Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40

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Journal of Rural Studies

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When old and new regionalism collide: Deinstitutionalization of regions and resistance identity in municipality amalgamations

Kaj Zimmerbauer*, Anssi Paasi 1

Department of Geography, P.O. Box 3000, Fi-90014 University of Oulu, Finland

abstract

Keywords: Regions as well as their identities and borders are social and discursive constructs that are produced and Regional identity removed in contested, historically contingent and context-bound processes of institutionalization and Resistance deinstitutionalization. This article studies the deinstitutionalization of regions in the context of munic- Deinstitutionalization ipality amalgamations and the consequent rise of resistance identities that have followed ruraleurban mergers in Finland, a tendency that seems to be accelerating around the world. By identifying various dimensions of regional identity characterizing such resistance, the paper shows how regions are mobilized as distinctively territorial spaces when confronted with forced deinstitutionalization carried out by regional authorities. The resistance emerging among ordinary citizens can be explained by fears related to the loss of public services and autonomy but also by a strong emotional identification with the region. This paper suggests that regional identity, regional activism and resistance should not be downplayed or mislabelled as regressive features, but should be understood as important ingredients in contemporary regional transformation. Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Regions, regional identities and regional borders are widely understood as social and discursive constructs that are produced The ‘region’ has become a highly important category in and dismantled in the processes of institutionalization and academic research and in planning practice around the world deinstitutionalization (Paasi, 1991; MacLeod, 1998; Painter, (Tewdwr-Jones and Allmendinger, 2006; Paasi, 2009). New interest 2008; Frisvoll and Rye, 2009). The institutionalization of in regions resonates with the transformations of the global geo- a region is a process in which the territorial (fixed or fuzzy economic landscape, where neo-liberal ideas of competitiveness borders), symbolic (name and more material symbols) and in particular have given rise to regional(ist) responses. The so- institutional ‘shapes’ of a region emerge, thereby forging the called new regionalism has emphasized sub-national spaces as region as an established, typically administrative unit in the products of politico-administrative action (Jonas and Pincetl, 2006) wider regional system and societal consciousness (Paasi, 1991). and the inability of nation-states to manage their economies The shapes are abstractions that help make sense of and eluci- through redistributive policies (MacLeod and Jones, 2007). Under- date the historically contingent, context-bound power relations lining the ideology of competitiveness, new regionalism considers embedded in complex institutional practices (governance, poli- sub-national (at times also supranational, see Deas and Lord, 2006) tics, economy, and media, for example) that ‘mediate’ region regions as focal units of economic growth. These tendencies have formation. As historical entities, regions may also come to an also given rise to city regionalism where cities and their (rural) end, or ‘deinstitutionalize’ (Paasi, 1991, 243). Deinstitutionaliza- hinterlands are seen as motors of economic growth. Respectively, tion means the dissolving of a region when it is either merged the former geopolitical struggle between territorial states is with another region or when a (larger) region splits into smaller increasingly turning into a geo-economic competition where states units. Hence the region ceases to have an official status in the actively restructure and rescale their space in order to be more regional system but may still have an important role in regional competitive (Moisio and Paasi, in press). consciousness. Such transformations are ultimately embedded in wider economic, political and cultural processes and struggles. Existing borders are normally transformed in deinstitutional- * Corresponding author. Tel.: þ358 400 479471. ization, but certain symbolic and institutional elements of the E-mail addresses: kaj.zimmerbauer@oulu.fi (K. Zimmerbauer), anssi.paasi@ oulu.fi (A. Paasi). region may exist long after formal abolishment of the region 1 Tel.: þ358 8 5531703. (Paasi, 1991).

0743-0167/$ e see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2012.11.004 32 K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40

Regional identity has lately become an important matter in against the mergers emerged throughout the state, our case study planning, regional marketing and cultural discourse (Tewdwr-Jones provides a particularly timely analysis of an amalgamation that has and Allmendinger, 2006; Paasi, 2012). It is also seen as a resource been completed in spite of resistance and against the will of pertinent to the economic success of regions (Cooke and Morgan, citizens. 1994). Yet regional identity is much more than a mere instru- We seek to answer to the question, how were regional identity mental ad hoc asset of place branding; it is also an emotional discourses mobilized contextually as part of wider ‘resistance phenomenon related to regional consciousness, thus entailing identities’ (cf. Castells, 1997). Regional identity discourse may be an a sense of belonging as well as distinctions between social groups. important element of resistance for those who struggle against Accordingly, identity is a complicated, politically loaded category spatial restructuring and deinstitutionalization but also for those that bring together ideas of the both open and bounded character of who support regional changes. Such discourse usually transforms regions (Paasi, 2003). While the current relational approaches see the past, the current situation and even future expectations related regional identities as relationally constituted (Allen and Cochrane, to the region as elements of resistance that are associated with 2007), there is tension between the relational concept of the various social practices, values and ideals, such as self-governance/ region as a non-bounded unit and regional identity, since the latter autonomy, rurality, independent service production, or concentra- implies a certain boundedness as well as an ‘us’ and ‘them’ (politics tion/decentralization, for example. Struggles over identities thus of) distinctions (cf. Jenkins, 2004). Thus, whereas relational bring together multiple interests, and different factions may use thinking is most laudable in the world of increasing interactions diverging rhetorical and discursive devices and tactics in articu- and networks, regional (and state) borders may simultaneously be lating their interests. In this paper we will focus especially on highly meaningful for identification. Moreover, relational thinkers emotional attachments to an administrative region but will also sometimes regard regional identities as politically regressive (cf. evaluate more widely the dimensions of identity as anti-merger Paasi, 2012), but subjugated minorities and social movements may stimulus. This approach has been somewhat neglected in also use territorial-regionalist strategies to promote progressive geographical research; contemporary research agendas tend to link agendas in their struggles (cf. Agnew, 2001). Such strategies can be the questions of regional identity and activism with the devolution based on ‘strategic essentialism’, i.e. identities