Tarja Halonen
Encyclopedia
Tarja Kaarina Halonen is the incumbent President of Finland
. The first female to hold the office, Halonen had previously been a member of the parliament from 1979 to 2000 when she resigned after her election
to the presidency. In addition to her political career she had a long and extensive career in trade union
s and different non-governmental organization
s.
Halonen is a graduate of the University of Helsinki
, where she studied law from 1963 to 1968. She was active in student politics and served as the Social Affairs Secretary and Organization Secretary of the National Union of Students from 1969 to 1970. In 1971 she joined the Social Democratic Party
and worked as a lawyer in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
until she was elected to parliament in 1979.
Halonen served in the parliament of Finland for six terms, from 1979 to 2000, representing the constituency of Helsinki
. She also had a long career in the city council of Helsinki
, serving there from 1977 to 1996. She started her campaign for the presidency at the beginning of 1999 after President Martti Ahtisaari
announced that he would not stand for a second term in the office. She easily won her party's nomination, and eventually got 40% of the votes in the first round of the presidential elections
, and 51.6% in the second, thus defeating the Centre Party's
Esko Aho
and becoming the 11th president of Finland.
During the time of her presidency she has been extremely popular among Finns: her approval ratings rose and reached a peak of 88% in December 2003. Even though her ratings were so good, she was not re-elected in the first round in the next presidential elections in 2006
. She beat National Coalition Party candidate Sauli Niinistö
in the second round by 51.8% against 48.2%.
Halonen is widely known for her interest in human rights issues. In 1980–81 Halonen served as the chairman of SETA, the main LGBT
rights organization in Finland. During her presidency, she has participated actively in discussion of women's rights and problems of globalization. In 2006, she was mentioned by many sources as a potential candidate for the United Nations Secretary-General selection
, but later she stated that she wanted to finish her term as president before thinking about other career options. Halonen is a member of the Council of Women World Leaders
, an International network of current and former women presidents and prime ministers whose mission is to mobilize the highest-level women leaders globally for collective action on issues of critical importance to women and equitable development.
In 2009, Forbes
named her among the 100 Most Powerful Women in the world.
which is a traditional working-class area in central Helsinki. Her mother Lyyli Elina Loimola was a set-dresser and her father Vieno Olavi Halonen worked as a welder
. Halonen's parents married each other at the beginning of World War II and Tarja was born a few years later. Vieno Halonen was at the frontline and Lyyli Halonen was working in a shoe factory when their daughter was born. After the war the couple decided to get a divorce, and in 1950 Lyyli Halonen married her new husband Thure Forss, who worked as an electrician
and was very active in the working-class community.
Both Halonen's mother and her stepfather influenced her world view extensively. Halonen later said that her mother was a true survivor, always an extremely active and resilient person who valued good, honest and modest hardworking people. When she entered politics, Halonen stated that these are also the qualities and attributes she respects in people.
In 1950 she began her studies in Kallio Elementary school
from where she later moved to Kallio Gymnasium
and finally finished her matriculation examination in 1962. She began to study Art History
in the University of Helsinki
in 1962 but in autumn 1963 she changed her studies to law, and obtained her Master of Laws
degree in 1968 specializing in criminal law
.
She began to work as a lawyer, already before obtaining her degree, in a credit surveillance company Luotonvalvonta oy in 1967. After working there for a few years, she was hired by the National Union of University Students in Finland to work as a Social Affairs and General Secretary from 1969 to 1970. Her work in the Union spurred her interest in politics, and in 1970 she obtained a post as a lawyer in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
, being the first female ever to work as a lawyer in the Union.
which had close ties with the trade unions where she worked as a lawyer from 1970 to 1974.
In early 1970 she was elected to represent Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions in a committee that called for the recognition of the German Democratic Republic
. Later she became the Vice-President of the committee, which lobbied then-President Urho Kekkonen
. During the presidential elections of 2006 she was criticized by rivals for this. She responded that the committee was formed by members from many different political parties including conservative parties. In 1973 Finland recognized both the German Democratic Republic
and the Federal Republic of Germany
.
Kalevi Sorsa
appointed Halonen as his parliamentary secretary
. She became acquainted with the world of Finnish politics and government and her political career took a great step forward, as she went on to hold a number of public offices. Sorsa later said that he wanted his parliamentary secretary to have good ties with the trade unions of Finland and have skills in jurisprudence
.
Working in the Parliament made Halonen even more interested in politics and she decided to take part in the municipal elections of 1976. She was elected to the Helsinki City Council
, a position she held continuously for five terms from 1977 to 1996. Additionally, in 1979 she was elected to the Parliament of Finland
as a representative of the Helsinki constituency
. She served five full terms and less than a year of her sixth term in the parliament until her inauguration as President in 2000. In the Parliament her first formal post was as Chairman of the Social Committee from 1984 to 1987.
Cooperation from 1989 until 1991, the same year in which she was also appointed chairman of the International Solidarity Foundation, a post she relinquished in 2000.
From 1990 to 1991 she served as Minister of Justice, and from 1995 until her election as President she served as the Minister for Foreign Affairs in the government of her Social Democratic colleague Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen
.
. In the preliminary elections of the Social Democrats Halonen ran against Pertti Paasio
, a member of the European Parliament and former party chairman, and Jacob Söderman
, the European Ombudsman
. The incumbent, Martti Ahtisaari
, refused to run in party preliminaries and thus announced that he would not run for a second term. Halonen won the preliminaries by a landslide, getting 7800 of the total of 12,800 votes.
