What is needed is a politics in which people are not the object of power but the author and purpose of politics.

The Communist Party of Finland wants to develop concerted action against neoliberalism, the right and big business in order to change the direction of politics, extend the rights of working people and the poor, limit the power of big business, achieve ecological restructuring, secure peace and open the road to socialism.

We don't imagine that we can provide ready-made recipes and plan everything in advance. We look for and implement alternatives together with other people, organisations, civic movements and parties who want to change the direction of politics.

Decision-making must be democratised

Building a modern economy and society depends on the development of people's skills and initiatives, both as workers and as citizens. The main obstacle to this is the power of big business. The realisation of democracy requires the breaking of the power of a small minority who own the means of production.

Active participation and influence requires and ensures that freedom of expression, public access to decision-making, the right to strike, the right to hold referendums and other democratic rights are respected. Full citizenship must be extended to working life, so that workers have the right to be informed and to participate in the decision-making of companies, institutions and agencies. Participation and empowerment also require professional and political organisation and democratic decision-making by trade unions, NGOs and political parties. No one shall be discriminated against on grounds of origin, language, gender, sexual orientation, conviction, opinion, disability, age or any other ground.

Democracy must also be extended to the economic sphere. This means a range of measures from public economic decision-making and the development of cooperatives to the nationalisation, social ownership and democratic control of banks and insurance companies, as well as key sectors of industry and energy.

The activism of the labour movement and civic action must increase the influence of the working poor and the poorest in the administration of the state, regions and municipalities. In state decision-making, there must be a shift from governmental and ministerial power to the development of a parliament as a functioning body of democracy. Local and regional self-government must be safeguarded through adequate state funding and the development of local democracy and participatory budgeting. Along with municipalities, regional governments must also have the right to tax and expand their activities. The Saami people's right to self-determination and international agreements on the rights of indigenous peoples must be implemented.

The growing importance of information, its management and transmission underline the need to democratise mass information, education, research and cultural life. Everyone must have the opportunity to develop themselves and to enjoy the benefits of scientific knowledge and the arts. The role of minority languages and cultures must be strengthened. The domination of the commercial media and international information technology corporations by big business must be dismantled. The public service of the public broadcaster must be developed to promote democracy, freedom of expression and a diverse range of information. Cultural and opinion magazines and citizens' movements must be given greater opportunities to provide information. The church must be separated from the state and the right to tax must be removed from the church.

Welfare and equal opportunities for all

In Finland, it is possible to ensure the right to decent work and well-being for everyone living here. The public authorities must ensure that everyone's basic economic, social and cultural rights are fulfilled.

People's aspirations for a better life, an ageing population, changes in working life and the growing service gap resulting from austerity policies pose major challenges for the development of public services and income security. Meeting these challenges is also an investment in the most important factor for economic and social development: the human being.

A comprehensive basic social protection system must guarantee an adequate income for every unemployed person, student, pensioner, sick person, disabled person and others who cannot get it otherwise. Pension systems, unemployment and health insurance must be reformed to eliminate poverty and ensure the economic and social conditions for a good life without unnecessary bureaucracy.

Public services must be developed to guarantee everyone's right to health, education, culture, network connections and the care they need to live in dignity. In particular, basic services must be organised as public services with equal access for all. In order to take account of different needs, a human-centred service culture and governance must be developed, involving service users and workers in the development of services and ensuring a high level of professionalism and well-being of workers.

General working time must be reduced to six hours a day or 30 hours a week without reducing wages. Increased labour productivity and a fairer distribution of its results will make this possible. The reduction in working time must be implemented in such a way that new jobs are created and not by intensifying the workload.

We need to make income distribution and taxation fairer. Taxes on low and middle income earners must be reduced. Instead, taxes on large corporations, high capital and high income earners, and on the waste of natural resources must be tightened. Local and provincial taxation should be progressive and also apply to capital income.

To realise gender equality, the labour market must be desegregated along gender lines, equal pay for work of equal value, public services must be developed and gender impacts must be taken into account in decision-making. We must get rid of all forms of gender subordination.