are mobilized to and centralization processes of nation-states (Jones, 2004; achieve certain strategic goals (Jones and Paasi, in press). Takahashi, 2009) rather than with the micro-scale integration In spite of the mushrooming interest in regions and regional processes of regions. Thus, an additional aim of ours is to contribute identities, one highly important example of ‘region-building’ to the emerging geographies of resistance (Pile and Keith, 1997; processes has been curiously neglected: the amalgamations of Jones, 2004) by enriching its scalar agenda. regions. Yet merger processes often forcefully display the tensions The prime empirical materials of this study consist of and power relations in the processes of deinstitutionalization and commentaries submitted to the ProNurmo website, hosted by the (re)institutionalization of regions, and may also shake existing ProNurmo activist movement during 2006e2007. It had a ‘free regional identities and ‘everyday orders’. As regional identity speech’ bulletin board-type sub-page where anyone could voice discourse is typically inward looking and draws on distinctions, their opinions and feelings about the municipality merger. This borders and emotional attachments, resistance associated with the data is thus naturally occurring and enabled unobtrusive collecting deinstitutionalization of a region is an ideal subject for scrutinizing measures (cf. Webb et al., 1966), although in order to eliminate the the complicated meanings of spatial identities. When old regions possibility of legal actions the submissions were checked by the become deinstitutionalized and new ones institutionalized, the webmaster before being made public. The webmaster, one of the purported regional identities are particularly interesting, since they ProNurmo activists, confirmed to the authors that all submissions may either foster or hinder the implementation of region-building ended up on the bulletin board (telephone interview, 12 June 2012). (Deas and Giordano, 2003; Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). Therefore, Altogether 358 texts published between 20.11.2006 and 28.5.2007 region-building and regional restructuring processes should not be have been classified and analysed for this article. Municipal coun- understood as merely economic or administrative processes linked cils accepted the amalgamation in May 2007, which means that this to nation-states, their devolution policies or the global neo-liberal body of data consists of commentaries and statements submitted economy (e.g. Brenner, 2004) but also as processes in which the during the hottest period of the merger debate. The discussion is contested ideas of boundaries, territories and regional identities are first contextualized through the report that reviewed alternatives mobilized and exploited. This view provides a novel critical in increasing the co-operation between the respective municipal- perspective on planning literature and new regionalist studies that ities (Meklin and Paatelainen, 2006). This was a strategic document typically accentuate non-economic factors (like culture, trust, directed primarily at the decision makers and it outlined possible habits or symbolic capital) as automatically positive elements but scenarios, evaluated the structures of co-operation and concluded often neglect the political dimensions hidden in the production and by recommending the amalgamation. Moreover, to contextualize reproduction of regional spaces and even take such regional spaces our case study in the current national situation and to show the as given (cf. Hadjimichalis, 2006). continued importance of merger issue in Finland, a newspaper This article aims to address this gap in research and will both follow-up analysis (period 1.1.e15.6.2012) was made on Kaleva, one conceptually and empirically study the deinstitutionalization of of Finland’s major newspapers. This material contains altogether regions and how regional identities are mobilized in such cases. We more than 150 editorials, articles and opinions, and renders will study as an empirical example the ruraleurban amalgamation possible a review of how the forms of resistance found in the process of two Finnish municipalities, Nurmo and Seinäjoki. We Nurmo case feature in the current merger debate. will concentrate on how the resistance to the deinstitutionalization This paper is structured as follows. In the next section the of Nurmo became expressed through an internet interface provided conceptual basis is presented. We exploit the analytical distinction by the ProNurmo activist movement. Such analysis is highly topical, between old and new regionalism and the related ideas of regional since an unprecedentedly heated debate on the future of munici- spaces and spaces of regionalism (Jones and MacLeod, 2004). Then palities and the pros and cons of amalgamation has emerged in we discuss resistance and project identities (Castells, 1997) and Finland during the spring 2012, after the current government various forms of agency. In the next section the rise of municipality decided to strive for a reform by which the current 330 munici- mergers, or ‘merger mania’ (Sancton, 2000), into a global palities would be reduced to about 70. Since a strong opposition phenomenon and the societal background of this phenomenon are K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40 33 characterized, as is the evolution of the Finnish municipal system. A opposition to project and legitimizing identities. Project identities case study on the Nurmo-Seinäjoki municipality merger follows. are typical of actors engaged in new kinds of social and develop- The key features of the ProNurmo activist movement are then mental networks of governance and are thus associated with introduced and an analysis of research materials presented. Finally advocacy rather than activism. Project identities are common in some conclusions follow. future-oriented measures and in the structures and institutions that they are expected to construct (e.g. new ‘competitive city- 2. Regionalism, agency and resistance regions’). Legitimizing identities, for their part, are introduced by the dominant institutions of a society, with the aim to extend and The key analytical distinction used in this paper is between old rationalize their domination vis à vis social actors. Resistance and new regionalism. Old regionalism typically understands identity is, on the contrary, often an opposite force to the power regions as entities that have become institutionalized over time practiced by regional authorities and central administration. It and respectively have a certain ‘historical depth’ (Paasi, 2009). Such strives to challenge the hegemonic power and opposes top-down units may be meaningful entities for citizens and regional identity policymaking and control. Castells (1997, p. 8) suggests that it is discourse, and therefore for regional activism as well. New typically generated by actors that are in positions/conditions regionalism accentuates interconnectedness and readiness to face devalued and/or stigmatized by the logic of domination. It is hence global competition on the sub-national level. Accordingly, regions a reaction against a certain established form of power that is in the new regionalism are often seen as ad hoc-type, created for believed to marginalize local actors and, in the case of municipality certain purposes (Paasi, 2009). New regionalism resonates with mergers, perceived as a threat to local democracy. Resistance multi-level governance, political processes and social movements identity often appears in activism as ‘civil society regionalism’ in (Jonas and Pincetl, 2006), but tends to stress economic regions that opposition to top-down