Halonen was a surprising candidate as she didn't represent many traditional values: She was known as a left-wing social democratic party member, who lived in a domestic partnership
, was a single parent
and had resigned from the national church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
. While Halonen started from fourth place in the presidential election polls, surprisingly in the first round of the elections she got the most votes, 40.0%. Her nearest opponent, the former Prime Minister
Esko Aho
of the Centre Party
, got 34.4%.
Since neither of the two candidates got over 50% of the votes, a second round was held as required by Finnish Law. In the second round, Halonen narrowly defeated her opponent with 51.6% against 48.4% thus becoming Finland's first female President. Her first term began on 1 March 2000.
In a 2001 Halonen said that she is worried about the Russian response if NATO approved membership bids by Baltic countries
. Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga
asked what she meant and whether Halonen is actively opposing NATO membership of Baltic countries.
In the Iraqgate scandal, Halonen's advisor Martti Manninen leaked confidential documents to the Centre Party leader Anneli Jäätteenmäki
, who had become Prime Minister. The revelations led to the resignation of Jäätteenmäki.
Halonen has opposed the use of landmines in Finnish military doctrine.
Halonen has defended cluster bomb
s and did not sign a treaty which would have banned Finland from using these kinds of weapons.
where she announced her willingness to run for a second term. Officially, this was the desired answer for the SDP delegation that had visited her two days earlier. In addition to her own party's support, the leader of the Left Alliance
, Suvi-Anne Siimes
, gave her support for Halonen's future campaign.
SAK
openly lobbied for her re-election. It used its members money on mudslinging campaigns on behalf of Halonen. In flyers, "Niinistö is presented as the horror of worker, whereas SAK-supported Halonen is like a worker's dream". Halonen said she approves the flyers.
A study analyzed newspaper articles and concluded that the main newspaper Helsingin Sanomat produced almost exclusively positive tone stories about Halonen and much more negative tone articles about candidates Niinistö, Vanhanen and Hautala.
American talk show host Conan O'Brien
made recurring jokes about Halonen on his show, Late Night With Conan O'Brien
, because of his own resemblance to her. He endorsed Halonen and produced humorous mock campaign ads and attack ads against her opponents. He went as far as visiting Finland and meeting Halonen.
On 19 November, the SDP's party council meeting was held; praised as "the president of the whole nation", she was unanimously chosen as the presidential candidate. Shortly thereafter, the party council of the Left Alliance gave the party's official support to Halonen.
Halonen's received 46% of the first round vote in the election. Sauli Niinistö
(of the National Coalition Party) was second with 24%. They faced each other in a runoff on 29 January 2006, where Halonen was re-elected with 51.8% of the vote against Mr. Niinistö's 48.2%. The re-election was a close call. She led in the advance voting, but she eventually received fewer votes on the actual voting day than Mr. Niinistö did.
In September 2008, Halonen was perceived to insult Estonia by saying that the Estonians suffer from "post-Soviet stress condition". Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves
commented on the issue, saying that "Estonia has never condemned, and will not condemn foreign affairs decisions of another EU country. It neither will assess psychiatric state of other EU countries". In 2009, Halonen rejected calls to apologize for Finland's attitude towards Estonian independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
, Halonen advocated diplomatic recognition of the German Democratic Republic. Otherwise she was loyal to President Kekkonen
's foreign policy, which was founded on Finnish neutrality and good relations with the Soviet Union
.
Throughout her political career, Halonen has described herself as supporter of international solidarity. She describes herself as a "relative pacifist
", meaning that she doesn't support unilateral disarmament. She has strongly defended the President's role as the commander in chief of the military. She opposes NATO membership. Her strong stands on these issues have characterised her presidential term and shaped Finnish foreign policy, in part in cooperation with the like-minded former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Erkki Tuomioja
.
Halonen has publicly supported SAK
involvement in politics.
The Constitution of Finland and Halonen's decision to take part in some European Union meetings with the Prime Minister has created the so-called "problem of two dinner plates" in Finland. Since most other countries only have their Prime Ministers representing them, it was also decided in Finland that the task is reserved for the Prime Minister in most cases.
President Halonen says her interests include art history
, the theatre and swimming. Halonen had two cats as of 2005. She says she speaks Finnish, Swedish, and English, and is studying Estonian
.
On 26 August 2000, President Halonen married her longtime partner, Dr. Pentti Arajärvi
, in a civil ceremony at her official residence, Mäntyniemi
, after a relationship of more than fifteen years. Halonen's adult daughter Anna, and Arajärvi's adult son Esko, acted as witnesses. Both children are from previous relationships.
In the 1960s, she left the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, to which the majority of Finns belong, to protest against its policy of taxing church members and its stance against female priest
s. Today, the church accepts women as priests and Halonen has stated that she has no personal reason not to return to the church but refrains from doing so in order not to give a signal that might be misinterpreted. In the 1990s, Halonen acted as the chairman of Suomen setlementtiliitto, a Christian social work organization.
In 1980–1981 Halonen served as the chairman of SETA
(Seksuaalinen Tasavertaisuus RY, Sexual Equality), the main LGBT
rights organization in Finland. When she became Minister for Justice in 1990, there were high hopes among SETA
members that she would stand up for gay rights. In 2003, a widely publicised incident occurred when member of parliament Tony Halme
referred to Tarja Halonen as a lesbian. In a radio interview, Halme referred to his background of growing up "in the streets" and said: "We have a lesbian as president and me as parliamentarian. Everything seems possible." Although Halme intended to refer to social mobility
with his comment, it was interpreted as an insult by much of the media. Halonen herself made no comment. Halme later apologized saying he had been misunderstood.