We must secure housing as a fundamental right and eradicate homelessness. To reduce the cost of housing, we need to increase state-funded low-cost rental housing, introduce rent regulation, prevent speculation on land and set up non-profit municipal or regional building societies. Good housing also includes local services, public transport and green spaces.

State, provincial and municipal institutions and companies must be developed as pioneers in the fields of employment, democracy and environmental protection. They should be active in diversifying the productive structure and regional development. Concrete employment, social and environmental obligations should also be imposed on private companies, whose activities are supported by the public authorities in various ways.

Economy on an ecologically sustainable footing

Humans cannot live without interfering with nature, but this must not mean an indifferent instrumental relationship with nature. Economic and social activities must be adapted to an ecologically sustainable framework.

We need to stop overconsumption of natural resources, protect biodiversity and develop environmentally friendly technologies. This means a major ecological reconstruction of the economy, which must be carried out in a planned and equitable way. Production and consumption patterns must be changed so that the economy does not exceed nature's capacity for sustainability and profitability. We need to move from a wasteful, single-use economy to a circular economy on the scale of society as a whole.

To stop global warming, we need to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources and increase carbon sinks. Finland must become carbon neutral. This also requires increasing the share of public transport, especially rail transport, renovating buildings, energy efficiency and other solutions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. International climate agreements must be tightened up and their obligations extended to include military activities.

Climate and environmental bills should not be paid by the poor and those living in remote areas. Environmental taxes must also be targeted in such a way that the low-income groups are not penalised and the rich pay the most. New jobs must be created in the development of new environmentally friendly products and services, especially in sectors and regions whose employment would otherwise be undermined by ecological restructuring.

Minerals should be treated as national property and mining should be state-owned. Mines must not destroy the environment or local livelihoods. Mining must not be extended into valuable natural areas. Dumping of minerals must be stopped by a strict mining tax, part of the proceeds of which should be passed on to local authorities.

National self-sufficiency in staple food production, environmentally friendly food production and rural vitality must be strengthened. Agricultural support must be directed towards the production of plant proteins, organic farming, carbon sequestration, water protection, farm animal welfare, local food production, and the livelihoods and cooperative activities of farmers.

Towards a different Europe

In many ways, the well-being and security of Finns is linked to developments in Europe as a whole. The needs and objectives of citizens can only guide the development of Europe if European cooperation is democratic and equal. This also requires the development of international cooperation between the trade union movement and NGOs and action to break down the current market-driven and oligarchic structures.

Instead of market freedom and power politics, Europe must be based on fundamental human rights, democracy, equality, the sovereignty of peoples, the protection of the common environment and common security based on cooperation. Europe needs a security system based on equal cooperation to prevent wars and promote disarmament.

Instead of centralised supranational decision-making and the strengthening of the federal state, the way must be opened to free development from the shackles of the EU's neoliberal treaties and undemocratic governance. This does not mean isolation in nation states, but rejection of the EU's market-based framework and developing cooperation beyond it. How this is achieved will depend on the development of the Union's contradictions and the will and struggles of citizens, both in Finland and elsewhere in Europe.

Instead of submitting to the EU's economic discipline, we need new standards for economic development, with an emphasis on workers' rights and employment, fundamental social rights, the needs of ecological restructuring, the challenges of technological development and creative culture.

We want to build a Europe in which everyone can live together in peace and solidarity, and which works in solidarity also in relations with other nations and continents. Europe's future cannot be built by fortifying and arming against other countries. We in Europe must take responsibility for solving global problems, cooperate fairly and in solidarity with developing countries and fight xenophobia and racism.

Peace and solidarity

Internationalisation affects every person, every nation and every walk of life more directly and more widely. Instead of a nationalist perspective, there is a need for a grand project of building peace and future for humanity, opening the way to a more humane civilisation. Global cooperation and solidarity are essential if humanity is to solve its acute problems and survive.