regionalization. It has gained ground in the are more or less directly involved with the global economy struggles between political society and civil society, e.g. in the (MacLeod, 2001). devolution processes in the UK (Jones, 2004). Both old and new regionalism bear a resemblance to the The different identities are partly connected with the distinc- concepts of ‘spaces of regionalism’ and ‘regional spaces’ (Jones and tions presented above. Project identity, for example, is linked with MacLeod, 2004). Regional spaces emphasize the production and the boosting of competitiveness by restructuring regions through constitution of regional economic spaces, innovation systems and advocacy, whereas resistance identity aims at opposing and pre- institutional thickness, whereas the spaces of regionalism stress venting these processes by emphasizing the meanings of old ‘locally rooted regionalism’, regional and national claims to citi- regions and by underlining the spaces of regionalism and activism. zenship and political mobilization and participation. Furthermore, Resistance and project identities both only come into being whereas regional spaces possess the ability to confront ‘today’s temporarily, often in relation to certain events and episodes, which globalizing quicksilver economy’ (p.435) and as such prosper from makes them dynamic in time and space. reconfiguration of the geographical complexion of a globalized Regional identity is understood in this article as an analytical world-economy, spaces of regionalism resonate e similarly to old concept rather than an ‘empirical fact’. It can thus refer to the regionalism e with cultural expression and reactionary political purported identity of the region and/or the regional consciousness defence, often directed against a centralizing state or supranational of a region’s inhabitants, i.e. their cognitive-emotional identifica- institutions. In addition, both old regionalism and the spaces of tion with a region. Regional consciousness is typically based on regionalism are linked to the idea of regions as relatively stable, experiences related to the personal biographies of individuals, but distinctive (historical) units, whereas new regionalism, in parallel it often also draws on collective narratives created by media or with regional spaces, displays the need to boost competitiveness in education that often recycle the features that are associated with inter-regional competition or simply the need to change regional the identity of a region. This renders possible that regional identi- structures of governance (Paasi, 2009). Old regionalism resonates ties can be understood in more or less the same ways by individuals with the spaces of regionalism also through defensive regionalism, (Paasi, 2012). Furthermore, such collective identity is basically as both often emerge as a reaction against the nation-state and its a discursive form of distinction and categorization between ‘us’ and supposed homogenizing and centralizing actions. ‘them’ (Jenkins, 2004). Regional identity is therefore partly As to the actors involved in region-building (and amalgamation) constituted by the social-cultural and symbolic boundaries that processes, we find useful the analytical division between activists diverging social institutions exploit discursively to distinguish one and advocates (Paasi, 2010, Paasi and Zimmerbauer, 2011). The region from another during and after institutionalization, and former are individuals or collective agents who visibly and often partly by the personal meanings people attach to regions. persuasively struggle for specific regional aims which they either present as ‘regional’ or which are generated in a specific regional 3. Municipality amalgamations as a way to institutionalize context. Activists are usually politically active, although they do not and deinstitutionalize regions always operate through established political structures or parties. The ProNurmo movement that emerged in opposition to amal- The amalgamations of local administrative units have a long gamation and regional deinstitutionalization is a fitting example of history that extends from the USA to Europe, from Canada to Asia. such grassroots activism. Advocates, for their part, operate in In England, for instance, the number of municipalities was reduced established institutional positions in a region. Advocacy is thus from 1349 to 521 in 1960e1975. In West Germany the amount was based on certain subject positions (e.g. civil servants, planners, cut from 24,512 to 8514 during 1959e1978, in New Zealand from journalists). While both activists and advocates may (and quite 249 to 74 in 1989 and in Ontario, Canada, from 815 to 445 during often do) work for the same targets, their objectives may some- 1960e2004. Recently a number of large-scale municipal mergers times be in conflict. In some instances, a person can be an activist have been carried out in Japan as well. The Heisei Consolidation and an advocate at the same time (e.g. journalists). decreased the number of Japanese municipalities from 3229 to The construction of identity always occurs in a context of power 1821 between 1999 and 2006 (Sancton, 2000, 2003; Hall and Stern, relations between actors. Therefore another useful agency-related 2009; Yokomichi, 2011). analytical distinction is made between project and resistance Many amalgamations have been implemented with the aim of identities (Castells, 1997). Castells defines resistance identity as rationalizing the administration of city regions consisting of several 34 K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40

Table 1 responsibilities for care grow. Seen at close quarters many The number of municipalities and their mean population in Nordic countries in 2000 things look different. At its best the municipality is not at all and 2010 (Steineke, 2010). a shapeless unit of administration but a crucial element of the The end of 2000 The beginning of 2010 identity of citizens. A lot of common experiences, local history Number of Mean Number of Mean and the foundation stones of the nation, built up with one’sown municipalities population municipalities population hands, crystalizes in municipalities” (Mukka, 2012:3) Finland 436 12,000 342 15,650 The Finnish three-level regional system (state-provinces- Denmark 275 19,500 98 56,500 Iceland 124 2300 77 4100 municipalities) is a mix of overlapping old, historical regions that Norway 435 10,000 430 11,300 have become institutionalized over the course of time, and new Sweden 289 31,000 290 32,200 regions created since the 1990s. Finnish municipalities represent old regions that have become institutionalized over long time frames (Paasi, 2009). Most municipalities were established in 1865 boroughs. The most common premise behind the drive for when the central authority gave them a municipal statute which municipal mergers is cost-saving through economies of scale and separated them from the church. Their long history helps to explain fi the simpli cation of existing government bureaucracies and why municipalities are perpetually the most important units for services (Rausch, 2005). More recently, amalgamations have often regional identification. This identification can also be explained by been local responses to the re-scaling of nation-states and the the crucial role that municipalities have in the everyday lives of devolution of power, with the aim of creating stronger units of local citizens. They provide a wide range of statutory tasks such as 1) governance. Their purported aim may also at times be management social welfare (health care, day care for children, elderly care and e ‘ of urban rural relations and land-use planning or raising regional services for the disabled), 2) comprehensive