Liberalism and centrism in Finland
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This article gives an overview of liberalism and centrism in Finland. It is limited to liberal and centrist parties with substantial support, mainly proved by having had a representation in parliament. The sign ⇒ means a reference to another party in that scheme. For inclusion in this scheme it is not necessary so that parties labeled themselves as a liberal party.
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[edit] Introduction
Liberalism was a major force in Finland since 1894. After independence the current gradually decreased. A major other force, agrarianism, choose in 1965 to develop itself into a more centrist current. The liberal character of the Finnish Center (Suomen Keskusta), member of LI and ELDR, is however disputed. The Swedish minority party Swedish People's Party (Svenska Folkpartiet i Finland, member LI, ELDR) has a more clear liberal profile. The original liberal current is now organized in the Liberals (Liberaalit), a very small extra-parliamentary party. At the autonomous island of Åland the Liberals for Åland (Liberalerna på Åland, observer LI) are a dominant force.
[edit] The timeline
[edit] Liberal Club / Liberal Party
- 1877: Liberals formed the Liberal Club (Liberaalinen Klubi), renamed in 1880 Liberal Party (Liberaalinen Puolue)
- 1882: The Liberal Party disappeared
[edit] From Young Finnish Party to Liberals
- 1894: Liberal fennomans formed the Young Finns Party (Nuorsuomalainen Puolue)
- 1918: The NSP is reorganised into the National Progressive Party (Kansallinen Edistyspuolue)
- 1951: The KEP fell apart into the Finnish People's Party (Suomen Kansanpuolue) and the ⇒ Free-minded League
- 1965: The SK and the ⇒ Free-minded League reunited into the Liberal People's Party (Liberaalinen Kansanpuolue)
- 1982: The LKP associated itself with the ⇒ Center Party
- 1987: The LKP disassociated itself from the ⇒ Center Party
- 2000: The LKP renamed itself as Liberals (Liberaalit)
[edit] Swedish People's Party
- 1906 Liberal svekomans formed the present-day Swedish People's Party in Finland (Svenska Folkpartiet i Finland)
[edit] People's Party
- 1917: Progressive liberals formed the People's Party (Finland) (Kansanpuolue)
- 1918: The People's Party merged into the ⇒ National Progressive Party
[edit] Free-minded League
- 1951: The ⇒ National Progressive Party fell apart and the Free-minded League (Vapaamielisten Liitto) is formed
- 1965: The League merged with the ⇒ Finnish People's Party into the ⇒ Liberal People's Party
[edit] Centre Party / Finnish Centre
Centrists
- 1965: The agrarian Agrarian League (Maalaisliitto) reorganised itself into the Centre Party (Keskustapuolue) and accepted a more or less liberal position
- 1987: The Centre Party is renamed Finnish Centre (Suomen Keskusta)
[edit] Liberal and centrist leaders
- Kansallinen Edistyspuolue: Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg
- Keskustapuolue: Esko Aho
[edit] Liberal thinkers
In the Contributions to liberal theory the following Finnish thinker is included:
- Anders Chydenius (Finland, 1729-1803)