According to her authorized biography
published in 2005, Halonen is critical of some unnamed members of the Finnish civil service
for being gay or lesbian and not coming out
and campaigning for sexual equality. She accused these closeted
homosexuals of reaping the benefits of other people's work for sexual equality without contributing themselves.
, Faculty of Philosophy, 2010 Theatre Academy Helsinki
, 2009 University of Minnesota Duluth
, 2008 Helsinki University of Technology
, 2008 Yerevan State University
, 2005 University of Tartu
, 2004 University of Bluefiels, 2004 University of Turku
, 2003 Finlandia University
, 2003 Chinese Academy of Forestry, 2002 Eötvös Loránd University, 2002 University of Kent
, 2002 Ewha Womans University
, 2002 Helsinki School of Economics
, 2001 University of Helsinki
, Faculty of Law, 2000
resembles Tarja Halonen. After joking about this for several months (which led to his endorsement of her campaign), O'Brien travelled to Finland, appearing on several television shows and meeting President Halonen. The trip was filmed and aired as a special.
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President of Finland
The President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....
. The first female to hold the office, Halonen had previously been a member of the parliament from 1979 to 2000 when she resigned after her election
Finnish presidential election, 2000
Presidential elections were held in Finland on 16 January 2000, with a second round on 6 February. The result was a victory for Tarja Halonen of the Social Democratic Party, who became the country's first female President. During the elections Halonen was the incumbent Minister for Foreign...
to the presidency. In addition to her political career she had a long and extensive career in trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s and different non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
s.
Halonen is a graduate of the University of Helsinki
University of Helsinki
The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but was founded in the city of Turku in 1640 as The Royal Academy of Turku, at that time part of the Swedish Empire. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available...
, where she studied law from 1963 to 1968. She was active in student politics and served as the Social Affairs Secretary and Organization Secretary of the National Union of Students from 1969 to 1970. In 1971 she joined the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party of Finland
The Social Democratic Party of Finland is one of the three major political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the National Coalition Party. Jutta Urpilainen is the current SDP leader. The party has been in the Finnish government cabinet for long periods and has set many...
and worked as a lawyer in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, usually referred to by the acronym SAK is the largest trade union confederation in Finland...
until she was elected to parliament in 1979.
Halonen served in the parliament of Finland for six terms, from 1979 to 2000, representing the constituency of Helsinki
Helsinki (constituency)
Helsinki is an electoral district represented in the Finnish Eduskunta . It covers the administrative area of the city of Helsinki, with a population of 591,306 . Helsinki currently elects 21 members of the Eduskunta....
. She also had a long career in the city council of Helsinki
Politics of Helsinki
-City Council:Like in all Finnish municipalities, the city council in Helsinki is the main decision-making organ in local politics, dealing with issues such as city planning, schools, health care, and public transport...
, serving there from 1977 to 1996. She started her campaign for the presidency at the beginning of 1999 after President Martti Ahtisaari
Martti Ahtisaari
Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland , Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work....
announced that he would not stand for a second term in the office. She easily won her party's nomination, and eventually got 40% of the votes in the first round of the presidential elections
Finnish presidential election, 2000
Presidential elections were held in Finland on 16 January 2000, with a second round on 6 February. The result was a victory for Tarja Halonen of the Social Democratic Party, who became the country's first female President. During the elections Halonen was the incumbent Minister for Foreign...
, and 51.6% in the second, thus defeating the Centre Party's
Centre Party (Finland)
The Centre Party is a centrist and Nordic agrarian political party in Finland. It is one of the four largest political parties in the country, along with the Social Democratic Party , the National Coalition Party and the True Finns , and currently has 35 seats in the Finnish Parliament...
Esko Aho
Esko Aho
Esko Tapani Aho is a statesman and former Prime Minister of Finland.-Early life and career:Aho was born in Veteli, Finland. Prior to attending university, he began a career in politics. From 1974 to 1979, he was Chairman of the Finnish Centre Youth, which had before him grown many of his...
and becoming the 11th president of Finland.
During the time of her presidency she has been extremely popular among Finns: her approval ratings rose and reached a peak of 88% in December 2003. Even though her ratings were so good, she was not re-elected in the first round in the next presidential elections in 2006
Finnish presidential election, 2006
The Finnish Presidential election of 2006 saw the re-election of Tarja Halonen as President of Finland for a second six-year term.The first round of voting in Finnish presidential elections always takes place on the third Sunday of January, in this case 15 January 2006...
. She beat National Coalition Party candidate Sauli Niinistö
Sauli Niinistö
Sauli Väinämö Niinistö is a Finnish politician from National Coalition Party. He is also President of the Football Association of Finland. A lawyer by training, he was Minister of Finance from 1996 to 2003 and the National Coalition Party candidate in the 2006 presidential election...
in the second round by 51.8% against 48.2%.
Halonen is widely known for her interest in human rights issues. In 1980–81 Halonen served as the chairman of SETA, the main LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
rights organization in Finland. During her presidency, she has participated actively in discussion of women's rights and problems of globalization. In 2006, she was mentioned by many sources as a potential candidate for the United Nations Secretary-General selection
United Nations Secretary-General selection, 2006
An election was held in 2006 to succeed Kofi Annan, whose second term as Secretary-General of the United Nations expired on 31 December 2006. Seven candidates were officially nominated for the position....
