Anarchism in Finland

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    Anarchism in Finland dates back to the early revolutionary movements of the 20th century, seeing organized activity begin in the 1960s.

    History

    Grand Duchy of Finland

    Russian anarchist sailors in Helsinki in 1917.

    Supporters of anarchism have been in the country since the time of the

    Finnish American
    radicals.

    The

    decentralized municipal and cooperative strategy. Yrjö Sirola, along with others, attacked such ideas at the meeting, emphasizing the importance of parliamentary work and the fundamental flaws of the general strike tactic. Otto Wille Kuusinen's pamphlet Anarchy and the Revolution, published in Helsinki as early as 1906, reflected the SDP's general attitude towards anarchists. In the booklet, a then-deputy member of the SDP's party committee harshly criticized those on the path to violence and individual terrorism and condemned such practices as "anarchist". The Kotka Assembly called on party branches to be vigilant about such phenomena and to dismiss those involved.[1]

    Singer Hiski Salomaa.

    The peak period of anarchist activity in Finland is considered to be 1906–1909. After the abolition of the first

    theosophist. In June 1917, anarchists took over St. Nicholas' Church in Helsinki, on the steps of which Boldt had been speaking since the spring.[3] The seizure ended with Boldt's arrest and subsequent riots in which three militants were injured. However, the anarchist meetings continued at Senate Square throughout the summer, even though the authorities had interned Boldt in Niuvanniemi Mental Hospital.[4] In the summer of 1917, the Russian soldiers who stayed in Helsinki established a so-called "Anarchist Club" in the factory located on the site of the present Post Office. Towards the end of the year, Russian anarchists also held the Katajanokka Casino for a while, before the Red Guards took it over in January 1918. During the Finnish Civil War, in March 1918, one Russian and one Finnish anarchist died in an incident between anarchists and the Red Guard militia. According to some estimates, among the Russian military living in Finland, there were even more anarchists than Bolsheviks. Some Russian anarchists also took part in the civil war on the side of the Reds. In February 1918, 250 Tsentrobalt anarchist sailors were involved in the Battle of Ruovesi.[5]

    Independent Finland

    Finnish anarchist Harry Järv during the Winter War.

    Organized anarchist activity did not arise in independent Finland until the 1960s. In the country, however, there were individual Finnish anarchists and anarchist Russian emigrants who were sailors and soldiers that took part in the anarchist

    Soviet Russia and others remained permanently in Finland.[8]

    In 1933, a poem by the anarchist

    anti-clerical.[10]

    In connection with the

    Finnish Communist Party and Marxism.[11]

    In the 1970s and 1980s, there were anarchist discussion circles and some anarchist small magazines appeared. The first national Finnish anarchist organization can be considered the

    eco-anarchist Black Green Days in Tampere gathered hundreds of participants each year at the turn of the millennium. Justice for Animals and Food Not Bombs have also been largely run by anarchists.[12]

    Contemporary Finland

    Today,

    anti-capitalist anarchists operate largely in various civic movements, but also in local anarchist groups around the country. In Helsinki, for example, the Anarchist Action Group started in 2003. Newer anarchist projects include, for example, the Väärinajattelija magazine, Takku.net and other various Internet sites. In the autumn of 2006, students at the University of Helsinki founded an anarchist group called Group A. National anarchist meetings have been held in different parts of Finland. The anarchist festival Musta Pispala has been held in Tampere since autumn 2005.[13]

    At the turn of the millennium, the

    Martha organisation, was founded in Finland.[14]

    On June 6, 2015, the anarchist alliance

    Alusta was founded in Helsinki, which included both anarchist individuals and groups. At the time of its establishment, the groups were Group A from Helsinki, Aura from Turku and the Anarchist Karelia Society operating in the North Karelia region. Groups were also established in Tampere, Jyväskylä and Lohja. In addition to this, private individuals joined the association.[15]

    According to the police,

    neo-Nazis in Finland also organized mutual fights, even by prior arrangement. Left-wing anarchists have also infiltrated the HJK's fan base and staged fights around it.[16]

    According to the Ministry of the Interior's report on the situation of violent extremism in 2016, the anarchist movement is not very organized, but rather a loose network that communicates via the internet and only gathers from time to time. The most important communication channel is the Takku.net website.[17]

    Today, militant antifascists are organized under the name

    Finnish Resistance Movement (SVL). Both parties seek clashes but present their defense. The anti-fascists broke the windows of SVL activists and painted "This is where the Nazi lives" on their walls. Authorities believe the organizations are gradually radicalizing each other.[18]

    On October 18, 2014, as the police protected a pre-planned SVL street patrol, another group attacked the patrol. This led to a mass battle of dozens of people.[19] According to a message posted on the Takku site, the opponents were antifascists. The antifascists escaped the police, dropping their iron pipes when the police stopped the fight with pepper spray.[20]

