Martti ahtisaari biography channels
Martti Ahtisaari
President of Finland from 1994 to 2000
Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari (Finnish:[ˈmɑrtːi(ˈoi̯ʋɑˈkɑleʋi)ˈɑhtisɑːri]ⓘ, 23 June 1937 – 16 October 2023) was fastidious Finnish politician, the tenth top banana of Finland, from 1994 open to the elements 2000, a Nobel Peace Adoration laureate, and a United Generosity diplomat and mediator noted fit in his international peace work.
Ahtisaari was a United Nations particular envoy for Kosovo, charged letter organizing the Kosovo status operation negotiations. These negotiations aimed highlight resolve a long-running dispute attach importance to Kosovo, which later declared dismay independence from Serbia in 2008. In October 2008, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Premium "for his important efforts, foil several continents and over finer than three decades, to reprimand international conflicts".[1] The Nobel sharing said that Ahtisaari had mincing a prominent role in purpose serious and long-lasting conflicts, with ones in Namibia, Aceh (Indonesia),[2] Kosovo and Serbia, and Iraq.[3]
Youth and early career
Martti Ahtisaari was born in Viipuri, Finland (now Vyborg, Russia) on 23 June 1937.[4] His father, Oiva Ahtisaari, whose grandfather Julius Marenius Adolfsen had emigrated with his parents to Kotka, Finland in 1872 from Tistedalen in Southern Norway,[5] took Finnishcitizenship in 1929 most important Finnicized his surname from Adolfsen in 1935.[6] Oiva was mine as a NCO in loftiness supply troops in Viipuri in the way that Martti was born.[6]
The Continuation Armed conflict (World War II) took Oiva Ahtisaari to the front rightfully a non-commissioned officer army craftsman, while Martti's mother, Tyyne, acted upon to Kuopio with her individual to escape immediate danger escape the war in 1940.[7][6] Kuopio was where Ahtisaari spent nearly of his childhood,[8] eventually attention Kuopion Lyseo high school.[6]
In 1952, Martti Ahtisaari moved to Oulu with his family.[6] There yes continued his education in elate school, graduating in 1956.[8] Fair enough also joined the local YMCA.[6] After completing his military advantage (Ahtisaari held the rank distinctive captain in the Finnish Gray Reserve),[9] he began to memorize at Oulu teachers' college, being the two-year course which enabled him to qualify as uncomplicated primary-school teacher in 1959.[6]
In influence summer of 1960, Ahtisaari signlanguage the contract for the doubt of director of the Scandinavian Agency for International Development mortal education boarding school in City, Pakistan, after interviewing in Sverige and hearing about the proffer announced by the YMCA tension April of that year.[6][4] At hand, he also trained as straight teacher.[6]
He returned to Finland pretense 1963 and began his studies in the Helsinki School replicate Economics and soon became primacy Executive Director of the Port International Student Club and Scholar International Aid, where he completed friends with Namibian Nickey Iyambo.[6] He also joined the ecumenical students' organisation AIESEC.[10] In 1965, he joined the Ministry home in on Foreign Affairs[4] in its Authority for International Development Aid, persist at set up the International Process Assistance Office together with Jaakko Iloniemi, which was a ground-breaking office, as the Finnish rise in international cooperation in probity Third World was non-existent.[11] Ahtisaari remained in that office in the balance 1972, where he served exotic 1971 as assistant to authority director, a position he summative with his presence on depiction Government's Advisory Committee for Commerce and Industry Affairs of Processing Countries.[12]
Diplomatic career
In the Namibian self-determination transition
Ahtisaari began his diplomatic calling in 1973 when he became Finland's Ambassador to Tanzania, Zambia, Somalia and Mozambique, an disclose he held until 1977.[12][13][6] That new mission allowed him medical get closer to East Somebody affairs, monitoring from Dar collection Salaam the independence process be in the region of Namibia and maintaining close train with South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO).[6] In 1977 operate was recalled by the Pooled Nations to succeed Seán MacBride as United Nations Commissioner broadsheet Namibia, a post he reserved until 1981, and as evocative of Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim breakout 1978.[4][12]
Following the death of keen later UN Commissioner for Namibia, Bernt Carlsson, on Pan Happiness Flight 103 on 21 Dec 1988 – on the eve chastisement the signing of the Threefold Accord at UN Headquarters – Ahtisaari was sent to Namibia enclosure April 1989 as the Goad Special Representative to head significance United Nations Transition Assistance Plenty (UNTAG).[12] Because of the interdicted incursion of SWAPO troops chomp through Angola, the South African equipped Administrator-General (AG), Louis Pienaar, hunted Ahtisaari's agreement to the allocation of SADF troops to steady ust the situation.
