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The home pages for the Usenet newsgroup soc.culture.nordic

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Björn Vennström writes:

> > And the Åland-Islands is in this respect not a part of Finland, but a
> > territory under Finnish souveranity (according to international
> > treaties demanding Åland to be monolingual).

> Slightly incorrect. The treaty grants the authorities on Åland to choose
> languages; it does not say that it has to be monolingual.

I've now digged up the source. *bows proudly*

I was slightly incorrect, yes, BUT the treaty is quite clear on the
point that its purpose is to guarantee the islands' status as
mono-lingual (or the populations right to decide over that matter
without any pressure from the state).

The minutes from the League of Nations is the place where the states
of Sweden and Finland were required to reach a treaty as a condition
for the recognition of Finland's supremacy over the Åland Islands. The
excerpt below (under 2./) is from the actual treaty which, as far as I
understand, is still valid.

1./
From the Minutes of the Council of the League of Nations, June 24,
1921:

...having recognised ... the desirability of a solution involving a
maximum of security both for the population of the Islands and the
parties concerned;

Decides:

1. The sovereignty of the Åland Islands is recognised to belong to
Finland;

2. ...

3. The new guarantees to be inserted in the autonomy law should
specially aim at the preservation of the Swedish language in the
schools, at the maintenance of the landed property in the hands of the
Islanders, at the restriction, within reasonable limits, of the
exercise of the franchise by newcomers, and at ensuring the
appointment of a Governor who will possess the confidence of the
population.

4. The Council has recognised that these guarantees will be more
likely to achieve their purpose, if they are discussed and agreed to
by the Representatives of Finland with those of Sweden, if necessary
with the assistance of the Council of the League of Nations, and, in
accordance with the Council's desire, the two parties have decided to
seek out an agreement. Should their efforts fail, the Council would
itself fix the guarantees which, in its opinion, should be inserted by
means of an amendment, in the autonomy law of May 7th, 1920. In any
case, the Council of the League of Nations will see to the enforcement
of these guarantees.

5. ...

2./
Minutes of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Council of the League of
Nations, June 27, 1921:

1. Finland, resolved to assure and to guarantee to the population of
the Åland Islands the preservation of their language, of their
culture, and of their local Swedish traditions, undertakes to
introduce shortly into the Law of Autonomy of the Åland Islands of May
7th, 1920, the following guarantees:

2. The Landsting and the Communes of the Åland Islands shall not in
any case be obliged to support or to subsidise any other schools than
those in which the language of instruction is Swedish. In the
scholastic establishments of the State, instruction shall also be
given in the Swedish language. The Finnish language may not be taught
in the primary schools, supported or subsidised by the State or by the
commune, without the consent of the interested commune.

...

> 
> On the other hand, there are no laws governing what languages should be
> used in publications from private organizations, such as newspapers. That
> choice is up to the publishers, like in any country with a free press.
> Thus, anyone could start a newspaper in Finnish on Åland. The slight
> problem with this is that the market for such a publication would be very
> small: only 2-3% of the 24.000 population on Åland understands Finnish.

-- 
  e-mail: jmo@lysator.liu.se
  s-mail: Majeldsvägen 8a, 582 63  LINKÖPING, Sweden

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