Foreign Ministry working group on creating "Finland brand" stirs controversy
"Not enough women" say critics, "wrong ministry", say fellow ministers
Alexander Stubb
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Jorma Ollila
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Mauri Pekkarinen
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Paavo Väyrynen
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A group of legal experts have said that a commission set up by Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Stubb (Nat. Coalition Party) to develop a “national brand” for Finland, is in violation of the law on gender equality.
Chaired by Jorma Ollila, chairman of the boards of Nokia and Shell, the group is only 28 percent female. According to the equality law, state committees, consultative working groups, and other similar bodies are required to have at least 40 per cent of their from of both genders.
The team was set up by the Foreign Ministry, and has been asked to draw up a basis for a national brand for Finland - that is, the establishment of a strong external image for the country.
According to Dr. Anne Maria Holl, Professor Kevät Nousiainen, acting Professor Johanna Kantola and researcher Milja Saari, the decision-makers who set up the working group missed something very significant.
“The illegal composition of the group is in itself a message on how Finnish officials blithely ignore aspects of gender equality”, the researchers say.
The working group has 18 members, including the chair. Five are women (28%) and 13 are men (72%).
At the Foreign Ministry, Petri Tuomi-Nikula says that more members will be taken into the working group later.
“The minimum 40 per cent share for both genders will be fulfilled, when the final list of names is completed early next week. Equality Ombudsman Pirkko Mäkinen has been informed of the procedure, and it suits her”, Tuomi-Nikula says.
Meanwhile, two Centre Party ministers, Minister of Economic Affairs Mauri Pekkarinen and Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen feel that Foreign Minister Stubb has encroached on their territory by setting up the working group.
Pekkarinen said on Saturday that the question of setting up a brand for Finland is part of the tasks of himself and Väyrynen.
However, he added that he would not make too much of an issue of it. In his view, the new Foreign Minister is probably not yet very familiar with the allocation of tasks among the ministries.
“He (Stubb) might have mentioned the project to me and Väyrynen at some point. I wish the Foreign Minister and the group luck and success.”
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 22.9.2008 - TODAY |
 Foreign Ministry working group on creating "Finland brand" stirs controversy |
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