    At the end of 2016, the

    anti-immigration or right-wing groups may also be targeted by Antifa.[21]

    On October 22, 2017, anti-fascists staged a counter-demonstration in Tampere against a demonstration by the neo-Nazi Nordic Resistance Movement. According to police, among the protesters, torches were thrown at the police and attempts were made to catch the neo-Nazis, who were protected by the police. Police are investigating the actions of protesters in a suspected violent riot.[22]

    In 2019, according to the Ministry of the Interior, there were violent far-left groups in some areas in Finland, mostly anarchists and antifascists. The radical movement has been limited and has mainly manifested itself in demonstrations.[23]

    References

    1. ^ Hyvönen, Antti (1963). Suomen vanhan työväenpuolueen historia (in Finnish) (2 ed.). Kansankulttuuri. pp. 162–171.
    2. ^ Rautiainen, Antti (March 17, 2013). "Anarkismi ennen kriisiä". Uusi Suomi. Archived from the original on December 11, 2013. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
    3. ^ Leppänen, Liisa; Lempiäinen, Riika. "Järjestyshäiriöitä ja elintarvikepulaa". University of Tampere. Archived from the original on February 8, 2017. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
    4. ^ Nyström, Samu (2013). Poikkeusajan kaupunkielämäkerta : Helsinki ja helsinkiläiset maailmansodassa 1914–1918 (Thesis). University of Helsinki. pp. 136–137. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    5. ^ Vakkilainen, Ari (February 1989). "Venäläiset anarkistit Suomessa 1917–1918". Kapinatyöläinen. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
    6. ^ "Suomenruotsalainen sotasankari ja anarkisti". Kapinatyöläinen. 1997. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    7. ^ Hakulinen, Tuuli (November 25, 2011). "Kronstadtin kapina, osa 1 – pala anarkistista historiaa". Archived from the original on October 14, 2013. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
    8. ^ Rustanius, Seppo (October 12, 2003). "Kronstadtin pakolaisisten kohtaloista on tekeillä dokumenttielokuva". Etelä-Saimaa (in Finnish). Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2013.
    9. ^ Uskela, Kaarlo (September 24, 2009). "Vainovuosilta". Jurin tekstit. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
    10. ^ Ekholm, Kai. "Kielletty kotimainen kirjallisuus ja käännöskirjallisuus". Kielletyt kirjat. Sananvapaus ja sensuuri verkkoaikana. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
    11. ^ Viitanen, Reijo (1994). Punainen aate, sininen vaate. SDNL. p. 492.
    12. ^ Rautiainen, Antti (2000). "Anarkistit ja järjestäytyminen". Kapinatyöläinen. Archived from the original on May 15, 2007. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
    13. ^ "Musta Pispala-festivaali 30.9.-2.10". Takku. September 7, 2005. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    14. ^ "Anarkistimarttojen kotisivut". Archived from the original on May 4, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
    15. ^ Alusta (June 7, 2015). "Anarkistit perustivat liiton" (in Finnish). Avtonom.org. Archived from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
    16. ^ Kuokkanen, Katja (October 2, 2016). "Stadin derbyistä tuli äärioikeiston ja anarkistien taistelutanner – Poliisille tutut lietsojat "näkevät tilaisuuden tapella ja yrittävät olla kasvottomia siellä seassa"" (in Finnish). HELSINGIN SANOMAT. Archived from the original on November 5, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    17. ^ "Väkivaltaisen ekstremismin tilannekatsaus 1/2017". Sisäministeriö. March 1, 2017. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    18. ^ "Näin toimii Suomen Vastarintaliike" (in Finnish). Yle artikkelit. May 15, 2016. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    19. ^ Kangaspuro, Aino (October 22, 2014). "Uusnatsit tappelivat keskellä Helsinkiä". Iltalehti. Archived from the original on May 15, 2018. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    20. ^ "Väkivallan kierre Helsingissä: Nyt antifasistit ja patriootit ottivat yhteen" (in Finnish). MTV uutiset. October 22, 2014. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
    21. ^ a b c "Supon lista: Nämä 34 asiaa uhkaavat Suomen turvallisuutta – terroristit, äärioikeisto, anarkistit, vakoilu, maakaupat..." (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. November 29, 2016. Archived from the original on March 4, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
    22. ^ Manninen, Tuomas (October 21, 2017). "Uusnatsit ja vastamielenosoittajat ottivat yhteen Tampereella – poliisi tutkii väkivaltaista mellakkaa". Ilta-Sanomat. Archived from the original on October 25, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
    23. ^ "Väkivaltaiset ääriliikkeet toimivat koko maan alueella". Sisäministeriö. April 16, 2020. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
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