SPEECH BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC
AT THE OFFICIAL CLOSING OF THE 1991-1995
PARLIAMENTARY TERM, MARCH 14, 1995,
AT PARLIAMENT HOUSE
The parliamentary term now ending has been a period of great
national and international change.
Finland's international standing has been clarified and our
security strengthened. This is in consequence of the end of
the Cold War and of economic and political integration in
Europe.
Economically, this parliamentary term has been a hard one
for Finland. The living standard of many of our citizens has
deteriorated. Unemployment has spread throughout society to
an intolerable degree. Our confidence in the future has
been shaken. We have had to completely reassess the
foundations of our welfare society.
There were several reasons for these economic problems. We
were unable to avert overheating in the economy. The
collapse of our Soviet trade also aggravated the situation.
Yet the structural weaknesses of the economy have been given
too little attention.
Even during a boom, our economy is highly polarized,
reflecting the gravity of these structural problems. We
cannot say the recession has been overcome when nearly a
fifth of the workforce is unemployed, and when a third of
government expenditure is financed by borrowing.
During the past four years, the Finnish monetary economy has
been hard tested by market forces. Distorted economic
trends, showing symptoms of all kinds of overheating, forced
us first to devalue and then float the markka. These
decisions led to unstable economic development. Exports did
well, but all other economic activity regressed.
The recent strengthening of the markka has helped bring the
situation into equilibrium. At the same time, the economy is
showing more convincing signs of recovery.
The Government and Parliament have struggled to overcome the
recession, but the persistently high level of unemployment
shows that the hoped-for results have not been achieved.
The question now is how to stabilize the economic upswing
and turn it into sustainable growth that will improve in the
long term. What we need here is faith in our own powers, the
courage to make painful but essential decisions, and the
capacity for broad cooperation.
We must support competence and initiative. Economic recovery
throughout Europe and Finnish membership of the EU offer
broad potential for effective use of Finnish skills and know-
how.
We must demand from everyone the ability to act decisively
in exploiting our strengths. The social climate must be made
conducive to this and a constructive spirit bolstered.
Developments over the past few years have profoundly
transformed the framework for our economy and economic
policy. The deregulation of markets and internationalization
of business have created a situation in which maintaining
stability is one vital precondition for success. Our way of
thinking and our institutions do not yet seem to have
adjusted to these changes. The importance of preserving
stability needs to be underlined, as does the danger
inherent in destabilization. Recent trends show that a
change in attitudes is needed, in both the business world
and the labour market organizations and on the timber
market.
The economy now has firmer ground under its feet. Overcoming
unemployment and promoting the Nordic welfare model are our
great national tasks this decade.
Last Saturday, at the UN social development summit in
Copenhagen, I said: "The idea of the welfare society is
still basically healthy; it represents solidarity towards
our less affluent and more vulnerable fellow-men." I am
sure that we will find it worthwhile to hold onto the ideal
of a society of shared responsibility.
Parliament has done an enormous job of reforming and
developing the legislation. It has brought several
politically and socially important legislative projects to
conclusion or done the groundwork for finalization by the
next Parliament. Despite the difficult circumstances,
Parliament has shown an unqualified determination to
increase social justice and the welfare of citizens.
The most important of the many new pieces of legislation
affecting the status of citizens dealt with by this
Parliament is the reform of fundamental rights. The bill has
now been left in abeyance to await further processing by the
new Parliament. The reform process illustrates the
continuity of legislative work in developing the legal
system. The need now is to refocus attention away from
systems and onto human rights and duties.
The prime task of a constitutional state is to watch over
the legal safeguards affecting its citizens. Justice is one
of our main aims, and the courts play a key role in
implementing it. The crucial prerequisite for justice is
that administrative litigation can be processed and settled
swiftly. Citizens must be able to obtain fair and properly
justified rulings on any complaints within a reasonable
period. In the first phase, achieving this objective depends
on how effectively the provincial courts can operate in, for
instance, taxation matters.
In approving amendments to the system of applying for
changes and adjustments in taxation so that any errors can
be corrected earlier and more efficiently, Parliament also
called on the Government to strengthen the potential of the
provincial courts as necessary. Personally, I consider it
important to improve the workings of these courts and to
enhance their operating potential. The functionality of our
legal protection system is the joint responsibility of our
legislators, the Government and courts.
The world order has changed fundamentally in the '90s.
Preconditions for cooperation have improved appreciably,
though it has proved difficult to manage many conflicts and
new kinds of security risk.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is
coming to be an increasingly effective instrument for crisis
management. Together with the UN and the European Union, we
must work to create a safer Europe.
In terms of Finland's international standing, the changes in
Europe have been mainly for the good. A sustainable basis
has been created for our relations with Russia. As a member
of the European Union, we have ensured that we have the
potential for watching over our interests and for helping to
manage the changes under way on our continent. The more
united we are within the Union, the better we will succeed.
We already have good premises for dealing with Union
business. It is essential that our State organs of
government - Parliament, the Government and the President of
the Republic - work in close cooperation.
As a member of the Union, we also have good potential for
advancing our relations with Russia and other non-EU states
in the Baltic Sea area. The Union is gradually becoming an
increasingly influential factor in our foreign and security
policy, too. This can only be to our benefit.
If Finland is to succeed, there must be understanding of
global economic interconnections and consistent pursuit of
our interests.
During the past term, Parliament has taken an active part in
the debate on foreign and security policy and in decision-
making within its jurisdiction. It has approved agreements
of historic importance, first on joining the European
Economic Area and then on acceding to the European Union,
together with a large amount of related legislation.
In recent years, we have, as a nation, gone through a major
upheaval. We must all continue to show great spiritual
adaptability. I am confident that we will succeed.
I should like to thank this Parliament for its work on the
nation's behalf and hereby declare the present parliamentary
term ended.