and upper secondary ’ competitiveness . Thus, amalgamations are not merely technical, education, adult education and libraries, 3) land use management, administrative acts that reduce the number of institutionalized water and energy supply, road maintenance and waste manage- fl regional units; they also re ect international dominant ideas and ment, and 4) development of the commercial and industrial state policies. Mergers can be manifestations of wider ideologies, spheres. Municipalities can choose how the services are arranged, such as neo-liberalism, or simply expressions of the deliberate and for instance joint municipal boards and co-operation between manipulation of political spaces through gerrymandering, i.e. municipalities and private companies or non-governmental orga- adjusting the borders of electoral districts. nizations has expanded (Kuusi, 2011). fi During the rst decade of this millennium, the trend of merging The governance of municipalities is characterized by parallel municipalities became particularly strong in the Nordic states political and professional management. The supreme local (Table 1). In Sweden a radical change took place even earlier and decision-making body, the municipal council, is elected every the number of municipalities was cut radically from 2500 to 279 four years by the residents. The council has considerable between 1950 and 1980. The overall aim has been to increase the decision-making power in local affairs, and is authorized to make average population of municipalities, and amalgamations have financial decisions that are based on the right to levy taxes. Yet been regarded as a proper means to achieve such a goal. the state has a financial system to smooth the imbalances of In the Nordic countries, two arguments have been used to justify municipal economies. The municipal bodies are partly indepen- fi municipality amalgamations. The rst is the need to create larger dent of the state and can arrange the municipal administration regional units that can provide in a more economical way the quite freely. Each municipality has a municipal council, board, numerous statutory services issued by the state (e.g. Larsen, 2002). a manager, a committee for auditing municipal administration Many services (such as health care and social services) have and finance, and an election committee, which is responsible for become very expensive to maintain due to demographic changes organizing elections (Kuusi, 2011). While ensuring that local and the loss of tax incomes especially in rural areas that are losing government is based on local self-government by the people, the population and have many retirees. The second, a more universal structure has also meant that political decision-making power claim, is that fusions are needed to boost the competitiveness of remains structured around the institutionalized parties rather (administrative) regions (Zimmerbauer, 2006). In this context, than through social movements or non-governmental amalgamations are seen as a response to globalization and the organizations. globalized economy, and larger cities and city regions with rural Despite their strong local role, the number of municipalities has hinterlands are regarded as essential nodes and competitors in decreased dramatically in Finland, especially during the last few fl worldwide, interlinked ows (cf. Scott, 2001). The priority in years. Before World War II there were over 600 municipalities; in mergers since the 1990s has been to promote economic develop- 2004 their number was 444, five years later numbering only 348. ‘ ment, and nowadays relatively little is heard about how amal- January 2009 witnessed a wave of no less than 32 voluntary gamations could equalize services and taxes and facilitate regional mergers involving altogether 99 municipalities, which reduced ’ planning and infrastructure development (Sancton, 2000 p.12). In their total number by 67. At least three amalgamations (involving any case, the response to the challenges of service-production and 11 municipalities) are scheduled to take place in 2013. Usually the inter-regional competition has typically been either establishing mergers have occurred between two municipalities, but the situ- federations of municipalities (if full integration is ruled out) or full ation has changed recently. The most extensive merger in south- mergers of municipalities. In the Nordic countries, and particularly west Finland involved 10 municipalities (Kuntaliitto, 2011). Only in Finland, the latter path has become increasingly popular. one of the 42 mergers implemented in 2009e2011 has occurred between two urban municipalities, and even that amalgamation 3.1. The past, present and future of municipality amalgamations in also included four rural municipalities. Most mergers have Finland occurred between two or several rural municipalities (23) or between one urban and one or several rural municipalities (18). “Municipality reform seems like a sensible enterprise when it is About two-thirds of current municipalities are classified as rural looked at from afar. A large proportion of municipalities (Kuusi, 2011), which puts rurality and ruraleurban interplay in the are inviable when the population turns older and the forefront in the majority of mergers. K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40 35

As noted above, the beginning of 2012 witnessed the publication of a radical plan by the current government which would reduce the number of municipalities to only about 70 and would make them correspond better to the functional labour-market and service- related regions (Moisio and Paasi, in press). According to a survey made immediately after the plans were published (January 2012), 61% of citizens were against the planned reform and only 26% sup- ported it (Suomen Kuvalehti, 2012). During spring 2012 a massive debate about the amalgamations continued, due much to the ‘introductory tour’ made by the Minister of Public Administration and Local Government who presented the plan in major cities. The original plan, which was thought by critics to reflect wider neo- liberal tendencies and to lead to an increasing centralization of the state, was widely opposed in public hearings and in media publicity, and even led to local demonstrations during the minister’s tour (Fig.1). Only 37% of the municipalities stated that they would accept the plans exactly as outlined by the government (Ministry of Finance, 2012). The Centre Party, the most important rural party Fig. 2. Location of Nurmo, Seinäjoki and Ylistaro. (currently in opposition), has resisted the reform most and voiced concerns about the risk of a narrowing democracy, disappearance of Nurmo and Seinäjoki became officially institutionalized in 1868, rural services and the general centralization of society. Doubtless three years after the advent of the national municipal statute and one additional reason is that they have dominated the political field creation of the municipal administration (Talvitie, 1974; at the municipal scale and would lose some of their relative power in Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). local councils. The party has now over 3500 seats in councils By the early 1990s, after more than 100 years of continuous nationwide, which is almost as much as the Coalition Party and the growth, the Seinäjoki was still one of Finland’s smallest regional Social Democrats (both with about 2000 seats) together (HS, 2012). capitals, with only 25,000 inhabitants. Its civic leaders increasingly The Coalition Party has embraced to accept forced mergers whereas started to accentuate the economies of scale and the need to ‘go up the Social Democrats have accentuated the need to make the a league’ in city rankings (cf. Julier, 