Left Group of Finnish Workers ( fi, Suomen työväen vasemmistoryhmä) was a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. The party was active in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The group was founded by activists who had previously cooperated with the

Communist Party of Finland The Communist Party of Finland ( fi, Suomen Kommunistinen Puolue, SKP; sv, Finlands Kommunistiska Parti) was a communist political party in Finland. The SKP was a section of Comintern and illegal in Finland until 1944. The SKP was banned ...

(SKP).

Niilo Wälläri Niilo Frans Wälläri (6 July 1897 – 25 August 1967) was a Finnish socialist, syndicalist politician. Wälläri led the Finnish Seamen's Union from 1938 until his death. In 1913 Wälläri left Finland to become seaman. In 1916, he settled in t ...

Eino Pekkala Eino Oskari Pekkala (29 November 1887 − 30 September 1956) was a Finnish lawyer and politician. He was a member of the Parliament of Finland, representing the Socialist Electoral Organisation of Workers and Smallholders 1927–1930 and the Fin ...

Erkki Härmä Erkki is a Finnish and Estonian given name (derived from Erik). Notable people with the name include: * Erkki Aadli (born 1974), Estonian orienteer * Erkki Aaltonen (1910–1990), Finnish composer * Erkki Ala-Könni (1911– 1996), Finnish et ...

and Kusti Kulo were some of the well-known leaders of the group. The group had supporters mainly in the southern industrial cities of Finland.Jukka Paastela: Finnish Communism under Soviet Totalitarianism (Kikimora 2003), p. 264. The communists – who followed Comintern's

Third Period The Third Period is an ideological concept adopted by the Communist International (Comintern) at its Sixth World Congress, held in Moscow in the summer of 1928. It set policy until reversed when the Nazis took over Germany in 1933. The Comint ...

policy – had a very negative attitude to the Left Group, whose members were branded "vacillators" ( fi, Hoipertelijat). The group was considered more dangerous than

social democrats Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote so ...

or the far right. The Left Group called their communist critics fanatical "beaters in the air" ( fi, Huitojat). The Social Democratic Party of Finland was also critical of the Left Group and they avoided cooperation. It was tactically important for the SDP to maintain an image that considered their left-wing opponents as a single Moscow-led entity. The Left Group published the paper ''Suomen Työmies'' in 1930. In

Vaasa Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas),

, ''Työn Ääni'' was also briefly in the hands of the Left Group.

Schisms of the far left

In the 1920s, the underground communist party worked with left socialists in various legal coalitions. Schisms between the partners began to intensify in the mid-1920s. The problematic relations between communists in Finland and those who had emigrated to

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

was the main question. The socialists outside SKP criticized the Soviet-residing leadership and Comintern for excessive intervention in activities inside Finland. A pamphlet called ''Away with the emigrants'' ( fi, Irti emigranteista) was published in April 1925. Conflicts escalated when the SKP adopted the uncompromising third period program of Comintern in 1928. Critical attitude to other leftist parties was now emphasized.Jorma Virtanen: ''Suomen ammattijärjestö poliittisen työväenliikkeen eri suuntausten toimintakenttänä 1928–1930''. Series F: 1 (Department of Contemporary History, University of Turku 1983) / ISSN 0359-0593 The socialist opposition gained support especially in the

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

movement, in which the social democrats were in minority, and the conflict became pronounced in the 8th congress of Suomen Ammattijärjestö, the Finnish Trade Union centre, in May 1929. The communists tried to gather support for the so-called Copenhagen treaty according to which the cooperation between Finnish, Norwegian and Soviet trade unions was to be increased. In addition, they wanted to end cooperation with the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

and to intensify fight against

social fascism Social fascism (also socio-fascism) was a theory that was supported by the Communist International (Comintern) and affiliated communist parties in the early 1930s that held that social democracy was a variant of fascism because it stood in the way ...

. The socialist majority of the left-wing majority, however, thought it was not wise to exacerbate the relations with the social democrats further and the initiatives were rejected. Still, the social democrats left the SAJ after the congress as a protest to communists. The SKP was not happy with the outcome of the SAJ congress and the stance was supported by Comintern. This was made clear in summer 1929 when the communists openly attacked their socialist comrades. Following Comintern orders, the SKP began to oust socialists from leading positions in trade unions. In autumn, the objective was put into practice, and the SKP regained control of the SAJ executive committee. The majority was temporarily lost in 1928 after many leading communists were arrested by the state police. The policy was strongly objected by the socialist trade union leaders including Matti Väisänen and

. The socialists tried to gain support for an extraordinary SAJ congress but the effort was not successful.

Left Group gets organized

Left Group of Finnish Workers was founded in December 1929. The first central committee consisted of

(chairman), Uno Nurminen (vice chairman), Hugo M. Ahokanta (secretary), Emil Tuomi, Kusti Kulo and August Raatikainen. Matti Väisänen, Nurminen and

formed the important trade union committee. To clarify its policies, the new group released a three-page pamphlet in which the extremist communist line was rejected. In January 1930, the group organ ''Suomen Työmies'' hit the newsstands. In its first issue the paper emphasized independence of the Finnish workers' movement and demanded that the union statutes should be respected. In spring the Left Group acted against SAJ policy of founding new trade unions to sectors controlled by the social democrats who had left the central organization. Meanwhile, the communist strengthened their positions in the SAJ and three prominent socialist leaders, Wälläri (Kuljetustyöläisten liitto), Nurminen (Rakennustyöläisten liitto) and Nestori Ahonen (Puuteollisuustyöväen liitto), were purged. Nurminen resigned from the SAJ executive committee. Kusti Kulo, who was in charge of the SAJ education work, was expelled in June. Still, the Left Group tried to work with the communists. It was suggested that the left, including social democrats, should unite against the far-right Lapua Movement which was terrorizing the organized workers. The SKP did not agree.Jorma Virtanen: ''Suomen ammattijärjestö poliittisen työväenliikkeen eri suuntausten toimintakenttänä 1928–1930''. Series F: 1 (Department of Contemporary History, University of Turku 1983), p. 29–30 / ISSN 0359-0593 In July, all activities of the SAJ and its organizations were banned by the state. Left-wing newspapers were closed and politicians arrested, including members of the Socialist Parliamentary Group of Workers and Smallholders, a joint effort of left socialists and communists. The socialist left, however, participated in the formation of a new SDP-controlled trade union SAK,Niilo Wälläri: ''Antoisia vuosia'' (Weilin+Göös 1967), p. 69–70. which, in its early years, was boycotted by the SKP.

References

{{Authority control Political parties established in 1929 Defunct political parties in Finland Socialist parties in Finland Democratic socialism Right Opposition 1929 establishments in Finland Political parties with year of disestablishment missing Political parties disestablished in the 1930s 1930s disestablishments in Finland

Schisms of the far left

Left Group gets organized

See also

References