, but later she stated that she wanted to finish her term as president before thinking about other career options. Halonen is a member of the Council of Women World Leaders
Council of Women World Leaders
The Council of Women World Leaders is a network of current and former women prime ministers and presidents established in 1996 by Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, President of Iceland and first woman in the world to be democratically elected president, and Laura Liswood, Secretary General...
, an International network of current and former women presidents and prime ministers whose mission is to mobilize the highest-level women leaders globally for collective action on issues of critical importance to women and equitable development.
In 2009, Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
named her among the 100 Most Powerful Women in the world.
Early life and career
Tarja Halonen was born on 24 December 1943 in the district of KallioKallio
Kallio is a district and a neighbourhood in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, located on the eastern side of the Helsinki peninsula about one kilometere north from the city centre. It is one of the most densely populated areas in Finland...
which is a traditional working-class area in central Helsinki. Her mother Lyyli Elina Loimola was a set-dresser and her father Vieno Olavi Halonen worked as a welder
Welder
A welder is a tradesman who specializes in welding materials together. The materials to be joined can be metals or varieties of plastic or polymer...
. Halonen's parents married each other at the beginning of World War II and Tarja was born a few years later. Vieno Halonen was at the frontline and Lyyli Halonen was working in a shoe factory when their daughter was born. After the war the couple decided to get a divorce, and in 1950 Lyyli Halonen married her new husband Thure Forss, who worked as an electrician
Electrician
An electrician is a tradesman specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, stationary machines and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance and repair of existing electrical infrastructure. Electricians may also...
and was very active in the working-class community.
Both Halonen's mother and her stepfather influenced her world view extensively. Halonen later said that her mother was a true survivor, always an extremely active and resilient person who valued good, honest and modest hardworking people. When she entered politics, Halonen stated that these are also the qualities and attributes she respects in people.
In 1950 she began her studies in Kallio Elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
from where she later moved to Kallio Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
and finally finished her matriculation examination in 1962. She began to study Art History
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
in the University of Helsinki
University of Helsinki
The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but was founded in the city of Turku in 1640 as The Royal Academy of Turku, at that time part of the Swedish Empire. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available...
in 1962 but in autumn 1963 she changed her studies to law, and obtained her Master of Laws
Master of Laws
The Master of Laws is an advanced academic degree, pursued by those holding a professional law degree, and is commonly abbreviated LL.M. from its Latin name, Legum Magister. The University of Oxford names its taught masters of laws B.C.L...
degree in 1968 specializing in criminal law
Criminal law
Criminal law, is the body of law that relates to crime. It might be defined as the body of rules that defines conduct that is not allowed because it is held to threaten, harm or endanger the safety and welfare of people, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on people who do not obey...
.
She began to work as a lawyer, already before obtaining her degree, in a credit surveillance company Luotonvalvonta oy in 1967. After working there for a few years, she was hired by the National Union of University Students in Finland to work as a Social Affairs and General Secretary from 1969 to 1970. Her work in the Union spurred her interest in politics, and in 1970 she obtained a post as a lawyer in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, usually referred to by the acronym SAK is the largest trade union confederation in Finland...
, being the first female ever to work as a lawyer in the Union.
Trade unionist
In 1971 she decided to join the Social Democratic Party of FinlandSocial Democratic Party of Finland
The Social Democratic Party of Finland is one of the three major political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the National Coalition Party. Jutta Urpilainen is the current SDP leader. The party has been in the Finnish government cabinet for long periods and has set many...
which had close ties with the trade unions where she worked as a lawyer from 1970 to 1974.
In early 1970 she was elected to represent Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions in a committee that called for the recognition of the German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
. Later she became the Vice-President of the committee, which lobbied then-President Urho Kekkonen
Urho Kekkonen
Urho Kaleva Kekkonen , was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland and later as the eighth President of Finland . Kekkonen continued the “active neutrality” policy of his predecessor President Juho Kusti Paasikivi, a doctrine which came to be known as the “Paasikivi–Kekkonen...
. During the presidential elections of 2006 she was criticized by rivals for this. She responded that the committee was formed by members from many different political parties including conservative parties. In 1973 Finland recognized both the German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
and the Federal Republic of Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
.
First elections
In 1974 Prime MinisterPrime Minister of Finland
The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...
Kalevi Sorsa
Kalevi Sorsa
Taisto Kalevi Sorsa was a Finnish politician who was Prime Minister of Finland four times: 1972–1975, 1977–1979, 1982–1983 and 1983–1987 and at the date of his death still held the Finnish record of most days of incumbency as prime minister...
appointed Halonen as his parliamentary secretary
Parliamentary Secretary
A Parliamentary Secretary is a member of a Parliament in the Westminster system who assists a more senior minister with his or her duties.In the parliamentary systems of several Commonwealth countries, such as the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, it is customary for the prime minister to...
. She became acquainted with the world of Finnish politics and government and her political career took a great step forward, as she went on to hold a number of public offices. Sorsa later said that he wanted his parliamentary secretary to have good ties with the trade unions of Finland and have skills in jurisprudence
Jurisprudence
Jurisprudence is the theory and philosophy of law. Scholars of jurisprudence, or legal theorists , hope to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of law, of legal reasoning, legal systems and of legal institutions...
.
Working in the Parliament made Halonen even more interested in politics and she decided to take part in the municipal elections of 1976. She was elected to the Helsinki City Council
Politics of Helsinki
-City Council:Like in all Finnish municipalities, the city council in Helsinki is the main decision-making organ in local politics, dealing with issues such as city planning, schools, health care, and public transport...
