Tiitinen list
Encyclopedia
The Tiitinen list is a Finnish
classified government document which was given by West Germany
to the Finnish Security Police (Supo) in 1990. The list consists of the names of 18 persons who are suspected to have been in contact with the East German security service Stasi
. The people are popularly described as having been suspected of spying for the Eastern Bloc
. The list is named after Seppo Tiitinen, who was the head of Supo in 1990.
A copy of the list has been requested by journalist Susanna Reinboth and, in 2008, Supo was ordered to disclose the list by the Helsinki administrative court. In 2010, the ruling was overturned by the Supreme Court of Finland
.
One major argument in keeping the list classified has been that it only specifies individuals who have allegedly been in contact with Stasi, but not the nature of the contact. Therefore being on the list would not constitute proof of or even indicate breaking any Finnish laws. Consequently it was chosen not to shame potentially innocent persons in the media.
In October 2010, Julian Assange
said in an interview that WikiLeaks
had received a set of eight documents making up the Tiitinen list, and that it was to be published by the website pending a factual review. The list is "one of the most sought-after documents that Wikileaks has", according to Assange.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
classified government document which was given by West 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....
to the Finnish Security Police (Supo) in 1990. The list consists of the names of 18 persons who are suspected to have been in contact with the East German security service Stasi
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered...
. The people are popularly described as having been suspected of spying for the Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
. The list is named after Seppo Tiitinen, who was the head of Supo in 1990.
A copy of the list has been requested by journalist Susanna Reinboth and, in 2008, Supo was ordered to disclose the list by the Helsinki administrative court. In 2010, the ruling was overturned by the Supreme Court of Finland
Supreme Court of Finland
The Supreme Court of Finland , located in Helsinki, consists of a President and at minimum 15, currently 18 other Justices, usually working in five-judge panels...
.
One major argument in keeping the list classified has been that it only specifies individuals who have allegedly been in contact with Stasi, but not the nature of the contact. Therefore being on the list would not constitute proof of or even indicate breaking any Finnish laws. Consequently it was chosen not to shame potentially innocent persons in the media.
In October 2010, Julian Assange
Julian Assange
Julian Paul Assange is an Australian publisher, journalist, writer, computer programmer and Internet activist. He is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks with the stated purpose of creating open governments.WikiLeaks has published material...
said in an interview that WikiLeaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
had received a set of eight documents making up the Tiitinen list, and that it was to be published by the website pending a factual review. The list is "one of the most sought-after documents that Wikileaks has", according to Assange.