The risk of war and violence must be excluded from international relations. Although the role of power politics based on competing economic interests and the arms industry is strong, the threat of collective destruction posed by nuclear weapons and the growing interdependence highlighted by the environmental crisis create the conditions to contain the forces of war. Strengthening security requires cooperation, moving towards disarmament and ridding the world of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.

Finland's security policy must be based on a foreign policy of peace and credible military non-alignment. This requires disengagement from NATO and military agreements concluded with NATO, the United States and certain other countries, as well as from the military activities of the EU. We need to develop good relations with all our neighbours and keep our country out of conflicts between the great powers. Finland must take active steps to promote disarmament and join the UN treaty banning nuclear weapons.

The United Nations must be democratised and developed. The role of its General Assembly in relation to the Security Council must be strengthened, the participation of developing countries in the Security Council must be increased and the influence of NGOs must be enhanced. Efforts to use the Security Council or other UN bodies as a vehicle for the interests of the great powers must be prevented.

A fairer international economic order must be created. This means a broad cancellation of the debts of emerging countries and a break with the power of transnational banks and big business. Economic relations and development cooperation must promote the developing countries' own economies, the development of their educational, scientific and technological resources, and good governance and diversified development to meet the needs of their peoples.

Science and culture must be the common property of humanity and equally accessible to all. The key issue in their development must be to solve global problems. Resources must be redirected from military research to environmental protection, poverty eradication, health, education, peace education and other global development challenges.

IV Socialism
 

Under capitalism, great strides have been made in economic, scientific, technological and cultural development. It has been the result of work that that creates new values and the struggles of the workers' movement and of popular movements. However, the power of big business and finance capital is an obstacle to fair, planned and ecologically sustainable development. The greatest dangers and risks to humanity – climate change, natural disaster and nuclear war – are also linked to the capitalist mode of production and the logic of capital that dominates it.

The replacement of capitalism by a fundamentally different society and development is necessary. The socialist movements have suffered disappointments and setbacks, but the ideas of socialism live on because it is difficult to imagine a decent and happy future without them. They are alive in movements that fight for the rights, equality and freedom of workers and other oppressed people. In these struggles, it has become increasingly clear that extending people's own decision-making, overcoming unemployment and poverty, solving the environmental crisis and securing peace require solutions that go beyond the framework of capitalism and move towards socialism.

The ideals and goal of socialism give us communists a direction in our daily activities and in our participation in social movements. Socialism is not just about ethical values and policies in their name. Socialist revolution means the new structures of power and economy that will emerge as a result of the initiatives and class struggles of the working class and the majority of the people, and which will contribute to the construction of a democratic welfare society, a just and ecologically sustainable society and world, peace and a new kind of humane civilisation.

The experience of the movements and revolutions that aspired to socialism underlines the importance of building a democratic government, safeguarding fundamental rights and individual freedom – preventing authoritarianism and bureaucracy. Neither party nor state apparatus can replace people's own influence, awareness and activity. What is needed is a new century, a 21st century path to socialism.

Socialism implies profound changes in people’s relationship to work, power, nature, other people and nations. Socialism does not mean the abolition of all personal property, but it does mean that the various forms of social ownership of the means of production play so central role that the market can be subordinated to the needs of the people and development can be guided in a planned and democratic way towards ecological sustainability. It is a society of highly developed productive forces, combining workers' power, self-government and democracy with the achievements of science and culture.

Under capitalism, man is for the economy and private profit is the purpose of production. Instead, in socialism the purpose of production becomes the development of human rights, opportunities, abilities and culture. In capitalism, material wealth and its accumulation chains man's personality, whereas in socialism wealth is first and foremost the development of the personality. As socialism develops, the opposing social classes, unemployment, inequality and the contrast between work and free time gradually disappear.

Socialism is a rather long stage in the development, the result if which is a global communist community where the free development of each individual is itself a precondition for the free development of all.

