Finnish literary prize winner criticizes "regressing" of society

The leading Finnish literature award got political tones on Thursday as the recipient of the 2015 Finlandia Literature Prize, Laura Lindstedt, strongly criticized the alleged regressing of the society.

In her acceptance speech, Lindstedt said there is a conscious effort under way in Finland to change the country back to a society split into social classes.

She described the development as a "narrative of neoliberal ideology."

The comments by Lindstedt followed several months of polarization in Finland about the governmental austerity policies.

She said the policies of the current cabinet undermined the sense of security in Finland.

Lindstedt won the Prize for her novel "Oneiron", which depicts the thoughts on dying by seven fictitious women in different cultures and situations.

The annual Finlandia Literature Prize was launched in 1984 by the Finnish Book Foundation. The award amounts to 30,000 euros (31,800 U.S. dollars) and is tax free.

Each year several contenders are chosen and one reputable person is assigned to choose the winner. This year the selector was radio host and singer Heikki Harma, known as performer "Hector".

A separate prize is awarded for factual literature. It was given to Tapio Tamminen for a book analyzing the history racism in neighboring Sweden. The selection had been done by TV journalist Arto Nyberg. Endit