Martti Ahtisaari
10th President of Finland
In office March 1, 1994 – March 1, 2000
Preceded by	Mauno Koivisto
Succeeded by	Tarja Halonen
Finland's Ambassador to Tanzania, Zambia, Somalia and Mozambique
In office 1973 – 1977
Born	June 23, 1937 (1937-06-23) (age 70) Viipuri, Finland
Nationality	Finnish
Political party	Social Democratic Party of Finland
Spouse	Eeva Irmeli Ahtisaari

Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari (IPA: [ˈmɑrt:i ˈoivɑ ˈkɑleʋi ˈɑxtisɑ:ri] (help· info)) (born June 23, 1937 Viipuri, Finland) is a former President of Finland (1994–2000) and a United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2336x3504, 1449 KB) Crisis Management Initiative File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Martti Ahtisaari ... The President of Finland is the Head of State of Finland. ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... Dr. Mauno Henrik Koivisto [IPA: mÉ‘uno henrik koiÊ‹isto] (born November 25, 1923) was the President of Finland from 1982 to 1994. ... {{Infobox President|name= Tarja Halonen |order=11th President of Finland |image=Finland. ... For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Not to be confused with the Danish town and county of Viborg in Jutland Viapori, a Finnish transcription of Sveaborg, better known as Suomenlinna castle Vyborg from the tower of the castle Vyborg (transcription of Russian Выборг) is a town with 70,000 inhabitants at... The Social Democratic Party of Finland (SDP) is one of the most influential political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the Coalition Party. ... IPA may refer to: The International Phonetic Alphabet or India Pale Ale ... Image File history File links Fi-Martti_Ahtisaari. ... is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Not to be confused with the Danish town and county of Viborg in Jutland Viapori, a Finnish transcription of Sveaborg, better known as Suomenlinna castle Vyborg from the tower of the castle Vyborg (transcription of Russian Выборг) is a town with 70,000 inhabitants at... The President of Finland is the Head of State of Finland. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... UN and U.N. redirect here. ...

Currently, he is UN Special Envoy at the Kosovo status process negotiations aiming to resolve a long-running dispute in Kosovo, which is seeking independence from Serbia. This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ... Kosovo is the subject of a long-running political and territorial dispute between the Serbian (and previously, the Yugoslav) government and Kosovos largely ethnic-Albanian population. ... For other uses, see Kosovo (disambiguation). ... Not to be confused with Republika Srpska. ...

Youth and early career

Martti Ahtisaari was born in Viipuri (now Vyborg, Russia) while his father, Oiva, was a non-commissioned officer in the service corps. Oiva Ahtisaari, whose grandfather had emigrated to Finland from southern Norway, took Finnish citizenship in 1929, changing his surname from Adolfsen in 1935. The Continuation War took Martti's father to the front as a military mechanic, while his mother, Tyyne, moved to Kuopio with her son to escape immediate danger from the war. ^[1] Kuopio was where Ahtisaari spent most of his childhood and first attended school. Not to be confused with the Danish town and county of Viborg in Jutland Viapori, a Finnish transcription of Sveaborg, better known as Suomenlinna castle Vyborg from the tower of the castle Vyborg (transcription of Russian Выборг) is a town with 70,000 inhabitants at... A view of Vyborg from the castle tower Vyborg (Russian: ; Finnish: ; Swedish: ; German: ) is a town in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, situated on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of the Bay of Vyborg, 130 km to the northwest of St. ... Year 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... Combatants  Finland Germany Italy1  Soviet Union  United Kingdom2 Commanders C.G.E. Mannerheim Kirill Meretskov Leonid Govorov Strength 530,000 Finns[1] 220,000 Germans 900,000–1,500,000[2] Casualties 58,715 dead or missing 158,000 wounded 1,500 civilian dead[3] 200,000 dead or missing... Kuopio is a Finnish city located in the province of Eastern Finland and the region of Northern Savonia. ...

In 1952, Oiva moved to Oulu with his family for employment reasons. In Oulu, Ahtisaari joined the local YMCA. After completing his military service (Ahtisaari holds the rank of captain in the Finnish Army Reserve), he began to study through a distance-learning course at the teachers' college in Oulu. There he was able to live at home while attending the two-year course which enabled him to qualify as a primary-school teacher in 1959. Besides his native language, Ahtisaari speaks Swedish, French, English, and German. Year 1952 (MCMLII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location of Oulu in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Finland Province Oulu Province Region Northern Ostrobothnia Sub-region Oulu sub-region Charter 1605 Government  - City manager Matti Pennanen Area  - City 449. ... Not to be confused with YWCA. This article is about the association. ... Captain is a rank or title with various meanings. ... The Finnish Army (Finnish: Maavoimat) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

