Kekkonen: Villain, hero, and much more besides

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By Miska Rantanen
     
      The life and actions of President Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (1900-1986) will be the subject of study even in 2050, when 150 years have past from his death, say historians Mikko Majander and Kimmo Rentola.
      “Kekkonen does not fit into any one slot. He retains certain contradictions and certain complications. Already more intense study of the term of President Mauno Koivisto inevitably puts the Kekkonen period in a new light”, says Rentola.
      Majander feels that it is clear that the Kekkonen period will be left in Finland’s so-called “great history”.
      “Kekkonen will not be dropped from the agenda, but research will balance out with time. I believe that in 40 years Kekkonen will not stir as great passions as Mannerheim does today.”
     
The last years of Kekkonen’s life coincided with many great twists in the Cold War, and soon after his death, the Soviet Union was phased out.
      The tougher the societal changes have been, the more the interpretations of history have varied. This has also happened to Kekkonen.
      Research into Kekkonen first took wind after the mid-1980s, when plenty of new information and material was brought within reach of the researchers.
     
The reassessment of the Kekkonen period established a new front line: on one side were the President’s admirers, and on the other side were his critics.
      In the public eye this was largely personified in a spat between two eminent researchers, Juhani Suomi and Hannu Rautkallio.
      Rentola feels that it is surprising that the debate has still not lost its intensity.
      “Even though the villain vs. hero juxtaposition has receded, it can still be seen in interpretations.”
      Perhaps we should think that Kekkonen was both a hero and a villain - and much, much more. After all, the Civil War of 1918 was a “war of freedom” for many Finns, and a “class war” for others.
     
Mikko Majander feels that research into Kekkonen is no longer mere hardcore Official State-level Truth; he says that it has expanded to the cultural dimensions as well.
      He welcomes this development, although he feels that it has been amusing to watch what all is sold using Kekkonen’s name as a marketing gimmick, from food on the table to fitness.
     
Rentola feels that a more multi-dimensional image of Kekkonen has been drawn up by researchers of the younger generation, or those who lack a personal contact with Kekkonen’s politics.
      Rentola mentions recent studies about Kekkonen’s political rhetoric, or his relationship to religion.
      “I myself am waiting intensely for a study on Kekkonen’s relations with the West: for instance, his relations with Sweden would need some opening up”, Rentola says.
      However, it is clear that the concentration of the studies on Kekkonen himself will recede, and things will be seen in better proportion. The whole world did not revolve around the President.
     
And what is the legacy of President Kekkonen in 2010?
      “Kekkonen is linked with a long Finnish tradition of great leaders - be it the King of Sweden, the Tsar of Russia, or Mannerheim. Of the presidents, Kekkonen filled these boots the best”, Majander says.
      He says that in remembering Kekkonen, there is a tendency to express nostalgia for a time of clarity, even though the reality at the time may have been quite different.
      “For instance, commenting on the election funding mess, some people have said that this kind of thing would never have happened during Kekkonen’s day, even though at that time money and politics were very powerfully entwined. The hanky-panky was tremendous, and Kekkonen himself was up to his armpits in it”, Majander says.
     
     
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 3.9.2010


Previously in HS International Edition:
  President Kekkonen and his successful balancing act (22.9.2004)
  Diaries show President caught between rock and a hard place (30.9.2003)
  Centre Party rolls out Kekkonen as European election icon (3.5.2009)

MISKA RANTANEN / Helsingin Sanomat
miska.rantanen@hs.fi