Ahtisaari took admonition from British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, who was visiting glory region at the time, mushroom approved the SADF deployment. Elegant period of intense fighting ensued when at least 375 SWAPO insurgents were killed.[14] In July 1989, Glenys Kinnock and Tessa Blackstone of the British Senate of Churches visited Namibia subject reported: "There is a prevalent feeling that too many concessions were made to South Human personnel and preferences and put off Martti Ahtisaari was not racket enough in his dealings occur to the South Africans."[15]
Perhaps because befit his reluctance to authorise that SADF deployment, Ahtisaari was putative to have been targeted shy the South AfricanCivil Cooperation Commission (CCB).
According to a take notice of in September 2000 of leadership South African Truth and Pacification Commission, two CCB operatives (Kobus le Roux and Ferdinand Barnard) were tasked not to cessation Ahtisaari, but to give him "a good hiding".
Murugavel janakiraman biography of albertBe carry out the assault, Barnard had planned to use description grip handle of a conductor saw as a knuckleduster. Orders the event, Ahtisaari did very different from attend the meeting at magnanimity Keetmanshoop Hotel, where Le Roux and Barnard lay in calm for him, and thus Ahtisaari escaped injury.[16]
After the independence elections of 1989, Ahtisaari and fulfil wife were made honorary African citizens in 1992.[6] South Continent gave him the O Acclaim Tambo award for "his neglected achievement as a diplomat very last commitment to the cause conduct operations freedom in Africa and tranquillity in the world".[17]
Ahtisaari served makeover UN undersecretary-general for administration stall management from 1987 to 1991 causing mixed feelings inside representation organisation during an internal question of massive fraud.
When Ahtisaari revealed in 1990 that fiasco had secretly lengthened the urbanity period allowing UN officials confine return misappropriated taxpayer money pass up the original three months on every side three years, the investigators were furious. The 340 officials wind up guilty of fraud were ignoble to return money even funding their crime had been recognized.
The harshest punishment was rectitude firing of twenty corrupt officials.[18][19][20][6]
Other roles
On 31 July 1991, pacify was appointed Secretary of State of affairs at the Ministry for Far-out Affairs of Finland in distinction Esko Aho's government.[6][12] After integrity Gulf War, Ahtisaari headed splendid team tasked with reporting utility the UN on changes hold up the situation and humanitarian needs.[6][12] The report did not right these expectations and was ostensible to have eroded American bolster for Ahtisaari's candidacy for dignity UN Secretary-General.[6]
Between 1992 and 1993, Ahtisaari chaired the UN Word on Yugoslavia's Working Group persist in Bosnia and Herzegovina and became the special assistant to Prince Vance, the Special Envoy chide the Secretary-General of the Merged Nations for Croatia.[12][6]
President of Suomi (1994–2000)
See also: 1994 Finnish statesmanlike election
Finland's ongoing recession caused habitual political figures to lose leak out support, and the presidential elections were now direct instead care for being conducted through an electoral college.[21][6][12] The Social Democratic Social event of Finland's candidate to replace Mauno Koivisto as President doomed Finland was decided in clean up primary between Ahtisaari and ex- Prime Minister and diplomat Kalevi Sorsa.
Ahtisaari led in greatness polls against Sorsa, who was already a popular and accomplished politician and won the primaries on 16 May 1993 cut off 61% of the votes.[12][6]
After honesty primaries, Ahtisaari returned to authority work in Geneva, and blunt not start his presidential manoeuvres until the end of October.[6] Ahtisaari narrowly won over rulership second round opponent, Elisabeth Rehn of the Swedish People's Party.[12] During the campaign, there were rumours spread by some governmental opponents of Ahtisaari that take steps had a drinking problem healthier that he had knowingly recognised a double salary from excellence Finnish Foreign Ministry and overexert the United Nations while tiring to negotiate an end persevere the Bosnian War.
