Month: February 2011

Migrant Tales memorable quotes of the week to February 28

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Migrant Tales will begin publishing on Monday some interesting quotes on the ongoing immigration debate in Finland. If you have some quotes you would like to share with us, please forward them to [email protected]. ET

The True Finns party bases its work on honesty, justice, humanity, equality, respect for work and entrepreneurship as well as spiritual growth. True Finns campaign manifesto published on February 25.

Perussuomalaisten toiminnan perustana ovat rehellisyys, oikeudenmukaisuus, inhimillisyys, tasa-arvo, työn ja yrittämisen kunnioittaminen sekä henkinen kasvu.

Aalto University senior lecturer Kyösti Tarvainen is concerned about Finnish democracy. Tarvianen has sent an email from his work to all the Green MPs’ email with the following subject headline: No Muslims in Parliament. Tarvainen notes that “the Greens have done wrong in permitting Muslims to stand as candidates.”  Lawyer and Green Party candidate for parliament, Hussein Muhammed, published in Uusi Suomi.

Aalto-yliopiston dosentti Kyösti Tarvainen on huolestunut suomalaisen demokratian puolesta. Tarvainen on lähettänyt työsähköpostistaan kaikille Vihreiden nykyisille kansanedustajille sähköpostiviestin otsikolla: Ei muslimeja Eduskuntaan. Tarvainen toteaa, että “Vihreät on tehnyt väärin asettaessaan eduskuntaehdokkaaksi muslimeja.”

The Koran is in conflict with Finland’s constitution when for example we look at gender equality as well as the equality between Muslims and “infidels.” Aalto University senior lecturer, Kyösti Tarvianen

Koraani on ristiriidassa Suomen perustuslain kanssa, esimerkiksi naisten ja miesten tasa-arvon sekä muslimien ja ”vääräuskoisten” tasa-arvon suhteen.

Finland is one of Europe’s most sparsely populated countries inhabited by 17 persons per square kilometer.  The population of Finland ages at this moment faster than in any other country in Europe.  Fact:  In Finland there live at this moment 150,000 foreign nationals. (The former nationality of) those immigrants that have become naturalized Finns cannot be found in population statistics;  between 2006 and 2009 they were a total of about 18,000 and, taking into account the trend in immigration, we know that the figure has been smaller rather than larger in the past.  Kristiina Kouros, published in Savon Sanomat

Suomi on yksi Euroopan harvimmin asutuista maista, asukastiheys on noin 17 ihmistä neliökilometrillä. Suomessa väestö ikääntyy tällä hetkellä nopeimmin koko Euroopassa. Faktaa: Suomessa asuu tällä hetkellä ulkomaan kansalaisia reilut 150 000. Suomen kansalaisuuden saaneita maahanmuuttajia ei vanhemmista väestötilastoista erota, mutta vuosien 2006-2009 välillä heitä oli yhteensä noin 18 000 ja ottaen huomioon maahanmuuttotrendit, tiedetään että tämä luku on aiemmin ollut ennemminkin pienempi kuin suurempi.

Monoculturalism is a term used by some to exclude immigrants and minotiries from society. Enrique Tessieri

Do illegal immigrants pay taxes? YES!!! They generally pay taxes the same way you and I pay them, but without access to most of the benefits that normally come with being a taxpayer. Roy Germano, published on The Other Side of Immigration

Old quote: Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrations and revolutionists. President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945)

YLE: True Finns Publish Election Manifesto

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Comment: The first thing that struck me about the True Finns’ sixty-nine-page election manifesto was the first sentence. It states that the True Finns are a party  based on “honesty, justice, humanity, equality, respect for work and entrepreneurship as well as spiritual growth.” The terms that especially caught my eye  were “humanity” and “equality.”

When the True Finns speak of  “humanity” and “equality” they mean Finns. It doesn’t include refugees and immigrants never mind other minorities like the Swedish-speaking population. In their manifesto they state that they are ready to lower international aid by 200 million euros, tighten asylum laws, lower Swedish-language subsidies, social benefits to immigrants as well as tax the rich. If the True Finns had their way, Finland should have the right to decide under which circumstances a foreigner can move to this country.

Even though they do not directly demand Finland leave the EU, they are against “Finland’s EU membership” being mentioned in the Constitution.

The manifesto states that immigrants must respect Finnish laws and pay taxes (duh!). Don’t the majority of immigrants do?

They also argue, without giving any details, that immigrants must respect Finnish cultural norms. Does this mean that new immigrants must buy Koskenkorva on weekends and get drunk?

The manifesto, which only uses the term “multiculturalism” five times, says that it isn’t feasible to populate cities with unemployed immigrants because the same apartments could be rented to Finns with work. These jobless people would be moved to remote areas of the country.  Unemployed Finns could remain in the cities. See what Helsingin Sanomat writes (in Finnish) about the matter.