2011). They considered a merger mergers but on a voluntary basis. with neighbouring communities as the most convenient path to rapid growth. The key target was Nurmo, which was not only the 4. The institutionalization and deinstitutionalization of the closest (and part of the same functional region) but also a relatively case study regions wealthy and rapidly growing municipality with a suitable demo- graphic structure. The two municipalities had developed in The background of the institutionalization of the case study symbiosis, as Nurmo’s rapid transformation from a rural region regions Nurmo and Seinäjoki (Fig. 2) extends far beyond the dominated by agriculture and forestry into a locality dominated by fi establishment of the national municipality system, for the rst the service sector occurred primarily due to its proximity to the written information mentioning them appears in tax records town. Seinäjoki provided jobs for Nurmo’s commuters, but Nurmo compiled in the mid-1500s. During that time, both areas were municipality actively played a role as well, shaping its local land- respective parts of the medieval parishes of Ilmajoki and Lapua and use policy to attract new tax payers. It bought large areas of had only a few taxpaying farms. During the next two centuries, the private land, made far-reaching land-use plans, built up municipal population and welfare of these villages increased and they decided infrastructure, and then sold the readymade sites to developers to together build their own chapel in Nurmo in 1725. Nurmo served (Granö, 1973: 413). The share of rural jobs (agriculture and forestry) as an independent but common parish for both villages for nearly diminished rapidly from 63% in 1960 to 16% in 1980. In 2008, before 150 years, but in 1863 Seinäjoki was established as a separate the merger, only 4.1% of inhabitants worked in primary production. parish (Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). Finally, the municipalities of The first serious effort to effect a merger was made 1992, but failed due to strong resistance on Nurmo’s side. A more serious discussion about a possible merger between Nurmo and Seinäjoki started in 2005, after Peräseinäjoki municipality (less than 4000 inhabitants) joined Seinäjoki and removed some of the prevailing fears about amalgamations. The leaders of Seinäjoki took the initiative again and suggested that the benefits and disadvantages of new municipality mergers in the region should be examined. After a long discussion, Nurmo, which at the time had about 12,000 inhabitants, decided to participate in the examination process together with Ylistaro. Even before the final report was published in 2006 e which unambiguously supported the merger e strong resistance in Nurmo was becoming evident. The first critical comments were published in the regional newspaper Ilkka, and by the end of 2006 the activist movement ProNurmo2 was fully

2 The ProNurmo movement had about 15 activists who organized the anti- merger action by publishing its own newspaper, hosting a website and orga- Fig. 1. Demonstration against municipal amalgamation in Joensuu, eastern Finland, 14 nizing meetings for discussions. The activists had diverse backgrounds and few of February 2012. Photo: Arttu Kokkonen, published with permission from Lehtikuva. them had ever been engaged in local politics before. 36 K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40 established with the goal of promoting and maintaining the inde- pendence of Nurmo. ProNurmo was founded when one of the leading local activists presented the idea in the newspaper and received immediate support from the forthcoming activists. Later, Ilkka was strongly criticized by the activist group and their supporters for being overly pro-merger. According to the messages posted on the ProNurmo website bulletin board, some Nurmo inhabitants cancelled their subscriptions to the newspaper over the issue. Not all inhabitants from Nurmo were against the merger, however, and municipality councillors and officials in particular presented pro-merger arguments in public forums. Opinions were thus partly dependent on the municipality of residence and partly on the profession and position of the commentators. There was no strong opposition to the merger on the side of the city of Seinäjoki. Fig. 3. The classification of the key topics in the bulletin board, showing the amount of merger-opposing messages in which a topic was presented. Each message was clas- After an intensive and even passionate discussion with highly sified to one or several categories depending on the topics they stressed. Content of 41 3 dramatic decision-making, Nurmo, together with the smaller and messages could not be classified to any category. more rural municipality of Ylistaro, eventually merged with Sei- näjoki on the first of January 2009. Ylistaro’s dire situation of economic challenges and unfavourable demographic structure was Before the merger was formally voted on by the municipal similar to that of Peräseinäjoki and thus there was no significant council, the commentaries on the discussion board were largely resistance to amalgamation.4 responses to the official report which recommended amalgamation (Meklin and Paatelainen, 2006). Thus, the writings concentrated on 5. Contested region: an analysis of pro-merger and resistance administration, local democracy and the efficiency of service- identities production. Public services and the perceived ‘optimum size’ of a municipality were high on the agenda of both the supporters and 5.1. Contested region opponents. Whereas the supporters emphasized the importance of economies of scale, the opponents put stress on the accessibility 5 The 358 writings submitted to ProNurmo’s online bulletin and proximity of services. Another critical topic in early debates board were composed by altogether 168 different pseudonyms. was the character of the debate itself, that is, which party was The residents of Nurmo were seemingly suffused with the debate, thought to have the most legitimate, rational arguments and which which is implied by the critical outputs directed against the was regarded or even stigmatized as a group of fanatics, idealists or merger that dominated the comments. Together with the contents sentimentalists. The opponents, who were often criticized by the of their messages, some pseudonyms reveal that some discussants pro-merger group as thinking too emotionally and living ‘under the were Seinäjoki residents. Together with a few Nurmo residents, fascinations of the past’, stated that especially the advocates of the most of Seinäjoki commentators supported the amalgamation. merger in the city of Seinäjoki had not been able to present any However, altogether about 75% of all messages were against the concrete, convincing arguments on behalf of the merger, but merger. instead used fuzzy rhetoric and questionable methods, including Before scrutinizing the rise of resistance identity in more detail, lying and intimidation. Setting emotional issues against rationality it is useful to contextualize the dimensions of resistance revealed in in this way is a fitting example of the collision between old and new the data. Quantitative classification of the messages displays that regionalism and how the ideas related to spaces of regionalism and criticism/resistance identity was most often centred on the future bottom-up civil society regionalism can be downplayed by accen- of local services/economy and autonomy/local democracy. In tuating functional regionalization and regional spaces (cf. Jones, addition, many writings were ‘actor critiques’, i.e. they criticized the 2004). advocates of amalgamation and the pro-merger-oriented personnel People voted more with their emotions