Right to Be (Trans), and (Abortion by) Own Will: How activists challenged Finland’s restrictive legislation

This chapter concerns recent changes in Finnish legislation regarding bodily self-determination. I reflect upon the campaigns to change the ‘trans law’ and the ‘abortion law’ respectively: Oikeus olla (Right to be) and OmaTahto2020 (OwnWill2020). Until recently, to legally confirm their gender identity, transgender people were required to be unable to reproduce. The abortion legislation required the person wanting to terminate their pregnancy to receive permission to do so from two medical doctors. Although such permission was practically always received, a reason for abortion was required – individual’s desire to terminate pregnancy was not considered to be enough. These two laws have now been replaced with more liberal legislations, but one further limitation to self-determination in reproductive rights remains: legislation regarding sterilisation is prohibitive, requiring the person to be either over 30 years old or parent to three children, unless certain medical conditions are present. I analyse the two campaigns mentioned, what means the activists employed, what kinds of counter arguments they faced, and to what extent the campaigns were successful. I thereby seek to throw light upon the operations of Finnish political culture and its (partly) globalised and transnational discursive elements, and suggest possible success strategies for future activism in Finland.