Åland - To Finland or to Sweden?
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs marks the 90th anniversary year of its establishment in 2008. During its anniversary year the Ministry will present its history and treasures from its archives, among others in a serie of articles. In this serie Ministry has earlier published the articles:
- "Negotiating solo - Councillor of State Edvard Hjelt and Finland's first treaty with a foreign State"
- "Vying foreign services"
- "New Year’s Eve at Smolna, St Petersburg – Recognition of Finland’s independence on 31 December 1917"
- "The Declaration of Independence: 'Among free and independent nations"
- "Finland's independence is recognised by European states - vivat, floreat,crescat"
All the articles can be read on the website MFA 90.
Jussi Pekkarinen: Åland - To Finland or to Sweden?
Handling of the matter in the League of Nations. Painter: F. Rackwitz, 1931
Dispute over the Åland Islands flared up right after Finland's independence. Within in short period of time, Russians, Red Guards, White Nystad Corps, and Swedes had entered the island. In March 1918, a German squadron forced the Swedes, who had come "to help" the islanders, take leave from the islands.
Both in the Åland Islands and in Sweden, hopes were held out about the separation of the islands from Finland. Sweden was of the opinion that the people of the Åland Islands should be entitled to hold a referendum and choose which country they want to belong to. Finland did not have any misconceptions about the outcome of a possible referendum and it therefore categorically declined it. In Finland's view, the Åland Islands was historically and geographically part of Finland and the inhabitants were a part of the Swedish-speaking population of Finland.
Telegram dated 9 March 1918 from Sweden (PDF, 107 kB)
Sweden failed to get the Åland issue on the agenda of the Peace Conference in Paris. Finland, for its part, hoped to be able to end the dispute by enacting a law on the sovereignty of the islands in May 1920. Finally, the matter was referred to the League of Nations, which had been founded a short while ago. In September 1920, the Council of the League of Nations established a Commission of three Jurists to investigate the matter, and Finland started to make preparations to receive the Commission for a visit. The Finns realised that they now had a chance to influence the course of events and not let the members of the Commission depend on news from Sweden and the Swedes' opinions only.
The Commission of Jurists first visited Sweden and then arrived in Helsinki. At the beginning of 1920, they left for Turku by train and continued their journey by ship to Mariehamn. The Finnish hosts presented sea charts and maps to the visitors, trying to make them convinced about the close connection between the Åland Islands and the Turku archipelago. The hosts also wanted to prove that the area of Kihti inland waters was by no means the natural border between the Åland Islands and the Turku archipelago as the Swedish propaganda and simplified maps let them understand. The Swedes produced maps in which the main islands had moved some twenty kilometres to the west, the archipelago of the Åland Islands and Turku had become very much thinner, and Kihti had become a broad sea area.
In Helsinki, it was possible to exercise influence on who discussed with the Committee members, while the same was not possible in the Åland Islands where the Commission had to be allowed freedom to get familiar with the situation. Werner Söderhjelm, the Finnish Ambassador to Stockholm, had underlined that there was "a major risk that the Commission might get the impression that the islanders are in favour of joining Sweden". The concern was unnecessary. The visit turned out as successful as the Finns had planned it to be. In accordance with the Commission' report, published in May 1921, Finland received sovereignty over the Åland Islands but the Government of Finland was obligated to grant them a wide autonomy.