In 1960, he moved to Karachi, Pakistan, to lead the YMCA's physical education training establishment, where he became accustomed to a more international environment. As well as the managing of the students' home, the job involved training teachers, which in itself suited him well. He returned to Finland in 1963 and went to Helsinki Polytechnic but also was active in the organizations responsible for aid to developing countries. In 1965, he joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland in its Bureau for International Development Aid, eventually becoming the assistant head of the department. In 1968, he married Eeva Irmeli Hyvärinen (1936- ). The couple have one son, Marko Ahtisaari, who is a noted musician and technology producer. Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...   (Sindhi: , Urdu: ) is the largest city in Pakistan and is the provincial capital of Sindh province. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... Location of Helsinki in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Province Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Charter 1550 Capital city 1812 Government  - Mayor Jussi Pajunen Area  - Total 187. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Diplomatic career

In 1973, President Urho Kekkonen appointed Ahtisaari as Finland's ambassador to Tanzania, and accredited him also to Zambia, Somalia and Mozambique. During his term (1973-1977) he formed contacts with the Namibian independence group SWAPO in Dar Es Salaam. In 1977, he was appointed United Nations Commissioner for Namibia, based in New York, and served until 1981. However, apartheid South Africa, which occupied South-West Africa (Namibia) in defiance of the Security Council, refused to recognise Ahtisaari or any of his UNCN predecessors. He stayed at the UN, as Under Secretary-General for Administration and Management – first with Kurt Waldheim, and then with Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (IPA: ) (September 3, 1900 Pielavesi – August 31, 1986 Helsinki) was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland (1950–1953, 1954–1956) and later as President of Finland (1956–1981). ... For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... The South West Africa Peoples Organisation (SWAPO) is a political party and former liberation movement in Namibia. ... Dar es Salaam (دار السلام), formerly Mzizima, is the largest city (pop. ... United Nations Commissioner for South-West Africa was a post created by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1967 to assert the UNs direct responsibility for South-West Africa which was then under illegal occupation by apartheid South Africa. ... This article is about the state. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... For the legal definition of apartheid, see the crime of apartheid. ... South-West Africa is the former name (1884-1990) of Namibia under German (as German South-West Africa, Deutsch Süd-West Afrika) and (from 1915) South African administration when it was conquered from the Germans during World War I. Following the war, the Treaty of Versailles declared the territory... A session of the Security Council in progress The United Nations Security Council is the most powerful organ of the United Nations. ... Map of South-West Africa (Namibia) United Nations Commissioner for South-West Africa was a post created by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1967 to assert the UNs direct responsibility for South-West Africa which was then under illegal occupation by apartheid South Africa. ... Kurt Josef Waldheim (21 December 1918 – 14 June 2007) was an Austrian diplomat and politician. ... Javier Pérez de Cuéllar de la Guerra (born January 19, 1920 in Lima) is a Peruvian diplomat who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 1991. ...

Following the death of UN Commissioner for Namibia, Bernt Carlsson, on Pan Am Flight 103 on December 21, 1988 – on the eve of the signing of the Namibian independence agreement at UN headquarters – Ahtisaari was sent to Namibia in April 1989 as the UN Special Representative to head the United Nations Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG). Because of an alleged incursion of SWAPO troops from Angola, the South African appointed Administrator-General (AG), Louis Pienaar, sought Ahtisaari's agreement to the deployment of SADF troops to stabilize the situation. Ahtisaari took advice from British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, who was visiting the region at the time, and approved the SADF deployment. A period of intense fighting ensued when at least 375 SWAPO insurgents were killed.^[2] Map of South-West Africa (Namibia) United Nations Commissioner for South-West Africa was a post created by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1967 to assert the UNs direct responsibility for South-West Africa which was then under illegal occupation by apartheid South Africa. ... Bernt Carlsson Bernt Wilmar Carlsson was born in 1938 in Stockholm, Sweden, and died in the Lockerbie bombing on December 21, 1988. ... The verdict of the Scottish judges who convicted one Libyan agent, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, on 270 counts of murder at the end of the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial failed to convince many observers – including relatives of the 270 victims – that justice had been done. ... is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... The New York Accords granted independence to Namibia and ended the direct involvement of foreign troops in the Angolan Civil War. ... A special representative of the secretary general is someone who has been appointed by the Secretary General of the United Nations. ... In accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 435 the United Nations Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG) was deployed in April 1989 in Namibia as a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force to monitor the peace process, and ensure free and fair elections leading to Namibias independence, and the ending of... Look up AG, ag in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Louis Pienaar (born 1926) is a South African lawyer and former diplomat. ... The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is the name of the armed forces of South Africa. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (née Roberts; born 13 October 1925) served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 until 1990, being the first and to date only woman to hold either post. ...

