Finnish Parliamentarian Left parties lost in Ideological work

Finnish Presidential elections – short info for European Left Executive Board Wienna Meeting 23-24.3.2018

In Finland Sauli Niinistö was 28.1. reelected with 62,6 % as president because there is a strong current of public support that lifts up the idea that sitting president should not be changed. Before his first mandate as president Sauli Niinistö was an important politician of the National Coalition Party (right wing).

From a communist and outside parliament perspective the fact that party members did not vote for party candidates send a message that Finnish left parties have no class perspective and no collective analyze on current political situation. As result of the Finnish presidential elections one could say that the parliamentarian left forces adapted to capitalism; the Social democratic party and the Left Alliance did easily accept the president Niinistö neoliberal rhetoric’s about peace and security.

Politics in Finland has lost the real meaning of politics. Instead of real questions of ideology dividing question of workers’ rights and the contradiction of work and capital, presidential elections and politics in Finland has become more and more a question of an image making or a question of a suitable person. President Niinistös family is pregnant. The Finnish ”kingdom” is doing ok.

Sauli Niinistö´s campaign calculated wisely that promoting the universe loving concepts of peace and security as the most important issue, Niinistö was able to please most of the parliamentarian political parties so much that party members did not vote for their own candidates but the sitting president.

Matti Vanhanen the prime minister party, Center party candidate got only 4,1 % of the votes. Tuula Haatainen, candidate of the biggest left-wing party the Social democrats, got only 3,3 % of the votes. Merja Kyllönen the Left Alliance Member of the EU parliament got only 3 % of the votes. In the current polls Left Alliance usually get 7-9 % support.

Paavo Väyrynen member of Center party collected 20 000 signatures and was presented as candidate by these supporters. Väyrynen could propose president Niinistö in anti-EU and questions like why Finland has agreed on Host Nation Agreement that from a communist point allows Nato easily to operate in Finland. There was a serious internal debate in the CPF about Väyrynen and his election collaboration with the populist right wing movements, racists and fascists. Väyrynen got 6,2 % of all votes. CPF states clearly that party does not support any individual candidate in the elections nor politics that collaborates with racist and fascist forces.

The Swedish People´s party delegate EU MEP Nils Torvalds got 1,3 %. True Finns party candidate Laura Huhtasaari got four biggest result gaining 6,9, % with her anti-immigrant campaign. Pekka Haavisto and the Green party got the second biggest result achieving 12,4 %. Six years ago, Perkka Haavisto a well internationally career making green politician and openly gay politician could challenge Sauli Niinistö to a second electoral round. Now at this current election campaign we did not experience a situation of any candidate being even close to challenge the sitting president.

CPF had no candidate

The Communist Party of Finland did not have own candidate in the presidential elections. For a party outside the parliament one has to collect 20 000 signatures to a list of candidates. The CPF decided no to collect the signatures.

The communist party of Finland did not support any of the candidates. In August the CPF described guidelines of the demands for a new president underlining the need of a candidate that keeps Finland out of international war exercises, wars and the NATO. Other issues for an acceptable candidate for the CPF point of view were; the need to get rid of EU and its capitalistic structures, need to get rid of the Host Nation Agreement with the NATO, need to proceed participatory democracy and the we need a president that clearly says no to any racist and fascist development.

The CPF has proposed Left Alliance to discuss of future collaboration in the elections and other events. The Left Alliance has rejected the idea of party collaboration in elections. The Left Alliance informed that collaboration is possible in concrete and particular events. The CPF has called Left Alliance to collaborate in arranging Vastavirta-festival 25.-26.8.2018 that gets funding from the EL.