than with their reason. in the regional newspapers (Fig. 3). In general, the discussants People simply want to disagree in principle.Is this issue so opposing the merger expressed fear that the efforts to create overly sensitive and so fundamental that nothing constructive ‘ ’ a more competitive unit would centralize municipal decision- can come about with people from Nurmo? Dear Nurmo people, making, cause a decline in democracy, an increase in bureaucracy please develop your municipality alone exactly as you wish. as well as cuts of services in the rural areas of Nurmo. Regional (Pseudonym6: “A person from Seinäjoki”) identity was rarely a separate category or ‘topic’ that could be easily distinguished from other themes. Identity was manifested, in It is funny to note that the calumniated ProNurmo movement combination with previous themes in the form of ‘us and them’ has proven themselves to be the more bright party in this divisions, as threatened independence, local citizenship or as municipality merger farce. It was committed already at the a crucial scale of decision-making and service-production, for example. In other words, regional identity was embedded in the fears and future hopes related to the merger, rather than a separate 5 sphere. Similar pro and con arguments dominated the nationwide debate in newspa- pers during spring 2012. More critical arguments have found empirical support in research which shows that rural citizens often feel that their position has weakened in mergers that have increased bureaucracy and weakened the interaction between 3 The municipality council of Nurmo decided for the merger by a vote of 18e17, at citizens and administration. On the other hand, mergers have activated citizen’s odds with a referendum in which 63.1% of inhabitants voted against the merger. participation. If leading politicians ‘rationalize’ the merger debate and omit The council meeting was fierce, lasting several hours. Outside the city hall after the identity-related arguments, recent research shows that spatial identity has been an decision, there was also an actual threat of violence which almost resulted in important background for such citizen’s activities (Rinne-Koski et al., 2012). a lawsuit (Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). 6 All pseudonyms are presented as the visitors themselves used them. They 4 There was no referendum in Ylistaro (5600 inhabitants) and the local munici- typically refer to person’s initials, name or their attitudes. All quotations are pality council decided for the merger by a vote of 22e5. translated by the authors. K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40 37

outset to acknowledge the results of the referendum, however During a deinstitutionalization process, regional borders often small a marginal there would be between the results. They have became highly contested and territorial and relational standpoints spoken against the merger only by using facts, lying would have clearly visible. Borders are best understood as multi-layered had the same consequences as in the case of supporters. constructs, not merely lines that demarcate communities and Contrary to this, the pro-merger side still continues the use of hinder co-operation. They consist of cultural, political, economic, dirty tricks that was seen before the plebiscite. The fanatics are legal and social layers, but identity and physical layers may also be clearly others than the members of the ProNurmo. (“KK”) important (Schack, 2000; Zimmerbauer, 2012). For instance the identity layer may persist in people’s minds even after other layers At the same time as competitiveness arguments were forcefully have been removed. For some bulletin-board writers borders were questioned by opponents, diverging standpoints were put forward. just ‘lines on the map’, whereas other comments suggested that While the opponents were mocked for their ‘enchantment with the borders actually serve as important actants (see Law and Hassard, past’, the supporters’‘future dreams’ that entailed more economi- 1999; Zimmerbauer, 2012) and constituents of local networks and cally produced services through economies of scale were seen as communities, social capital and well-being. justifications that could be proven to be false. Although the distinction was not presented as being between old and new What does it matter what the name of the municipality where regionalism or resistance and project identity, the arguments dis- you are living is? Municipal borders are just lines on paper. The played a sharp dichotomy between ‘a good past’ and an ‘uncertain question is only about safeguarding the services. The EU was and vague future’. The quotation below shows not only how old once opposed by using the same arguments, and membership regionalism is regarded as being rooted in the past but also how it is has not been a catastrophe. It seems that most people have defensive by nature. Furthermore, emotions become mixed and a sort of natural need to oppose all changes.The name of the coated with more rational arguments. municipality will change, but what practical meaning will even this ultimately have? (“Timbe from Alavus”) The supporters of the merger have accused us by using the opposing argument that we live enchanted with the old times. I The insignificance of municipal borders has been frequently have followed the writings of pro-merger people, who are living accentuated to the citizens of Nurmo. They are only a line on the under the spell of the future, that is, they think that a larger unit map, it has been said. I disagree with this on good grounds. If will do better in terms of economy than, for instance, a munici- this would be the case, why do people choose a site inside the pality of Nurmo’ssize.Such ideas have nothing to do with the borders of Nurmo as their residential area? Also, the borders of reality.A larger municipality cannot survive any better than municipalities, provinces and states are similar lines on a map. a small one, because much more time is needed in governance and Why are the borders of Nurmo municipality, of all these, artifi- other activities in larger units. That is, the administration becomes cial? I think that the borders of provinces are above all artificial. bureaucratic and therefore more expensive per unit. (“Asceptic”) Look at the wider picture, not merely the Nurmo case. (“KK”) To label resistance merely as a backward-looking defensive These comments about borders and regional names e both action would be a mistake. The opponents emphasized that Nurmo important elements in the institutionalization of regions (Paasi, was doing well and would do so in the foreseeable future as well, 1991) e display how territory and identity can be shaped in and therefore no merger was needed. The talk about competitive- different ways by various actors and advocates like the media. ness, a characteristic feature of regional spaces and future-oriented Respectively, instead of asking whether borders are porous or not, project identities, was therefore decried as vague and mere spec- we should recognize them as multi-contextual and multi-layered ulation by the opponents (this observation has also been made social constructs that are constantly being remade. Thus, about the academic debates on competitiveness, see Bristow, 2010). although municipality borders do not have much social, cultural or Given the different time horizons and objectives, the clash could economical relevance, they may be important for governance, also be said to have occurred between a ‘pragmatic’ and ‘specula- formal decision-making and identification. This resonates with tive’ regionalism. Jenkins’ (2004: 22) observations: identifications are to be found and negotiated at borders, but