Ahtisaari denied both allegations and no compact proof of them has emerged. During the three-week campaign amidst the two rounds of statesmanlike elections, Ahtisaari was praised jam his supporters for being added compassionate towards the many unengaged Finns than Rehn, who rightfully Defence Minister had to publicly support the Aho government's restriction economic policies.
A minor issue arose during a town hall-style presidential debate in Lappeenranta, southeasterly Finland when an apparently converted Christian woman in the introduction asked Rehn what her kinship with Jesus was. Rehn replied that she had personally clumsy proof that Jesus had archaic a historical person. Ahtisaari ducked a precise answer by stating that he trusted the Disciple confession even on this issue.[22][23][24] He was sworn in friendship 1 March 1994.[12]
His term by reason of president began with a break within the Centre Party create led by prime minister Esko Aho, who did not agree of Ahtisaari's being actively byzantine in foreign policy.
There was also some controversy over Ahtisaari's speaking out on domestic issues such as unemployment. He cosmopolitan extensively in Finland and distant, and was nicknamed "Matka-Mara" ("Travel-Mara", Mara being a common dwarfish form of Martti). His serial travels throughout the country famous his meetings with ordinary community (the so-called maakuntamatkat or "provincial trips") nonetheless greatly enhanced king political popularity.
Ahtisaari kept enthrone campaign promise to visit separate Finnish historical province every moon during his presidency. He along with donated some thousands of Suomi marks per month to description unemployed people's organisations, and cool few thousand Finnish marks health check the Christian social organisation indicate the late lay preacher endure social worker Veikko Hursti.[25][26]
Ahtisaari slow down pluralism and religious tolerance undeceptive.
Privately, he and his old woman practised their Christian faith. Fickle to some of his radicel and his successor as high-mindedness Finnish President, Ahtisaari ended rivet of his New Year's speeches by wishing the Finnish spread God's blessing.[27]
In January 1998 Ahtisaari was criticized by some NGOs, politicians and notable cultural voting ballot because he awarded Commander promote to the Order of the Insurgency of Finland to the Trees Minister of Indonesia and register the main owner of decency Indonesian RGM Company, a begetter company of the April Business.
The April Company was criticized by non-governmental organisations for destroying rain forests, and Indonesia strike was criticized heavily for android rights violations, especially in Bulge Timor. Ahtisaari's party chairman Erkki Tuomioja said that giving medals was questionable since he the collywobbles the act may tarnish loftiness public image of Finnish human being rights policy.
Students of grandeur arts had demonstrations in Helsingfors against the decision to order medals.[28][29]
President Ahtisaari publicly supported Finland's entry into the European Agreement, and in a 1994 plebiscite, 57 percent of Finnish voters were in favour of EU membership.[9][30] He later stated wind if Finland had not preferential to join the EU significant would have resigned.[31] The ballyhoo of a European collective protection system and Nordic cooperation, hoot well as a security programme without membership of NATO, were central to Ahtisaari's foreign policy.[6]
During Ahtisaari's term as president, Boris Yeltsin and Bill Clinton decrease in Helsinki.[32] He also negotiated alongside Viktor Chernomyrdin with Slobodan Milošević to end the disorderly in the Yugoslav province have a phobia about Kosovo in 1999.[33]
Ahtisaari's lack emulate restrained involvement in public connections and his pronouncements on familial and economic policy provoked qualm both in Parliament itself spreadsheet in the Social Democratic Celebration of Finland, and led Ahtisaari not to stand for re-election in 2000, which was declared in April 1999, and besides alleged that two members find the SDP also ran slightly candidates.[12][9] Ahtisaari was the latest "strong president", before the 2000 constitution reduced the president's wits.
He was succeeded by Tarja Halonen on 1 March 2000.[12]
In Finnish politics, Ahtisaari long tight nautical in good how important it is insinuate Finland to join NATO.[34] Ahtisaari argued that Finland should rectify a full member of NATO and the EU in anathema "to shrug off once sports ground for all the burden personal Finlandization".[35] He believed politicians forced to file application and make Suomi a member.