Perhaps because of his reluctance to authorise this SADF deployment, Ahtisaari was alleged to have been targeted by the South African Civil Cooperation Bureau (CCB). According to a hearing in September 2000 of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, two CCB operatives (Kobus le Roux and Ferdinand Barnard) were tasked not to kill Ahtisaari, but to give him "a good hiding". To carry out the assault, Barnard had planned to use the grip handle of a metal saw as a knuckleduster. In the event, Ahtisaari did not attend the meeting at the Keetmanshoop Hotel, where Le Roux and Barnard lay in wait for him, and thus escaped injury.^[3] The Civil Cooperation Bureau (CCB) was a covert South African apartheid-era hit squad[1]. Inaugurated in 1986, and fully functional by 1988 it was set up to eliminate anti-apartheid activists, destroy ANC facilities, and find means to circumvent the economic sanctions[1] imposed on that country. ... The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was a court-like body assembled in South Africa after the end of Apartheid. ...

After the independence elections of 1989, Ahtisaari was appointed an honorary Namibian citizen. South Africa gave him the O R Tambo award for "his outstanding achievement as a diplomat and commitment to the cause of freedom in Africa and peace in the world".^[4] Oliver Reginald Tambo (27 October 1917 - 24 April 1993) was a South African anti-apartheid politician and a central figure in the African National Congress (ANC). ...

President of Finland

Ahtisaari's presidential campaign in Finland began when he was still a member of the council dealing with Bosnia. Recession in Finland had caused established political figures to lose public support, and the presidential elections were now direct, instead of being conducted through an electoral college. In 1993, Ahtisaari accepted the candidacy of the Social Democratic Party. His politically untarnished image was a major factor in the election, as was his vision of Finland as an active participant in international affairs. Ahtisaari narrowly won over his second round opponent, Elisabeth Rehn of the Swedish People's Party. This article is about the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. ... In macroeconomics, a Recession is a decline in any countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive quarters of a year. ... This article is about Electoral Colleges in general. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... The Social Democratic Party of Finland (SDP) is one of the most influential political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the Coalition Party. ... Märta Elisabeth Rehn (born April 6, 1935 in Helsingfors (fi. ... The Swedish Peoples Party (Swedish: ; Finnish: ) is a Swedish speaking minority and mainly liberal party in Finland. ...

Ahtisaari began his term with a schism with the Centre Party-led government, because Prime Minister Esko Aho did not approve of his wish to actively participate in foreign political affairs. There was also some controversy over Ahtisaari's speaking out on issues such as unemployment. His mannerism, unsteady walking and overweight were often ridiculed in the media. He travelled extensively over the country and abroad, and got the nickname "Matka-Mara" ("Travel-Mara"). His monthly travels to various towns in Finland and meetings with ordinary citizens (as called maakuntamatkat) still made him very popular among people. The Centre Party (in Finnish: Suomen Keskusta, ) is a centrist political party in Finland. ... Esko Tapani Aho (born May 20, 1954) is a statesman and former Prime Minister of Finland. ...

President Ahtisaari supported Finland's entry into the European Union, and in a referendum in 1994, 56% of the Finnish voters were in favour of membership. During Ahtisaari's term as President, Boris Yeltsin and Bill Clinton met in Helsinki. He also negotiated alongside Viktor Chernomyrdin with Slobodan Milošević to end the fighting in the Yugoslav province of Kosovo in 1999. “Yeltsin” redirects here. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ... Location of Helsinki in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Province Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Charter 1550 Capital city 1812 Government  - Mayor Jussi Pajunen Area  - Total 187. ... Viktor Stepanovich Chernomyrdin (Russian: Ви́ктор Степа́нович Черномы́рдин) (born April 9, 1938) is a Russian politician. ... MiloÅ¡ević redirects here. ... The term Kosovo War or Kosovo Conflict is often used to describe two sequential and at times parallel armed conflicts (a civil war followed by an international war) in the southern Serbian province called Kosovo (officially Kosovo and Metohia), part of the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. ... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in the Latin alphabet, Југославија in Cyrillic; English: South Slavia, or literary The Land of South Slavs) describes three political entities that existed one at a time on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century. ... For other uses, see Kosovo (disambiguation). ... This article is about the year. ...

Often encountering resistance within the Finnish parliament, which preferred a more cautious foreign policy, as well as from his party, Ahtisaari did not seek re-election in 2000. He was succeeded by the foreign minister Tarja Halonen, who became the first female President of Finland. {{Infobox President|name= Tarja Halonen |order=11th President of Finland |image=Finland. ...