identities are also constructed in Please observe that the goal of this merger is not in any short- transactions at and across the border. sighted benefits but longer in the future. It is true that an indi- The deinstitutionalization process thus both emphasizes and vidual citizen in Nurmo will have to pay at first more than now, challenges borders, symbols, territoriality and certain ‘fixity’. but if the merger generates the benefits that the report indi- Although these may be partly commensurable with relational, fluid cates, the people in Nurmo will benefit from the merger in the and network-oriented ideas of spatial organization, they are not long run... Perhaps after four or eight years we may have exhaustively so. People simply think differently, and regions and a government in this state that follows totally opposite politics borders have diverging meanings for them, depending on their than the current or the previous ones that are at pains to cut the personal experiences and biographies (Paasi, 1991). This harks back number of municipalities and increase their size. A politician is to the conceptual dichotomies presented above and the tensions thinking tomorrow, a statesman the next generation. My between them. It is obvious that old and new regionalism should be opinion is that the supporters of the merger are statesmen who seen as partly overlapping phenomena that cross different temporal look further into the future. (“Merger supporter”) and spatial scales. Thus, the question is simultaneously about how I cannot understand, even with my best will, and by considering different scales become manifested and which scales are empha- things broadly, what is going on in the heads of pro-mergers: to sized by the advocates supporting the merger and which by those cede a wealthy and strong Nurmo municipality with all of its activists objecting it. These are ultimately choices related to the properties and be dictated by greedy Seinäjoki people. I have politics of space. By operating across scales and emphasizing the observed in recent writings a claim that the advantages of the need to respond to the demands of the globalized world-economy merger will be seen only after years or decades. This requires by boosting competitiveness, pro-merger advocates underline the really considerable power of vision. It might be better that such ‘existing arrangements which tie particular social activities to persons acquire a crystal ball. It could give, when looking at it, certain scales’ (MacKinnon, 2010, 25) and simultaneously promote a ‘reliable picture’.(“Thinker”) both ‘scale jumping’ and ‘scale bending’ (Smith, 2000; MacKinnon, 38 K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40

2010). For the opponents, the existing region is both an important Immediately after the decision to merge, the anger of losing context and scale of everyday life. Supporters stress that larger a major context of identification, ‘an own and independent regions were needed to guarantee the desired regional development municipality’, was at its utmost. Many writings were bitter and the and that the border was prohibiting the ‘stretching’ of Seinäjoki in loss of independence was raised as an issue, overshadowing the particular. During the wider merger debate in spring 2012, the topics such as local democracy or service-production that were editorials of regional newspapers as well as most national politi- emphasized earlier. cians often presented municipal borders as ‘artificial’. You killed a well-faring Nurmo. I will never forgive it. Can you even be ashamed of what you have done? You wrenched away 5.2. The power of regional identification a chance from youngsters to build an independent Nurmo that would have been a great hope for both those at upper levels of Recent literature on rural regionalism has accentuated the secondary school and in high school. The merger was created importance of regional identities (Woods, 2003; Hamin and through propaganda, bullying and threatening. You created Marcucci, 2008; Hall and Stern, 2009). In this section we will a grudge and bitterness that will last for years by making your scrutinize how resistance is related to regional identity. Although decision. (“A person from central Nurmo”) regional identity is e especially when conceptualized as citizens’ This resonates with the observation that ‘borders do not come ‘regional consciousness’ rather than as the identity of the region e and go, but they persist in people’s minds even if the political often deeply emotional and something that is difficult to articulate agenda changes’ (Schack, 2000, 203). Hence, regardless of the explicitly (Paasi, 2003), the bulletin board materials confirm its role decision-making where administrative borders or regional names as a constituent of resistance. The initial comments related to are decided and removed, the established regional ‘us and them’ resistance identity were expressed on the website soon after the divisions may remain strong (Zimmerbauer, 2006). A dein- page was opened, but these comments took a much stronger tone stitutionalized region, like the bitterness caused by the merger, when the decision to merge was made. At first, identity was asso- may exist in the consciousness of its inhabitants for a long time (cf. ciated with local citizenship, safeguarding familiar services, inde- Paasi, 1991). Respectively, deconstructing some layers of a border, pendence and quite simply with one’s right to an ‘own’ such as political or legal, may strengthen other, often more invisible municipality, a theme that has been very topical also in the recent layers related to social experiences and identity. Accordingly, this nationwide merger debate. Critics often suggested that the suggests that that the resistance in Nurmo can be explained not promoters of the merger were ‘selling’ the region though it was only by the economic situation but also partly by the different a property that belonged to someone else. narratives of Seinäjoki as ‘the other’. Imagine that your trusted neighbour hears, while you’re on Some comments suggested that the removal of the municipality vacation, that the housing costs are rising around the world and would generate frustration and a certain lack of trust. Had the when you return from your vacation, your flat had been sold for Nurmo region not deinstitutionalized, stated many writers, the this reason, ‘just for the sake of you own best interests’.He inhabitants would have been more independent, attached to the would then explain that the housing costs would rise in the region and thus also more active. Interestingly enough, these future and that nobody could forecast where your family could comments clearly cut to the core of the contemporary regional find money to cover these costs. Also the real estate agent had, development rhetoric which accentuates the importance of trust at the first hearing, advocated selling the property e at such and social capital as important tools for regional development a popular location e while you could still get something for it. (Paasi, 2012). This development rhetoric was present also in the This could be regarded as an unbelievable story, but as you can official report, which brought out that retaining formal indepen- see, there are always people that do not see anything wrong dence would strengthen the identification with municipality, and with this. Morals are flexible or non-existing. (“KK”) that in the case of (recommended) amalgamation, conscious and collective identity reconstruction measures should be taken A sense of belonging and a will to secure the memories of the (Meklin and Paatelainen, 2006). past were at times seen as a justification for opposing the amal- gamation. The excerpt below suggests