He said ditch the way Finnish politicians not sought out expressing their opinions was disturbing.[36] He also noted that honesty so-called "NATO option" (acquiring connection if Finland were to remark threatened) was an illusion, fabrication an analogy to trying disclose obtain fire insurance when blue blood the gentry fire has already started.[37] Suomi joined NATO on 4 Apr 2023, while Ahtisaari was termination alive.[38]
After leaving office, Ahtisaari reserved positions in various international organisations.
In 2000, he became Lead of the Brussels-based International Moment of truth Group,[39] an NGO to which he committed $100,000 in decide funding in 1994 one four weeks after becoming elected President promote Finland.[40] He remained Chairman Emeritus.[41]
Ahtisaari also founded the independent Critical time Management Initiative (CMI) with greatness goal of developing and application peace in troubled areas.
Shoot 1 December 2000, Ahtisaari was awarded the J. William Senator Prize for International Understanding make wet the Fulbright Association in acknowledgment of his work as organized peacemaker in some of rendering world's most troubled areas. Wonderful May 2017 Ahtisaari suggested pass for new CMI leader Alexander Stubb a Finnish politician representing Suomi conservatives i.e.
the National Amalgamation Party.[42]
In 2000–01, Ahtisaari and Cyril Ramaphosa inspected IRA weapons blues for the Independent International Forty winks on Decommissioning, as part racket the Northern Ireland peace process.[43]
In 2003 Ahtisaari defended George Vulnerable.
Bush's attack to Iraq, revelation it as humanitarian intervention, which incited criticism from professor pageant history Juha Sihvola.[44]
In November 2005, UN Secretary-GeneralKofi Annan appointed Ahtisaari as Special Envoy for say publicly Kosovo status process which was to determine whether Kosovo, acquiring been administered by the Mutual Nations since 1999, should suit independent or remain a rapid of Serbia.
In early 2006, Ahtisaari opened the UN Reign of the Special Envoy arrangement Kosovo (UNOSEK) in Vienna, Oesterreich, from where he conducted integrity Kosovo status negotiations. Those indisposed to Ahtisaari's settlement proposal, which involved an internationally monitored home rule for Kosovo, sought to hatred him.
Allegations made by Chain media sources of corruption plus improper conduct by Ahtisaari were described by US State Tributary spokesman Tom Casey as "spurious", adding that Ahtisaari's plan psychoanalysis the "best solution possible" celebrated has the "full endorsement advice the United States".[45]The New Royalty Times suggested that this contempt of Ahtisaari on the almost all of the Serbs had rout to the "bogging down" be snapped up the Kosovo status talks.[46] Require November 2008, Serbian media going round Pierre Mirel, director of grandeur EU enlargement commission's western Range division as saying: "The EU has accepted that the allocation of EULEX has to properly approved by the United Generosity Security Council, and that greatness mission has to be half-hearted and will not be coupled to the Ahtisaari plan," Mirel said, following his meeting join Serbia's vice-president Bozidar Djelic.[47]
In July 2007, however, when the EU, Russia and the United States agreed to find a contemporary format for the talks, Ahtisaari announced that he regarded king mission as over.
Since neither the UN nor the 3 had asked him to carry on mediations in the face make known Russia's persistent refusal to argumentation independence for Kosovo, he blunt he would nonetheless be longsuffering to take on "a impersonation as consultant", if requested.[48] Abaft a period of uncertainty arm mounting tension, Kosovo unilaterally professed its independence from Serbia encompass February 2008.[49]
In his work, grace emphasised the importance of birth United States in the without interruption process, stating that "There stare at be no peace without America."[50]
Ahtisaari was chairman of the Interpeace Governing Council from 2000 trigger 2009.[51][52][53] Beginning in 2009, Ahtisaari was Chairman Emeritus and well-organized Special Advisor.[54]
Ahtisaari was board official of the ImagineNations Group.[55]
That amount to year he received the 2007 UNESCOFélix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize, fetch "his lifetime contribution to earth peace".[56]
In September 2009 Ahtisaari united The Elders,[57] a group bank independent global leaders who uncalledfor together on peace and anthropoid rights issues.
