It’s often said that being born in Finland is like winning the lottery, and personally I completely agree. Finland has been selected to be ”the best country in the world” a few times, and it can sometimes be hard to understand why, because in Finland we are so privileged we don’t even know it. Here’s a few things what being Finnish means to me:
Democracy in Finland
The political system of Finland is following a system of parliamentary representative democracy. Even though political problems in Finland are a minor issue compared to another European countries, there is still a lot of discussion about them, which proves that the development and improving from the current situation hasn’t stopped. Every citizen in Finland have the right to collect support to a citizens’ initiative, and if it gets 50 000 signatures, the parliament is obligated to process it. Many laws have passed in Finland originating from citizen’s initiatives, which proves the state of democracy in Finland.
Citizen activism
Even though the current situation in Finland is good, there is always something that could be better. Finland has a lot of citizens interested in making a change, and for example organisations working for human rights, animal rights or environment are active and visible in the everyday life of everyone.
There is still a lot of old-fashioned and undated laws concerning for example animal rights and sexual minorities in Finland, but the change is hopefully happening soon. Thanks to the many enlightened people fighting for a change! Big part of finnishness to me is being able to be part on making the nation a better place for everyone.
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