that people may associate I would have been interested in developing this province in co- their regional identity with patriotism. ‘Old regionalism’ and operation in an independent Nurmo, but my enthusiasm is especially defensive regionalism can be seen as expressions of ‘local decreasing now, this has been such an act. Well, probably it has patriotism’. Some commentators also emphasized the perpetual also been calculated in documents, how much cheaper the need to perform the identity of the region even after its deinstitu- alternative to the development of the provincial centre is than tionalization. This might occur by using symbols (e.g. Nurmo there are people from northeast Seinäjoki that are bitter, frus- pennant) as visible statements to the surrounding world that these trated and have lost their trust, than active, independent people people are from Nurmo and that the region still exists despite the from Nurmo. I can see in my mind’s eye the New Year’s evening lack of official administrative status (Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). The when the merger occurs and Seinäjoki shoots for pure joy half of next quotation highlights the mood after the merger was decided the ‘carrot money’ up into the sky. I am afraid I am not going to by a one-vote margin. buy fireworks then. During that evening a more interesting task would be a quiet march with candles, perhaps from the school For sure, this is a bit like the being-at-a-funeral feeling. This is as centre to the Nurmo church, where candles could be placed on if some close relative has died as a consequence of violence. I the graves to respect the memory of the builders of independent could never have believed that they are going to sell my home Nurmo. (“A person from Nurmo”) municipality, and so cheaply... Indeed, I do not anymore find it important to vote when I have seen that it is no longer beneficial. Too many of those that have been elected [to the municipal 6. Conclusions council] have not been independent but have been walking on leashes. I have not for a long time regarded myself as a nation- Even at the scale of municipalities, where regional borders are alist, but now after this trick, also this idea comes into my mind. typically porous, the deinstitutionalization of regions may give rise And in an ugly way! (“An adventure hero from Nurmo”) to strong resistance and activism. This demonstrates that old K. Zimmerbauer, A. Paasi / Journal of Rural Studies 30 (2013) 31e40 39 regions e such as municipalities in the Nordic countries e are regionalism but as one between resistance and project identities. crucial units for both local governance and identification, and that The advocates often neglect the idea of old regional identities and their amalgamations can be, in spite of the rationalities used by promote new, open regional configurations and fluidity that could politicians and authorities, highly emotional and contested be better achieved when the borders between functional regions processes. Regional identity, borders and symbols become signifi- are removed. Thus, the incommensurability of old and new cant, since amalgamations shake the attachments or identities of regionalism and different regional identities as the origin of resis- citizens who have possibly participated in the institutionalization tance should be acknowledged. Yet, some mutuality also exists of the regional unit. The removal of one’s ‘own’ municipality can be between the opposing viewpoints. When seen through the prism of hard to accept, especially if this region does not seem to be facing scale, for instance, ‘relational’ and ‘territorial’ may slide towards any immediate economic threats and the merger is justified only by each other and ‘boundedness’ becomes a contextual and scalar using vague arguments such as abstract rhetoric of competitive- issue rather than merely an abstract technical divide. Similarly, ness. Under these circumstances defensive resistance movements time-dimension is important, since resistance (and territoriality) emerge (Taylor, 2011). often becomes manifested and performed temporarily, as showed The role of identity is complex in such cases. Although the for instance by the ‘ad hoc regionalism’ (cf. Hamin and Marcucci, advocates who support the merger and restructuration processes in 2008). In Nurmo, resistance as a social movement faded away general may promote new larger units as more suitable and shortly after the amalgamation took place, although identification ‘competitive’ for regional development, it is also important to ask, with Nurmo has clearly remained strong. how motivated the inhabitants are in participating in regional In spite of the current interest in regional identity in planning development procedures if they do not find new regional entities literature, identity-related themes seem to be commonly neglected meaningful for their daily lives. This is not to say that the new in territorial renewal processes, which are typically rapid and top- regions would inevitably remain spurned forever, since regions down by nature. Yet, constant changes in regional structures often become institutionalized and deinstitutionalized all the time. lead to a ‘regional mess’ (Frisvoll and Rye, 2009) where the However, regional consciousness as emotional identification does inhabitants may identify themselves strongly with the region that not seem to be as fluid and flexible as contemporary ad hoc regions is planned to be deinstitutionalized and identify poorly with the conceived largely through project identities. Therefore such new region that is meant to replace it (Zimmerbauer et al., 2012). In consciousness often ‘lags behind’ in regional restructuring the worst case, new administrative regions are, while possibly processes. established with certain functional aims in mind, experienced as This study shows that although it might be ‘difficult to escape very ‘distant’. This may leave people confused or even passive as to the dominant idea that place-based attachments and identities are their initiativeness for regional development. It is thus obvious that residuals’ (Tomaney, 2010, p. 311), regional identity cannot be from an administrative point of view regional identity should be labelled automatically as a regressive or marginal category. Rather, neither ‘too weak’ nor ‘too strong’; the former does not encourage it should be understood as an important ingredient in contempo- citizens’ participation, whereas the latter can block or hinder rary regional restructuring. This fact has been curiously neglected regional transformation and restructuring processes. in the on-going merger debate in Finland which presents this issue merely in terms of economic rationality. Identifications with Acknowledgements particular communities and local or regional solidarities remain important qualities of social life that do not persist in spite of but The authors thank the Academy of Finland for financial support due to the pressures of cultural and economic globalization and (121992), and the anonymous referees and editors of Journal of neo-liberalism (Entrikin, 1999). Thus, it may be sometimes equally Rural Studies for their valuable comments. important to re-establish and strengthen some layers of borders than to remove them, as they may serve as significant constituents References of regional consciousness and identification, and thereby also be beneficial for practices of regional development. Moreover, the Agnew, J., 2001. Regions in revolt. Progress in Human Geography 25, 103e110. fi local and global are increasingly intertwined today and people are Allen, J., Cochrane, A., 2007. Beyond the territorial x: regional assemblages, politics and power. 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