, a position she held continuously for five terms from 1977 to 1996. Additionally, in 1979 she was elected to the Parliament of Finland
Parliament of Finland
The Eduskunta , is the parliament of Finland. The unicameral parliament has 200 members and meets in the Parliament House in Helsinki. The latest election to the parliament took place on April 17, 2011.- Constitution :...
as a representative of the Helsinki constituency
Helsinki (constituency)
Helsinki is an electoral district represented in the Finnish Eduskunta . It covers the administrative area of the city of Helsinki, with a population of 591,306 . Helsinki currently elects 21 members of the Eduskunta....
. She served five full terms and less than a year of her sixth term in the parliament until her inauguration as President in 2000. In the Parliament her first formal post was as Chairman of the Social Committee from 1984 to 1987.
Minister career
In 1987, Halonen was appointed by Prime Minister Harri Holkeri to be the Minister of Social Affairs and Health in the government, a position she held until 1990. In addition to this, she served as Minister of NordicNordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
Cooperation from 1989 until 1991, the same year in which she was also appointed chairman of the International Solidarity Foundation, a post she relinquished in 2000.
From 1990 to 1991 she served as Minister of Justice, and from 1995 until her election as President she served as the Minister for Foreign Affairs in the government of her Social Democratic colleague Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen
Paavo Lipponen
Paavo Tapio Lipponen is a Finnish politician and former reporter. He was Prime Minister of Finland from 1995 to 2003, and Chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Finland from 1993 to 2005...
.
2000 Presidential campaign
Halonen announced in 1999 that she wished to stand as a candidate for President in the 2000 Presidential electionsFinnish presidential election, 2000
Presidential elections were held in Finland on 16 January 2000, with a second round on 6 February. The result was a victory for Tarja Halonen of the Social Democratic Party, who became the country's first female President. During the elections Halonen was the incumbent Minister for Foreign...
. In the preliminary elections of the Social Democrats Halonen ran against Pertti Paasio
Pertti Paasio
Pertti Kullervo Paasio is a Finnish politician from the Social Democratic Party.Paasio participated in the municipal politics of Turku and was elected into the municipal council in 1965. Paasio became member of the Parliament in July 1975, however, he lost the seat in the 1979 parliamentary...
, a member of the European Parliament and former party chairman, and Jacob Söderman
Jacob Söderman
Jacob-Magnus Söderman is a Finnish Member of Parliament since September 2007 until 2011...
, the European Ombudsman
European Ombudsman
The European Ombudsman is an ombudsman for the European Union, based in the Salvador de Madariaga Building in Strasbourg.-History:...
. The incumbent, Martti Ahtisaari
Martti Ahtisaari
Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland , Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work....
, refused to run in party preliminaries and thus announced that he would not run for a second term. Halonen won the preliminaries by a landslide, getting 7800 of the total of 12,800 votes.
Halonen was a surprising candidate as she didn't represent many traditional values: She was known as a left-wing social democratic party member, who lived in a domestic partnership
Domestic partnership
A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by marriage nor a civil union...
, was a single parent
Single parent
Single parent is a term that is mostly used to suggest that one parent has most of the day to day responsibilities in the raising of the child or children, which would categorize them as the dominant caregiver...
and had resigned from the national church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is the national church of Finland. The church professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion....
. While Halonen started from fourth place in the presidential election polls, surprisingly in the first round of the elections she got the most votes, 40.0%. Her nearest opponent, the former Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Finland
The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...
Esko Aho
Esko Aho
Esko Tapani Aho is a statesman and former Prime Minister of Finland.-Early life and career:Aho was born in Veteli, Finland. Prior to attending university, he began a career in politics. From 1974 to 1979, he was Chairman of the Finnish Centre Youth, which had before him grown many of his...
of the Centre Party
Centre Party (Finland)
The Centre Party is a centrist and Nordic agrarian political party in Finland. It is one of the four largest political parties in the country, along with the Social Democratic Party , the National Coalition Party and the True Finns , and currently has 35 seats in the Finnish Parliament...
, got 34.4%.
Since neither of the two candidates got over 50% of the votes, a second round was held as required by Finnish Law. In the second round, Halonen narrowly defeated her opponent with 51.6% against 48.4% thus becoming Finland's first female President. Her first term began on 1 March 2000.
First term in office: 2000–2006
After her narrow election victory in the first election, Halonen's approval ratings rose and reached a peak of 88% in December 2003.In a 2001 Halonen said that she is worried about the Russian response if NATO approved membership bids by Baltic countries
Baltic countries
The term Baltic states refers to the Baltic territories which gained independence from the Russian Empire in the wake of World War I: primarily the contiguous trio of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania ; Finland also fell within the scope of the term after initially gaining independence in the 1920s.The...
. Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga
Vaira Vike-Freiberga
Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga was the sixth President of Latvia, the first female President of Latvia and the first female leader in eastern Europe. She was elected President of Latvia in 1999 and re-elected in 2003.Dr...
asked what she meant and whether Halonen is actively opposing NATO membership of Baltic countries.
In the Iraqgate scandal, Halonen's advisor Martti Manninen leaked confidential documents to the Centre Party leader Anneli Jäätteenmäki
Anneli Jäätteenmäki
Anneli Tuulikki Jäätteenmäki, Master of Laws was the first female Prime Minister of Finland, in office from 17 April 2003 to 24 June 2003....
, who had become Prime Minister. The revelations led to the resignation of Jäätteenmäki.
Halonen has opposed the use of landmines in Finnish military doctrine.
