A citizens’ initiative is a tool of Finnish democracy, which gives citizens an opportunity to make legislative proposals. If a citizens’ initiative collects a minimum of 50 000 signatures, it will proceed to the Parliament for consideration. A citizens’ initiative can be signed by Finnish citizens who are eligible to vote. Signing an initiative is done in the Kansalaisaloite.fi-service, which requires a strong electronic identification. Identification can be done with bank verification, using a certification card or with mobile verification. The name of the signatory will not be displayed on Kansalaisaloite.fi at any point, but will become publicly available information upon request from the authorities if the initiative reaches 50 000 signatures.

Behind the Initiative to regulate defense procurements citizens’ initiative are a group of Finnish citizens, who are concerned that Finland’s arms procurements do not sufficiently consider human rights and international humanitarian law. We want Finland to act consistently in international arms control politics, which it has been an active member in, for instance on arms export regulation. The objective is to update existing legislation to correspond with current ethical and security policy challenges.

The campaign supporting the Initiative to regulate defense procurements -citizens’ initiative is called Law on point. The name refers to updating legislation and tightening restrictions to better align with the challenges presented by the current geopolitical situation.

Security of supply is the central concept of Finland’s defense strategy. It means that Finland is able to secure the operability of defense equipment in all circumstances, including during a crisis situation or conflict. This requires that the maintenance of weapons systems and possibility to procure spare parts for is ensured in the long term, meaning multiple decades into the future. If the supplying state is involved in prolonged conflicts, and/or is violating human rights or international humanitarian law, sanctions such as import bans may be levied against it. This may jeopardize the supply of spare parts and maintenance materials and thus endanger Finland’s security of supply.

Best practices are guidelines separate from the law. The initiative does not suggest that they would be detailed in the law, but that the law would include a requirement to follow best practices. For example, assessments should be based on trustworthy and internationally recognized sources, like the UN, the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court or UN Security Council resolutions. This would ensure that decision-making is done with reference to objective and internationally recognized information, and not simply the evaluation of individual ministries. This would bring predictability and responsibility to decision-making, and would ensure that Finland does not engage in procurement relationships with countries which violate international law.

If this initiative is accepted, during the defense procurement process Finnish authorities would be required to assess the human rights and international humanitarian law situation in the supplying country. In practice, this could mean that Finland does not acquire weapons from countries which are implicated in serious human rights violations, like war crimes or genocide. Additionally, conducting an assessment decreases the risk to security of supply, as Finland would not be dependent on countries, which are at risk of having sanctions levied against them. A better assessment of defense procurements would strengthen Finland’s position as an ethical actor in the international community and would make Finland’s foreign policy more consistent. It would be in line with Finland’s long term commitment to promote human rights and the international rule of law.

Finland has signed multiple international agreements, such as the UN Arms Trade Treaty, the objective of which is to ensure weapons do not end up in countries where they may be used to commit human rights violations, war crimes or genocide. As an EU member state, Finland is also bound by shared regulations on arms trade, like the EU Council’s Common Position, which defines principles for exporting weapons. Although arms exports already apply these regulations, they are not currently extended to imports. This initiative seeks to ensure that Finland respects the same principles when importing weapons, such that human rights and international law would be consistently considered in all arms trade decision-making.

Arms imports are a part of the international arms trade, which can have significant implications for human rights and conflicts around the world. If Finland buys weapons from a country which is guilty of serious human rights violations or war crimes, it can directly or indirectly support the country in question and the continuation of the conflict. Many defense companies cooperate extensively with their countries’ armed forces, and their weapons systems may be tested in conflicts. Buying weapons from countries such as these can also create dependencies, which weakens Finland’s capacity to react to international human rights violations and negatively affects Finland’s reputation and geopolitical objectives.