Post-presidential career

Since leaving office, Ahtisaari has accepted positions in various international organisations. In 2000, the British government appointed him to the team overseeing the inspections of IRA weapons decommissioning in Northern Ireland. Ahtisaari also founded Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), an independent, non-governmental organisation with a goal in developing and sustaining peace in troubled areas. Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Irish: Óglaigh na hÉireann) (IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the Army or the RA.[2]) is an Irish Republican, left wing[3] paramilitary organisation that, until the Belfast Agreement, sought to end Northern... Northern Ireland (Irish: , Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a constituent country of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... The Crisis Management Initiative (CMI) is an independent, non-governmental organisation responding to challenges in sustainable security. ...

On 1 December 2000, Ahtisaari was awarded the J. William Fulbright Prize for International Understanding by the Fulbright Association in recognition of his work as peacemaker in some of the world’s most troubled areas. is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... Fulbright redirects here. ...

In 2005, Ahtisaari successfully led peace negotiations between the Free Aceh Movement and the Indonesian government through his non-governmental organization CMI. The negotiations ended on 15 August 2005 with a treaty on withdrawal of the armed Indonesian forces and dropped GAM demands for an independent Aceh. Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... ASNLF Flag The Free Aceh Movement (Indonesian: Gerakan Aceh Merdeka or simply GAM), also known as the Aceh Sumatra National Liberation Front (ASNLF), is an armed separatist group seeking independence for the Aceh region on Sumatra from Indonesia. ... is the 227th day of the year (228th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Aceh (pronounced , generally Anglicized as IPA: ) is a special territory (daerah istimewa) of Indonesia, located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. ...

In November 2005, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed Ahtisaari as Special Envoy for the Kosovo status process which is to determine whether Kosovo should become independent or remain a province of Serbia. (Kosovo has been administered by the United Nations since the 1999 Kosovo War). In early 2006, Ahtisaari opened the UN Office of the Special Envoy for Kosovo (UNOSEK) in Vienna, Austria from where he conducted the Kosovo status negotiations. Those opposed to Ahtisaari's settlement proposal, which involves an internationally-monitored independence for Kosovo, have sought to discredit him. Allegations made by Balkan media sources of corruption and improper conduct by Ahtisaari were described by US State Department spokesman, Tom Casey, as "spurious", adding that Ahtisaari's plan is the "best solution possible" and has the "full endorsement of the United States".^[5] The New York Times suggested that this criticism of Ahtisaari on the part of the Serbs had led to the "bogging down" of the Kosovo status talks.^[6] However, in July 2007, when the troika of the EU, Russia and the United States agreed to find a new format for the talks, Ahtisaari announced that he regarded his mission as over. He said that neither the UN nor the the troika had asked him to continue mediations in the face of Russia's persistent refusal to support independence for Kosovo. Ahtisaari said that he would be willing to take on "a role as consultant" if requested.^[7] For other uses, see November (disambiguation). ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The United Nations Secretary-General is the head of the Secretariat, one of the principal divisions of the United Nations. ... Kofi Atta Annan (born April 8, 1938) is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1997 to January 1, 2007, serving two five-year terms. ... Kosovo is the subject of a long-running political and territorial dispute between the Serbian (and previously, the Yugoslav) government and Kosovos largely ethnic-Albanian population. ... Not to be confused with Republika Srpska. ... For other uses, see Vienna (disambiguation). ... The United States Department of State, often referred to as the State Department, is the Cabinet-level foreign affairs agency of the United States government, equivalent to foreign ministries in other countries. ... The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. ...

As a former head of state, Martti Ahtisaari is a member of the Club of Madrid[1]. ^[8] The Club of Madrid is an independent organization created for the purpose of promoting democracy and change in the global community. ...

References

The history of Namibia has passed through several distinct stages, and Namibia has really only existed as a modern state since South Africa relinquished control of the country in 1989. ... The Civil Cooperation Bureau (CCB) was a covert South African apartheid-era hit squad[1]. Inaugurated in 1986, and fully functional by 1988 it was set up to eliminate anti-apartheid activists, destroy ANC facilities, and find means to circumvent the economic sanctions[1] imposed on that country. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Martti Ahtisaari

• Martti Ahtisaari's homepage
• Martti Ahtisaari's Project Syndicate op/eds

v • d • e Presidents of Finland
Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg • Lauri Kristian Relander • Pehr Evind Svinhufvud • Kyösti Kallio • Risto Ryti • Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim • Juho Kusti Paasikivi • Urho Kekkonen • Mauno Koivisto • Martti Ahtisaari • Tarja Halonen