Halonen has defended cluster bomb
Cluster bomb
A cluster munition is a form of air-dropped or ground-launched explosive weapon that releases or ejects smaller sub-munitions. Commonly, this is a cluster bomb that ejects explosive bomblets that are designed to kill enemy personnel and destroy vehicles...
s and did not sign a treaty which would have banned Finland from using these kinds of weapons.
2006 Presidential campaign
On 20 May 2005, Halonen held a press conference in MäntyniemiMäntyniemi
Mäntyniemi , is one of the three official residences of the President of Finland besides the Presidential Palace and Kultaranta. Mäntyniemi was finished in 1993...
where she announced her willingness to run for a second term. Officially, this was the desired answer for the SDP delegation that had visited her two days earlier. In addition to her own party's support, the leader of the Left Alliance
Left Alliance (Finland)
The Left Alliance is a left-wing political party in Finland. It was founded on the basis of the Finnish People's Democratic League and the Communist Party of Finland in 1990....
, Suvi-Anne Siimes
Suvi-Anne Siimes
Sini Maaria Suvi-Anne Siimes is a former chair of the Finnish Left Alliance. She quit the party in 2006 because she did not want to support the party's former taistoists ....
, gave her support for Halonen's future campaign.
SAK
Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, usually referred to by the acronym SAK is the largest trade union confederation in Finland...
openly lobbied for her re-election. It used its members money on mudslinging campaigns on behalf of Halonen. In flyers, "Niinistö is presented as the horror of worker, whereas SAK-supported Halonen is like a worker's dream". Halonen said she approves the flyers.
A study analyzed newspaper articles and concluded that the main newspaper Helsingin Sanomat produced almost exclusively positive tone stories about Halonen and much more negative tone articles about candidates Niinistö, Vanhanen and Hautala.
American talk show host Conan O'Brien
Conan O'Brien
Conan Christopher O'Brien is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer and performer. Since November 2010 he has hosted Conan, a late-night talk show that airs on the American cable television station TBS....
made recurring jokes about Halonen on his show, Late Night With Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
, because of his own resemblance to her. He endorsed Halonen and produced humorous mock campaign ads and attack ads against her opponents. He went as far as visiting Finland and meeting Halonen.
On 19 November, the SDP's party council meeting was held; praised as "the president of the whole nation", she was unanimously chosen as the presidential candidate. Shortly thereafter, the party council of the Left Alliance gave the party's official support to Halonen.
Halonen's received 46% of the first round vote in the election. Sauli Niinistö
Sauli Niinistö
Sauli Väinämö Niinistö is a Finnish politician from National Coalition Party. He is also President of the Football Association of Finland. A lawyer by training, he was Minister of Finance from 1996 to 2003 and the National Coalition Party candidate in the 2006 presidential election...
(of the National Coalition Party) was second with 24%. They faced each other in a runoff on 29 January 2006, where Halonen was re-elected with 51.8% of the vote against Mr. Niinistö's 48.2%. The re-election was a close call. She led in the advance voting, but she eventually received fewer votes on the actual voting day than Mr. Niinistö did.
Second term in office: 2006–
In 2008, Halonen nominated SDP-affiliated Ritva Viljanen for a second term in the Interior Ministry. The Council of State had nominated Ilkka Laitinen, who was unambiguously seen as the most competent candidate. During the past 50 years, only once the President has not obeyed the Council of State consensus and Halonen was accused of cronyism.In September 2008, Halonen was perceived to insult Estonia by saying that the Estonians suffer from "post-Soviet stress condition". Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves
Toomas Hendrik Ilves
Toomas Hendrik Ilves is the fourth and current President of Estonia. He is a former diplomat and journalist, was the leader of the Social Democratic Party in the 1990s and later a member of the European Parliament...
commented on the issue, saying that "Estonia has never condemned, and will not condemn foreign affairs decisions of another EU country. It neither will assess psychiatric state of other EU countries". In 2009, Halonen rejected calls to apologize for Finland's attitude towards Estonian independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Political views
Early in her political career Halonen represented the far left wing of her former party (Social Democrat). She publicly opposed the proposed free trade agreement of the European Economic Community (EEC, later European Union) in 1973, by signing a petition along with 500 other more-or-less prominent social democrats and socialists. As an employee of the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade UnionsCentral Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, usually referred to by the acronym SAK is the largest trade union confederation in Finland...
, Halonen advocated diplomatic recognition of the German Democratic Republic. Otherwise she was loyal to President Kekkonen
Urho Kekkonen
Urho Kaleva Kekkonen , was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland and later as the eighth President of Finland . Kekkonen continued the “active neutrality” policy of his predecessor President Juho Kusti Paasikivi, a doctrine which came to be known as the “Paasikivi–Kekkonen...
's foreign policy, which was founded on Finnish neutrality and good relations with the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Throughout her political career, Halonen has described herself as supporter of international solidarity. She describes herself as a "relative pacifist
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
", meaning that she doesn't support unilateral disarmament. She has strongly defended the President's role as the commander in chief of the military. She opposes NATO membership. Her strong stands on these issues have characterised her presidential term and shaped Finnish foreign policy, in part in cooperation with the like-minded former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Erkki Tuomioja
Erkki Tuomioja
Erkki Sakari Tuomioja is the Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs. He is currently a member of the Finnish Parliament.Tuomioja is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Finland, although his political views are thought to be more to the left than the party line. He is also a member of ATTAC...
.
Halonen has publicly supported SAK
Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, usually referred to by the acronym SAK is the largest trade union confederation in Finland...
involvement in politics.
