Finland Government - 1986

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Official name: Republic of Finland

Type: republic

Capital: Helsinki

Political subdivisions: 12 provinces, 377 communes, 84 towns

Legal system: civil law system based on Swedish law; constitution adopted 1919; Supreme Court may request legislation interpreting or modifying laws; legal education at Universities of Helsinki and Turku; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reserv ations

National holiday Independence Day, 6 December

Branches: legislative authority rests jointly with President and unicameral legislature (Eduskunta); executive power vested in President and exercised through coalition Cabinet responsible to parliament; Supreme Court, four superior courts, 193 lower courts

Got ernment leaders: Dr. Mauno KOIVISTO, President (since January 1982); Kalevi SORSA, Prime Minister (since February 1982)

Suffrage: universal, 18 years and over; not compulsory

Elections: parliamentary, every four years (next in 1987); presidential, every six y ears (next in 1988)

Political parties and leaders: Social Democratic Party, Kalevi Sorsa; Center Party, Paavo Vayrynen, People’s Democratic I,eague (Communist front), Esko Helle; Conservative Party, Ilkka Suominen; Liberal Party, Kyosti Lallukka; Swedish Peoples

Party, Christoffer Taxell; Rural Party, Pekka Vennamo; Finnish Communist Party, Arvo Aalto; Finnish Christian League, Esko Almgren; Constitutional People’s Party, Georg Ehrnrooth; League for Citizen Power, Kaarlo Pitsinki

Voting strength: (1983 parliamentary election) 26% Social Democratic, 22.1% Conservative, 17.6% Center-Liberal, 14.0% People’s Democratic League, 9.7% Rural, 4.9% Swedish Peoples, 3.0% Christian League, 1.5% Greens, 0 4% Constitutional People’s, 0.1% League for Citizen Power

Communists: 28,000 registered members; an additional 45,000 persons belong to People’s Democratic League

Member of: ADB, CEMA (special cooperation agreement), D AC, EC (free trade agreement), EFTA (associate), FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICES, ICO, IDA, 1DB—Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, 1FC, 1HO, 1LO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, 1PU, ITU, IWC—International Wheat Council, Nordic Council, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG

NOTE: The information regarding Finland on this page is re-published from the 1986 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Finland 1986 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Finland 1986 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.