Irma Toivanen
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Irma Hellin Toivanen ( Taavitsainen; 27 October 1922 – 30 July 2010) was a Finnish politician and teacher. She was a member of the
Parliament of Finland The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral and Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that ...
from 1970 to 1979, representing Turku Province South as a member of the Liberal People's Party. From 1975 to 1976, she was Finland's Minister of Social Affairs and Health, appointed by then-Prime Minister
Martti Miettunen Martti Juhani Miettunen (17 April 1907 – 19 January 2002) was a Finnish politician who served twice as Finland's prime minister, from 1961 to 1962 and again from 1975 to 1977. Miettunen was born in Simo, the son of a smallholder. He studi ...
.


Early life and career

Irma Hellin Taavitsainen was born on 27 October 1922 in Kymi, Finland. She was the daughter of Johan Taavitsainen, a
glassblower Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a Blowpipe (tool), blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer'' ...
, and Hilda-Maria Kuuva. She worked as a volunteer medic during the
Winter War The Winter War was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peac ...
and
Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet–Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union during World War II. It began with a Finnish declaration of war on 25 June 1941 and ended on 19 ...
between Finland and the Soviet Union, and she was active in
Lotta Svärd Lotta Svärd () was a Finnish voluntary auxiliary paramilitary organisation for women. Formed originally in 1918, it had a large membership undertaking volunteer social work in the 1920s and 1930s. It was formed to support the White Guard. Duri ...
, a Finnish voluntary
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paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...
organisation for women. Taavitsainen qualified as a primary school teacher in 1942, and continued with postgraduate studies. She worked as a teacher at various primary and secondary schools in
Sääksmäki Sääksmäki is a List of former municipalities of Finland, former municipality, currently part of Valkeakoski in the Pirkanmaa region of Western Finland. A past president of Finland, Pehr Evind Svinhufvud, the Finnish film producer and director Ve ...
,
Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...
, and
Kaarina Kaarina (; , i.e. "Catherine of Alexandria, Saint Catherine's") is a town in Finland, located in the region of Southwest Finland. It lies south of the regional capital, Turku. The population of Kaarina is approximately , while the Turku sub-regi ...
, from 1942 to 1970. In 1947, she married Aappo E. Toivanen, a rector, and they had four children. Toivanen, who was a member of the
People's Party of Finland Liberal People's Party (from 2001 ''Liberals''; ) was a Conservative liberalism, conservative-Liberalism and centrism in Finland, liberal List of political parties in Finland, political party in Finland, founded in 1965 as a reunification of the P ...
(now the Liberals), became active during the 1960s when she was elected to the municipal council of Kaarina. She was elected to the Parliament of Finland in 1970 to represent Turku Province South (now
Varsinais-Suomi Southwest Finland (, ; ) is a region ('','' ) of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, Pirkanmaa, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Uusimaa, and Åland. The regional capital and most populous city is Turku, which was the capital city of F ...
), after receiving endorsements by teachers' unions as well as former Minister for Social Affairs Irma Karvikko. Toivanen was re-elected twice, serving continuously until 1979. She sat on several parliamentary committees, including Constitutional Law, Education and Culture, Finance, and the Grand Committee. In Parliament, Toivanen worked on school reform legislation and chaired the Liberal People's Party parliamentary group from 1973 to 1975. She was among the top vote-getters in the
1975 Finnish parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Finland on 21 and 22 September 1975. Nohlen, D & Stöver, P (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p606 Background Prime Minister Kalevi Sorsa's Social Democratic Party government survived until J ...
, and ''
The National Biography of Finland ''Suomen kansallisbiografia'' () is a collection of more than 6,000 biographies A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; i ...
'' describes her as one of her party's most prominent members of the 1970s. Toivanen was one of the few who opposed the extension of President
Urho Kekkonen Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (; 3 September 1900 – 31 August 1986), often referred to by his initials UKK, was a Finnish politician who served as the eighth and longest-serving president of Finland from 1956 to 1982. He also served as Prime Minister ...
's term of office by way of
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from the beginning of March 1974 and voted against the law in January 1973 with her party colleague Olavi Borg; however, other members voted in favor of the law. From November 1975 to May 1977, Toivanen was the Minister of Social Affairs and Health in the second and third cabinets of Prime Minister
Martti Miettunen Martti Juhani Miettunen (17 April 1907 – 19 January 2002) was a Finnish politician who served twice as Finland's prime minister, from 1961 to 1962 and again from 1975 to 1977. Miettunen was born in Simo, the son of a smallholder. He studi ...
. As minister, she negotiated comprehensive pension legislation and helped establish a government fund for veteran rehabilitation. During her tenure, Finland passed a 1976 law banning
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and prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors. After she retired from Parliament in 1979, Toivanen chaired the woman's branch of the Liberal People's Party.


Post-politics and death

In her later years, Toivanen returned to her work with Lotta Svärd. She chaired Turku's Lotta Heritage Association, which she founded, from 1994 to 2003, and she was an adviser to the 2005 drama film ''
Promise A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something. As a noun ''promise'' means a declaration assuring that one will or will not do something. As a verb it means to commit oneself by a promise to do or give. It can also mean a capacity ...
'', which was commissioned by the Lotta Svärd Foundation and depicted the organisation's
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
efforts. She received the Cross of Liberty, 2nd Class, in 2003 for her work with national defense groups. Toivanen died on 30 July 2010 at her home in Turku, at the age of 87.


See also

*
List of Cabinet Ministers from Finland by ministerial portfolio This is a list of Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is d ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toivanen, Irma 1922 births 2010 deaths 20th-century Finnish educators Finnish women educators 20th-century Finnish women politicians 20th-century women educators Members of the Parliament of Finland (1970–1972) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1972–1975) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1975–1979) Ministers of social affairs of Finland People from Kotka Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 2nd Class Women government ministers of Finland Women members of the Parliament of Finland