Getting into the holiday spirits and a political debate,- might not be the ideal combination. However, the Finns have managed to bring a little bit of it into the Christmas holidays as the former President Tarja Halonen happens to celebrate her birthday on the christmas eve.
It has been almost two years since her duties as a second term President or as a 'mother of this Nordic nation' came to an end but her popularity and good will attitude still carries on.
The city of Helsinki celebrated this special birthday by naming a park after her located in her childhood surroundings. Other climate panels and seminars and events have been organized to celebrate the 70th birthday of Mrs. Halonen.
Presidency and legitimacy are a tough combination, moreover a very unlikely vision in the Portuguese leadership scene,- as the current president enjoys severe unpopularity due to his distant behavior with Portuguese population, securing his management to the fact that Prime Minister fills up the main political stage.
However, In Finland Tarja Halonen deserves to be noted more than she probably has as her interesting leadershipstyle and motherly nature combined formed a great political figure, much softer in a motherly way than Thatcher’s or Merkel’s style. Halonen as a self made woman, a daughter of a single parent paved her own way to the top as a minister in the end of the cold war.
Here is a video of excited Tarja fans thanking her for her service and giving birthday wishes (from two years ago already but still a ‘Facebook-share -hit’ among the Finns during Christmas season).
I’ld like to finish up pondering how could the relationship between the citizens and the political authority be improved in Portugal since the Portuguese president wouldn’t really enjoy more support even if there wouldn't be any euro crisis. Why is it that the political leadership in Portugal is still stuck in the ice age?
Hopefully we will meet again next year with new ideas and conflicts to think about! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2014!
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