The Constitution of Finland and Halonen's decision to take part in some European Union meetings with the Prime Minister has created the so-called "problem of two dinner plates" in Finland. Since most other countries only have their Prime Ministers representing them, it was also decided in Finland that the task is reserved for the Prime Minister in most cases.
Personal life
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, the theatre and swimming. Halonen had two cats as of 2005. She says she speaks Finnish, Swedish, and English, and is studying Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
.
On 26 August 2000, President Halonen married her longtime partner, Dr. Pentti Arajärvi
Pentti Arajärvi
Pentti Arajärvi is a Finnish doctor of law. He is the husband of Tarja Halonen, who became the President of Finland in 2000. Currently, he holds the unofficial title of First Gentleman of Finland.-External links:*...
, in a civil ceremony at her official residence, Mäntyniemi
Mäntyniemi
Mäntyniemi , is one of the three official residences of the President of Finland besides the Presidential Palace and Kultaranta. Mäntyniemi was finished in 1993...
, after a relationship of more than fifteen years. Halonen's adult daughter Anna, and Arajärvi's adult son Esko, acted as witnesses. Both children are from previous relationships.
In the 1960s, she left the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, to which the majority of Finns belong, to protest against its policy of taxing church members and its stance against female priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
s. Today, the church accepts women as priests and Halonen has stated that she has no personal reason not to return to the church but refrains from doing so in order not to give a signal that might be misinterpreted. In the 1990s, Halonen acted as the chairman of Suomen setlementtiliitto, a Christian social work organization.
In 1980–1981 Halonen served as the chairman of SETA
SETA
SETA , founded in 1974, is the main LGBT rights organisation in Finland. It is a national organization with several member organizations around the country. Its general secretary is Aija Salo and chairperson Outi Hannula...
(Seksuaalinen Tasavertaisuus RY, Sexual Equality), the main LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
rights organization in Finland. When she became Minister for Justice in 1990, there were high hopes among SETA
SETA
SETA , founded in 1974, is the main LGBT rights organisation in Finland. It is a national organization with several member organizations around the country. Its general secretary is Aija Salo and chairperson Outi Hannula...
members that she would stand up for gay rights. In 2003, a widely publicised incident occurred when member of parliament Tony Halme
Tony Halme
Tony Christian Halme was a member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the True Finns party. He was also known by the pseudonym Viikinki he used while appearing in the Finnish version of the TV game show Gladiators in the 1990s...
referred to Tarja Halonen as a lesbian. In a radio interview, Halme referred to his background of growing up "in the streets" and said: "We have a lesbian as president and me as parliamentarian. Everything seems possible." Although Halme intended to refer to social mobility
Social mobility
Social mobility refers to the movement of people in a population from one social class or economic level to another. It typically refers to vertical mobility -- movement of individuals or groups up from one socio-economic level to another, often by changing jobs or marrying; but can also refer to...
with his comment, it was interpreted as an insult by much of the media. Halonen herself made no comment. Halme later apologized saying he had been misunderstood.
According to her authorized biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
published in 2005, Halonen is critical of some unnamed members of the Finnish civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
for being gay or lesbian and not coming out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
and campaigning for sexual equality. She accused these closeted
The Closet
The Closet may refer to:* The Closet , Chinese film* The Closet , French film* The closet, referring to undisclosed homosexuality- See also :* Closet* Closet * In the closet...
homosexuals of reaping the benefits of other people's work for sexual equality without contributing themselves.
Controversy
Rumors have circulated about Halonen insulting and bullying servants and other SDP members, who have anonymously described these alleged incidents.Chronology of her political career
- Member of the Social Democratic PartySocial Democratic Party of FinlandThe Social Democratic Party of Finland is one of the three major political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the National Coalition Party. Jutta Urpilainen is the current SDP leader. The party has been in the Finnish government cabinet for long periods and has set many...
1971–2000 - Vice-President of the GDR Recognizion Committee 1972–1973
- Prime Minister's Parliamentary Secretary 1974–1975
- Member of Helsinki City Council 1977–1996
- Member of ParliamentParliament of FinlandThe Eduskunta , is the parliament of Finland. The unicameral parliament has 200 members and meets in the Parliament House in Helsinki. The latest election to the parliament took place on April 17, 2011.- Constitution :...
(Helsinki constituency) 1979–2000 - Member of the Parliamentary Social Affairs Committee 1979-1986 (chair 1985-1986)
- Deputy member of the Parliamentary Commerce Committee 1979-1982
- Presidential elector 1979-1986
- Member of the Parliamentary Trustees of the Social Insurance Institution of Finland 1980-1984
- Deputy member, Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee 1982-1986
- Minister of Social Affairs and Health 1987–1990
- Minister of Nordic Cooperation 1989–1991
- Minister of JusticeMinister of Justice (Finland)-List of Ministers of Justice:...
1990–1991 - Member and vice chair of the Parliamentary Legal Affairs Committee 1991-1995
- Member of the Parliamentary Grand Committee 1993-1995 (chair 1995)
- Minister of Foreign AffairsMinister of Foreign Affairs (Finland)The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland handles Finland's foreign affairs...
1995–2000 - President of FinlandPresident of FinlandThe President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....
2000–present
Awards and decorations
- Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav (Norway, 2000)
- Order of the ElephantOrder of the ElephantThe Order of the Elephant is the highest order of Denmark. It has origins in the 15th century, but has officially existed since 1693, and since the establishment of constitutional monarchy in 1849, is now almost exclusively bestowed on royalty and heads of state.- History :A Danish religious...
