Yksilön vai perheen sosiaaliset oikeudet? Vapauksien, velvollisuuksien ja yleisen edun rakentuminen eduskunnan lastenhoitoa koskevissa keskusteluissa

Authors

• Janne Autto

Abstract

The state-centred conception of citizenship associated with liberalism and social democracy has recently drawn criticism from proponents of communitarian and radical theories of politics. At the same time, childcare has become a topical issue in the political arena. This paper examines how the social rights of citizens and the state’s responsibility and policy means for realising those rights are constructed in the parliamentary debates on childcare in Finland. The analysis focuses on the year preceding the general elections in March 2003. The paper compares two principal representations, one based on individual rights, the other more family-centred. While both seek to safeguard the social rights of the same citizen groups, the substance of those rights and the means by which they are served differ. The paper examines the representations from the viewpoints of communitarian and radical theories of politics.