The International Press Institute (IPI) this week mourned the loss of Finnish columnist, editor and long-time IPI member Olli Kivinen, 75, who died on Sunday of a sudden illness at his summer house in southern Finland.

Kivinen was one of the strongest advocates among Finland’s media for the country’s European integration. In the late 1980s, he was already writing and speaking strongly in favour of Finland’s full membership in the European Union – well ahead of Finnish officials or his newspaper, the Helsingin Sanomat.

He was convinced that Finland, as a western country, should be at the table formulating the decisions with other western nations.

By the same logic, Kivinen also argued for Finland’s membership in NATO. He drove home his points with familiar vigour in columns that he continued to contribute to the Helsingin Sanomat following his retirement in 2004 up to the beginning of this summer’s holiday season.

As foreign editor of the Helsingin Sanomat, Kivinen was a strong influence on its practices, bringing Anglo-American journalistic traditions into the newsroom. His sense of journalism was influenced profoundly by the five years he spent as the paper’s correspondent in London from 1965 to 1970.

His energy and dedication to lively debate were also shaped by his early childhood in Kemi, in northern Finland. Born on March 24, 1939, Kivinen was the youngest child of Lauri Kivinen, a headstrong captain of the Finnish forest industries. As a child, Olli Kivinen had to expend considerable energy to be heard.

After shaping Finnish foreign news coverage for nearly two decades, he moved on in 1993 to become a columnist and editorial writer for the Helsingin Sanomat’s editorial group. This also gave him the opportunity to work more with international freedom of expression and media freedom issues at the International Press Institute (IPI).

Kivinen served as a member of IPI’s Executive Board from 1992 to 2000 and was for many years the chair of IPI’s Finnish National Committee. He also served as chair of the IPI Resolutions Committee at numerous IPI General Assemblies.

He was awarded an IPI Lifetime Fellowship in 2001 and was an honorary life member of IPI’s Finnish National Committee.

Kivinen is survived by his wife and by his daughter and her family.