Office of the President of the Republic
Press Release 55/2013
29.10.2013
The first invitations to the Independence Day gala concert and reception hosted by the President of the Republic have been sent out. President of the Republic Sauli Niinistö and his spouse Jenni Haukio will be inviting some 1,700 guests to the Independence Day festivities at Tampere Hall on 6 December 2013.
The guests at the gala concert and reception will be a broadly representative sample of the Finnish population and all areas of society. With their choice of guests, the President and his spouse wish to highlight the importance of the many different kinds of work that people do around the country and how these contribute to the prosperity of independent Finland. More war veterans and members of the Lotta Women’s Auxiliary have been invited than last year. The guest list was prepared in collaboration with various regional bodies.
Science, the arts and sport will also be well represented at Tampere Hall. Invitations will also be sent as a matter of course to Government ministers, Members of Parliament and Finnish Members of the European Parliament.
The President and his spouse will be greeting the guests from 17.30 onwards. The greeting ceremony will be followed by the gala concert and reception. The festivities will conclude at about 22.30.
The Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) will be broadcasting the Independence Day gala concert and reception live on TV1 from 17.05.
Further information on the programme for the evening, particularly the concert, will be given at a press conference to be held at Tampere Hall in late November.