Our goal is a new kind of society and a humane civilisation, in which are dominant:

social ownership of the means of production and workers' power, workers control the means and results of their work, the principle from each according to her and his ability and to each according to her and his needs;

reconciling economic activities within an ecologically sustainable framework;

democracy and broad self-government, based on democratic rights such as freedom of expression and opinion, free elections, the right to strike, and the right to organise political parties and civil movements;

the realisation of the fundamental rights of every individual, full employment and gender equality;

national sovereignty, equal international cooperation and global solidarity;

the development of science, technology and culture for the benefit of man and as a common wealth for all humankind;

general disarmament and lasting peace.

V Cooperation
 

As long as there have been exploited and oppressed, there have also been dreams and aspirations for a fairer society and a better world. The CPF continues these traditions of class struggle, democracy and humanism. We trust in the potential of reason, personal and social responsibility, workers' mass force, cooperation and solidarity.

Many others are also looking for new solutions. Left-wing and progressive movements, trade unionism, environmental movements, peace and solidarity movements, a wide range of efforts to influence workplaces and neighbourhoods, and the development of a humane way of life and culture tell about this.

The forces for change grow from the grassroots, from people's initiative and collaboration. Politics will not be the agent of radical reform unless working and poor people themselves are its decisive drivers. Left politics is about finding opportunities for change in the contradictions of the prevailing situation and putting the common interests of working people above narrow professional, national and other group interests.

Cooperation between left-wing and other progressive parties is needed as a political channel of influence for civil society, including the formation of alliances across party lines between political and civil movements. When even individual struggles - let alone broader demands for reform - clash with economic and political power structures, we consider necessary broad mass action and cooperation against big business and the right.

The challenges of trade unionism and civic and political cooperation are increasingly transnational. Accordingly, joint and coordinated international action by the labour and civic movements is more necessary than ever. Our approach also in international activities is based on openness to cooperation with all those who share the same and similar objectives. As communists, we feel solidarity and work in close cooperation with communist parties and other left-wing movements in other countries. We are part of the international communist movement and the Party of the European Left.

VI CPF - the party of the future
 

Many people rightly perceive parties as electoral apparatuses distanced from the public and as instruments for exercising power against their interests. We want to develop the Communist Party of Finland as a different kind of party.

The CPF was born out of the experience of the old workers' party and the lessons of the 1918 Finnish workers' revolution. Even underground and persecuted, it defended workers' interests, democracy, peace and the cause of socialism and humanity. After the wars, the CPF and the People's Democratic Movement, after gaining legal rights to public action, opened the way to a new direction for the society and a policy of peace. The Communist Party has been the initiator of many reforms.

We will continue this activity. At the same time, changes in the situation in Finland and the world require new assessments and conclusions. Building a strong Communist Party is our answer to the crisis of a political system distanced from the people and their aspirations. We have also learned the lessons of the mistakes for which the CPF once paid heavily in persecutions and when our party was disbanded.

We invite you to join us in building a Communist Party that will be a better tool and stronger support for working and poor people in their struggle for their interests and rights, in the struggle against capitalism and for a society free of all forms of exploitation and oppression.

Finland needs a working class party that workers and other oppressed people know will work with them and defend them in all situations.

Understanding and transforming a complex, contradictory and ever-changing world requires a Marxist theory, shaped and developed by the research of Marx, Engels, Lenin and their successors. Questioning bourgeois hegemony requires a deeper analysis and the ability to find the potentials for radical change in the contradictions of current developments.

We invite you to build an CPF that is open to the opinions and experiences of its members and others. This is a prerequisite for the development of our party line and the conscious unity of our actions. The Communist Party is neither a debating society of those who are always right nor a top-down apparatus. We need the party that is a democratic party of revolutionary action.

Join us in strengthening the CPF, which combines in its activities international working class solidarity and defending Finland's national interests, class struggle and responsibility for the future of humanity and the planet.

For all these reasons, we say today, as in the Communist Party Manifesto: proletarians of all countries, unite!

This programme was adopted by the Congress of the Communist Party of Finland 11.-12.6.2022

(Unofficial translation)