Taistoism

Part of the series on
Communism

Taistoism (Finnish: Taistolaisuus) was an orthodox pro-Soviet tendency in the mostly Eurocommunist Finnish communist movement in 1970s and 1980s. The Taistoists were an interior opposition group in the Communist Party of Finland. They were named after their leader Taisto Sinisalo whose first name means "a battle", "a fight" or "a struggle". Sinisalo's supporters constituted a party within a party, but pressure from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union prevented the party from formally splitting. The term taistolaisuus was a derogatory nickname invented by Helsingin Sanomat and was never used by the group themselves. Although they were sometimes identified as "Stalinists", this was not a central part of their orthodoxy.

The opposition was expelled from the party 1985–1986 and it formed the Communist Party of Finland (Unity), which took the name "Communist Party of Finland" after the original party's bankruptcy in 1992.

Some of the former Taistoists later joined the Left Alliance or have since abandoned Communism altogether.

Contents

Notable former Taistoists

Members of Parliament

Cultural movement

Socialist student movement

Journalists

Other

Further reading

  • Hermannschlacht, Taistoismus und unpolitischer Finne by Andreas Dörner, Matti Hyvärinen and Kari Palonen (German)
  • Taistolaisuuden musta kirja (The Black Book of Taistoism) by Ilkka Kylävaara (Finnish)
  • The Finnish Communist Party in the Finnish Political System 1963-1982 by Jukka Paastela