Ulkosuomalaisparlamentti

Minutes of the

Finnish Expatriate Parliament Canadian Regional Meeting

10:30 am, Scandinavian Community Centre, Saturday, 30.07.2011
6540 Thomas St., Burnaby, BC

Present: Paula Selenius, Suomi-Seura ry, Bill Holt, CFF-Toronto, Eila Saari, Sudburin Suomenkielen Koulu, Keith Siik, Finnish Society of Edmonton, Terttu Myrskog, Agricola Finnish Church, Seppo Peuhkurinen, Finnish War Veterans – Toronto Kerho, Outi McEachern, Calgary Finlandia Cultural Association, Veli Niinimaa, Alternate Deputy Speaker, Canada, Niilo Saari, Deputy Speaker, Canada

Observers: Tuula Burs, Hans Burs, Christina Myrskog Baker, Albert Karvonen

1. Welcome - Niilo Saari welcomed all participants and called the meeting to order at 10:45.

2. Veli Niinimaa was appointed secretary of the meeting.

3. Legality of the meeting – Niilo Saari informed the meeting that there are presently 53 member organizations with some winding down their activities. Seven are represented at this meeting. Veli Niinimaa had phoned many organizations to invite and inform them about the regional meeting, and Niilo Saari sent an e-mail invitation to all organizations. Some of the invitations bounced back, and at least one intended recipient did not receive the invitation. The address file needs constant updating.

4. Introductions of guests: Paula Selenius brought greetings from Suomi-Seura ry and welcomed all participants to the Canadian regional meeting. The next Board of Deputy Speakers meeting will be held in Helsinki in November.

5. Minutes of the July 31, 2010 regional meeting were reviewed by reading the key points.

6. Greetings/reports from member organizations.
- War Veterans of Toronto are active, getting together once a month. Special meeting on Oct. 29-30 to celebrate their 40th anniversary. There will be a guest speaker from Finland. The organization supports veterans living in Canada with the funds received from Finland. In 2020 the focus will change to keeping the memory of the veterans alive.
- Karjalaiset are active in name only.
- CFF – Toronto is very active with 230 members. The club organizes Finnish movie nights on a regular basis. In February 2012 they will present a Finnish Opera by Saariaho. The organization works with the Finnish Studies program at the University of Toronto. The program has the greatest number of students in North America.
- Agricola Finnish Church will celebrate its 80th anniversary with a homecoming weekend on September 25-26.
- Sudbury Finnish Language School celebrated its 40th anniversary. The school has two children’s and one adult class. The school extended its appreciation for the Suomi-Seura support.
- Sudbury Rest Home – Finlandia Village – has received approval for the construction of a 82 bed alternate care unit. The $14 million project is expected to be ready next fall. The village residents are 60-70% Finns.
- Calgary Finlandia Cultural Association is active with 150 members. Some of the activities include participating in the ceremonies of Martti Ahtisaari receiving a Honourary Doctorate and supporting the Finnish team at the Junior Hockey World Championships in 2012. Casino funds are used to support trips, movie nights and visiting performers.
- Edmonton has a very active children’s club, choir and a summer program at Fork Lake.

7. Niilo Saari reported on the Board of Deputy Speakers from last November. The minutes are posted on the Finnish Expatriate Parliament website www.usp.fi.

8. Veli Niinimaa reported on Western Canada. No new members have joined during the past year. There is still no representation from Manitoba or Saskatchewan. Secondly, the Honourary Consul of Edmonton was the only one in the prairies to organize a poll in the last Finnish Parliamentary election. A vigorous discussion followed regarding the appointments, duties and responsibilities of Honourary Consuls. It appears that some of them have shown very little interest in Finnish culture and in the activities of local Finnish organizations. Thirdly, the passport unit is expected to be for a short time in Alberta in the spring or summer of 2012.

9. Follow up on the 6th Finnish Expatriate Parliament. Mail voting is progressing and the aim is to have it operational in time for the 2012 Presidential election. Distance education - waiting to hear whether expatriate Finns qualify for it. At the moment distance education of high school students only in Finland is supported. The transfer of pensions to Australia has been hit by bank charges in both ends, thereby reducing the benefit. This has not happened in Canada, but the establishment of bank accounts in Finland should be looked at in case there are difficulties or expenses in transferring funds to Canada. YLE will not restart short wave radio broadcasts. Selko-Uutiset on the net is great way to hear news from Finland, presented in a clear and slower manner so that those with weaker Finnish language skills can also understand them.

10. Motions for the 7th Finnish Expatriate Parliament. The following two items were discussed, but the actual motions are made by member organizations. It should be noted that the deadline for motions is three days prior to the 2012 Canadian regional meeting.
a. Information regarding parties/candidates be forwarded to Canada so that the voters can make informed choices.
b. Information regarding the appointment, duties and responsibilities of Honourary Consuls be made available to member organizations. It was noted that some Honourary Consuls seem to have minimal interest in the activities of local Finnish organizations.

11. Other business. The USP/FEP website www.usp.fi - Canadian region, has all minutes, meeting invitations and other matters posted as the information becomes available. All members are encouraged to look at it in order to stay up to date and well informed.

12. Next meetings 2012 Canadian Regional Meeting – July 28, Thunder Bay, Ontario
7th Expatriate Parliament – October 25 – 26, 2012, University of Helsinki

13. The meeting was adjourned at 11:55.

Respectfully submitted by
Veli Niinimaa
Alternate Deputy Speaker, Canada



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SUOMI-SEURA RY - FINLAND-SAMFUNDET - FINLAND SOCIETY
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