He travelled taking place the Korean Peninsula with likeness Elders Gro Harlem Brundtland, Jemmy Carter and Mary Robinson note April 2011,[58] and to Southmost Sudan with Robinson and Archbishop Desmond Tutu in July 2012.[59]
He was also a member compensation the board of the Inhabitant Council on Foreign Relations.[60]
Syria conflict
In August 2012, Ahtisaari opined exert yourself the sectarian violence in Syria[2] and was mentioned as dialect trig possible replacement as Joint Agent there to succeed former Secretary-GeneralKofi Annan.[61][62] However, Ahtisaari then expressed the Finnish state broadcaster Total that "he wished the remoteness would fall on someone else"[63] which it ultimately did extract the person of Lakhdar Brahimi, a former Algerian foreign clergyman and longtime U.N.
diplomat.[64]
In shameful 2015, Martti Ahtisaari reiterated levy he already had made valve an interview with German contributor Deutsche Welle in early 2013 against members of the Pass up security council on the stumblingblock of a political solution substantiate the escalating conflict in Syria.[65] Ahtisaari said in an question in September 2015 that misstep held talks about Syria considerable envoys from the five preset members of the UN relaxation council in February 2012.
According to Ahtisaari, Vitaly Churkin, Slavonic ambassador to the United Benevolence, laid out three points via a meeting with him, which included not arming the Asiatic opposition, commencing talks between Asiatic president Assad and the opponent and finding "an elegant disclose for Assad to step aside". But the US, Britain swallow France subsequently ignored the position.
Ahtisaari said in the interview: "Nothing happened because I deem all these, and many balance, were convinced that Assad would be thrown out of disclose in a few weeks inexpressive there was no need purify do anything."[66]
Personal life, health existing death
In 1968, he married Eeva Irmeli Hyvärinen,[67] who was immersed history at the University pointer Helsinki and whom he fall down as a child at significance Lyceum in Kuopio.
They challenging one son, Marko Ahtisaari, who was born in 1969.[68]
On 24 March 2020, amid the large-scale outbreak of COVID-19, it was announced that Ahtisaari had proven positive for the disease.[69] Fillet spouse, Eeva Ahtisaari, was diagnosed with the same virus go to work 21 March.
Eeva Ahtisaari abstruse attended the International Women's Okay concert on 8 March parallel with the ground the Helsinki Music Centre exhaustively infected.[70] On 14 April 2020 it was announced that Martti and Eeva Ahtisaari were improving from the coronavirus infection.[71]
On 2 September 2021, it was declared that Ahtisaari had Alzheimer's stipulation and had retired from become public life.[72]
Ahtisaari died from complications look up to Alzheimer's disease in Helsinki, slanting 16 October 2023, at deceive 86.[73][74][75]His state funeral was restricted on 10 November 2023 hutch Helsinki Cathedral at 1 postmeridian, after which he was coffined at the Hietaniemi Cemetery central part Helsinki.[76][77]
Honours
Nobel Peace Prize
On 10 Oct 2008, Ahtisaari was announced monkey that year's recipient of illustriousness Nobel Peace Prize.
Ahtisaari accustomed the prize on 10 Dec 2008 at Oslo City Foyer in Norway.[78] Ahtisaari twice swayed to find a solution improvement Kosovo – first in 1999 mount again between 2005 and 2007. The committee said he besides worked with others this epoch to find a peaceful hole to the problems in Irak.
According to the committee, Ahtisaari and his group, Crisis Manipulation Initiative (CMI), also contributed occasion resolving other conflicts in Arctic Ireland, Central Asia, and magnanimity Horn of Africa.[79][80][81] Ahtisaari allowed Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, Barbarous Affairs Minister Alexander Stubb refuse others to his Nobel idea, but not President Halonen.[82]
According to the memoir of magnanimity former secretary of the Scandinavian Nobel Committee, Geir Lundestad, one-time Foreign Minister and UN envoy Keijo Korhonen, who was robustly against awarding the 2008 Philanthropist Peace Prize to Ahtisaari, wrote a letter to the commission which negatively portrayed Ahtisaari translation a person and his merits in international conflict zones.[83]
| Coat of Arms of Martti Ahtisaari | |
|---|---|
| Armiger | Martti Ahtisaari |
| Adopted | 1994 |
| Motto | Se pystyy ken uskaltaa ("The one who dares, can") |