(Denmark, 2001) - Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland, 2001)
- Special Class of the Grand Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (2001)
- Member of the Class of the Order of the White Double Cross, First Class (Slovakia, 2005)
- Grand Cross with Sash of the Order of the Star of RomaniaOrder of the Star of RomaniaThe Order of the Star of Romania is Romania's highest civil order. It is awarded by the President of Romania...
(2006) - Commander Grand Cross with Chain of the Order of Three Stars (Latvia)
- Dame Grand Cross decorated with Grand Cordon of the Order of Merit of the Italian RepublicOrder of Merit of the Italian RepublicThe Order of Merit of the Italian Republic was founded as the senior order of knighthood by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi in 1951...
(1 September 2008) - Dame Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King TomislavGrand Order of King TomislavThe Grand Order of King Tomislav , or more fully the Grand Order of King Tomislav with Sash and Great Morning Star , is the highest state order of the Republic of Croatia...
"For outstanding contribution to the development of a full, good and friendly between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Finland." - 7 April 2009 - Collar of the Order of the Cross of Terra MarianaOrder of the Cross of Terra MarianaThe Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana was instituted in 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonian state. The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana is bestowed upon the President of the Republic. Presidents of the Republic who have ceased to hold office shall keep the Order of the Cross of...
(Estonia) - Grand Cross of the Order of the White RoseOrder of the White RoseThe Order of the White Rose of Finland is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The orders are administered by boards consisting of a chancellor,...
(Finland) - Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion of FinlandOrder of the Lion of FinlandThere are three official orders in Finland: the Order of the Cross of Liberty, the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Lion of Finland . The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The orders are administered by boards consisting of a chancellor, a...
- Order of Dannebrog (Denmark)
- Grand Cross of the Order of the FalconOrder of the FalconThe Order of the Falcon or Hin íslenska fálkaorða is a national Order of Iceland, established on July 3, 1921 by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland.-History and appointments:...
(Iceland) - Order of the Golden Eagle (Kazakhstan)
- Pushkin PrizePushkin PrizeThe Pushkin Prize was established in 1881 by the Russian Academy of Sciences to honor one of the greatest Russian poets Alexander Pushkin . The prize was awarded to the Russian who achieved the highest standard of literary excellence. The prize was discontinued during the Soviet period. It was...
(Russia)
Honorary degrees
University of HelsinkiUniversity of Helsinki
The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but was founded in the city of Turku in 1640 as The Royal Academy of Turku, at that time part of the Swedish Empire. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available...
, Faculty of Philosophy, 2010 Theatre Academy Helsinki
Theatre Academy (Finland)
The Theatre Academy is located in Helsinki. It provides education in performing arts, including acting , directing, dramaturgy and script writing, dance, choreography, lighting design and sound design...
, 2009 University of Minnesota Duluth
University of Minnesota Duluth
The University of Minnesota Duluth is a regional branch of the University of Minnesota system located in Duluth, Minnesota, USA. As Duluth's public research university, UMD offers 13 bachelor's degrees in 74 majors, graduate programs in 24 different fields, a two-year program at the School of...
, 2008 Helsinki University of Technology
Helsinki University of Technology
Aalto University School of Science and Technology , was the temporary name for Helsinki University of Technology during the process of forming the Aalto University...
, 2008 Yerevan State University
Yerevan State University
Yerevan State University is a university in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded on May 16 1919, it is the largest university in the country with 110 departments. Of its 3,150 employees, 1,190 comprise the teaching staff which includes 25 academicians, 130 professors, 700 docents , and 360 assistant lecturers...
, 2005 University of Tartu
University of Tartu
The University of Tartu is a classical university in the city of Tartu, Estonia. University of Tartu is the national university of Estonia; it is the biggest and highest-ranked university in Estonia...
, 2004 University of Bluefiels, 2004 University of Turku
University of Turku
The University of Turku , located in Turku in southwestern Finland, is the second largest university in the country as measured by student enrollment, after University of Helsinki. It was established in 1920 and also has faculties at Rauma, Pori and Salo...
, 2003 Finlandia University
Finlandia University
Finlandia University is a university in Hancock, Michigan, United States, and the only private university in the Upper Peninsula. Founded in 1896 as Suomi College, it is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.-History:...
, 2003 Chinese Academy of Forestry, 2002 Eötvös Loránd University, 2002 University of Kent
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
, 2002 Ewha Womans University
Ewha Womans University
Ewha Womans University is a private women's university in central Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the city's largest institutions of higher learning and currently the world's largest female educational institute. It is one of the best-known universities in South Korea, and often considered to...
, 2002 Helsinki School of Economics
Helsinki School of Economics
The Aalto University School of Economics , known as Helsinki School of Economics until 2009, is the largest and leading business school in Finland and one of the most renowned in Europe...
, 2001 University of Helsinki
University of Helsinki
The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but was founded in the city of Turku in 1640 as The Royal Academy of Turku, at that time part of the Swedish Empire. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available...
, Faculty of Law, 2000
In popular culture
A long-running joke, which stems from the recurring segment "Conan O'Brien Hates My Homeland", is that American talk show host Conan O'BrienConan O'Brien
Conan Christopher O'Brien is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer and performer. Since November 2010 he has hosted Conan, a late-night talk show that airs on the American cable television station TBS....
resembles Tarja Halonen. After joking about this for several months (which led to his endorsement of her campaign), O'Brien travelled to Finland, appearing on several television shows and meeting President Halonen. The trip was filmed and aired as a special.
See also
- Tarja Halonen's first inauguration speech, 2000
- Tarja Halonen's second inauguration speech, 2006
- List of national leaders
External links
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