Ban on “conversion therapy” remains stuck in parliament despite support from two governing parties | Yle News

The Chairman of the Legal Affairs Committee, Juho Eerola (Finland), said he had interrupted the discussion on this issue due to press leaks.

A legislative initiative to ban so-called “conversion therapy” is currently on hold in the Finnish Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee. There is no information on when it will be reviewed again.

Committee Chairman Juho Eerola (Finns) told Yle that the discussion on the issue had been interrupted because there had been two anonymous press leaks about the committee’s handling of the matter.

Eerola cited an article in the daily Helsingin Sanomat (HS) on Wednesday, which reported that the committee plans to ask parliament to reject a 2021 citizens’ initiative that was supported by more than 50,000 people.

He said the matter would be reviewed again if no anonymous information was leaked for a sufficient period of time.

The Vice-Chairman of the Committee Eva Biaudet (SPP), who has a law degree, confirmed to Yle that the issue could take some time to resolve. Eerola, who trained as a nurse, does not have a legal background.

Progress depends on NCP lawmakers

Most opposition MPs on the 17-member committee support the bill, which would instruct the Justice Department to begin drafting such a law.

According to HS, the Swedish People’s Party, a junior partner in the government, also supports the bill. Biaudet represents the liberal wing of the moderate party and has at times opposed proposals from the right-wing four-party government.

The fourth government party, the Christian Democrats, is not represented in the committee. The head of their parliamentary delegation, Peter ÖstmanHS categorically informed that this Cabinet would not advance the bill due to a lack of internal unity on this issue.

Prime Minister’s party supports bill

Last summer Petteri OrpoFinland’s National Coalition Party (NCP) – which is more conservative on fiscal issues but more liberal on social issues than the Finns Party – voted to ban conversion therapy at its party congress.

Any future progress depends on the four NCP representatives on the Legal Affairs Committee.

When asked by Yle why the legislative initiative to ban conversion therapy is stuck in committee, two of them did not respond, even though the party is officially in favor of a ban.

One of the two who answered, Aleksi Jäntti (NCP) asked whether criminalising conversion therapy would be the most effective way to tackle it.

“For political reasons, this has been portrayed in black and white images of good versus evil, although that is not the point. It is a question of procedure and whether the current criminal legislation already offers measures that cover cases that meet the hallmarks of a crime,” Jäntti commented to Yle.

“There is no denying that this is happening in Finland”

MP Susanne Päivärinta (NCP) stressed the harmfulness of conversion therapy, but said that the committee was discussing how best to deal with it.

“It is undeniable that this is happening in Finland and that no one should be subjected to cruel, inhumane treatment against their will. Now we must find the most effective methods to combat harmful conversion therapy. The problem must be solved immediately and the matter must not be swept under the carpet,” said Päivärinta, a former Yle journalist.

NCP representatives said they wanted to examine whether current criminal legislation was sufficient to deal with conversion therapy without a separate law.

Conversion therapies can violate the law if they have the characteristics of abuse. According to the Finnish Criminal Code, assault does not necessarily involve physical violence. According to the citizens’ initiative, conversion therapies can damage the mental health of those affected.

Therefore, she argued, conversion treatment should be defined as a criminal offence in a separate law or the penal code should be amended so that the definition of abuse also includes conversion treatment.

This citizens’ initiative reached Parliament, but failed because the responsible committee did not have enough time to deal with it before the parliamentary elections in 2023.

Conversion therapy refers to various methods used to try to convert members of sexual minorities into heterosexuals. In some conservative religious communities, this practice is carried out by priests, pastors, youth workers and others.

There are no figures on how many people in Finland are affected by such measures.

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