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.