Here is the link to the election manifesto.One of our bloggers, Tuomas, has translated the section on immigration policy.

What do you think?

ET

__________

The populist True Finns Party has unveiled its manifesto for the upcoming parliamentary election. It advocates tax increases for the higher paid, opposes the mention of Finland’s EU membership in the country’s constitution and demands cuts in social benefits for immigrants.

To continue reading click here.

Opettaja: Lukijakysely: Maahanmuuttajat ovat kouluille rikkaus ja rasite

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Comment: This survey that was published in Opettaja shows that 41% of teachers that were polled would like to place caps on children with immigrant backgrounds at their schools.  Contrarily one third of those polled would not place any such limits.  According to every fourth teacher, larger numbers of immigrant children increase commotion and noise in class as well as violence in schools.

For some the results of the survey is no surprise since other ones have shown that teachers’ attitudes of immigrants have been as negative as the police.

The poll brings forth interesting questions. One of these is if public servants like teachers can limit who they will serve.  Can the police do the same? Is segregating schools by placing caps constitutional?

Everyone knows that if such an extraordinary measure were to be taken, it would be by the government – not by teachers.

At best these surveys show how difficult it is for some in Finland to still accept cultural diversity as a normal matter of our society. A lot of work must be still done.

Do you agree?

_____________

Lukijakysely: Maahanmuuttajat ovat kouluille rikkaus ja rasite. Kolmannes riittäisi osuudeksi Väkivalta lisääntyy, kantaväestön ja ja maahanmuuttajien välit kiristyvät ja opettajat siirtyvät muihin kouluihin, kun maahanmuuttajien osuus koulun oppilaista kasvaa suureksi. Lähes joka toisen opettajan mielestä maahanmuuttajien määrä pitäisi koulussa rajata 20–30 prosenttiin.

To keep on reading click here.

Aamulehti: Rajoja sulkemalla ei rauhaa rakenneta

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Comment: Below is one of the best editorials I have read in a long time from Tampere-based Aamulehti. It makes reference to Milla Hannula’s book, Maassa maan tavalla, and how she attempts to give legitimacy to anti-immigration groups in Finland.  It is a good matter that dailies like Aamulehti can reveal this group for what it is: a minority attempting to rob our sacred historical icons to justify their xenophobia.

I have written before that Finns are wise and understand that the future of this country does not lie in spreading hatred and populism.

Do you agree?

____________

Matti Mörttinen

Maahanmuuttokriitikot ovat kaikesta päätellen vyöryneet viimeisen vuoden aikana ainakin jonkin hyväksyttävyyskynnyksen yli. Heidän taistelunsa ”poliittista korrektiutta” vastaan on ehkä seuraavaksi johtamassa siihen, että maahanmuuttokriitikoiden arvostelemisesta tulee poliittisesti epäkorrektia.

To keep on reading click here.

Migrant Tales memorable quotes of the week to February 21

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Migrant Tales will begin publishing on Monday some interesting quotes on the ongoing immigration debate in Finland.  If you have some quotes you would like to share with us, please forward them to [email protected].

Thank you.

–In the book (Milla Hannula’s Maassa maan tavalla) it is stressed that (rising) crime in Finland is due to immigration. Finland is without immigration certainly one of the world’s most violent countries if we set aside the Balkans. Even so, this does not mean that we should hide such crimes committed by people of immigrant backgrounds from public debate.  On the other side of the coin there are the visible number of Finns that have been sentenced (for crimes) in Sweden and Norway. Risto Laakkonen, Turun Sanomat.

(Kirjassa (Milla Hannula’s Maassa maan tavalla) korostetaan rikollisuuden tuloa Suomeen maahanmuuton seurauksena. Suomi on ilman maahanmuuttoakin yksi maailman ja ehdottomasti Euroopan väkivaltaisin maa kun Balkan jätetään huomioimatta. Silti maahanmuuttaja -taustaisten henkilöiden rikoksia ei tule peitellä. Vaakakupin toisella puolella on sitten ulkomailla rikoksista tuomittujen suomalaisten paikoin näkyvä osuus erityisesti Ruotsissa ja Norjassa. Risto Laakkonen Turun Sanomat).

–The thoughts of immigration critics have been made by different political currents ranging from Keijo Korhonen to Kari Rajamäki, from Eero Paloheimo to Jussi Halla-aho. The mass media had, however, for some time either stayed clear of the topic or labeled such people (immigration critics). Milla Hannula, Maassa maan tavalla.

(Maahanmuuttokriittisiä ajatuksia ovat Suomessa esittäneet eri poliittisinten suuntien edustajat Keijo Korhosesta Kari Rajamäkeen, Eero Paloheimoon ja Jussi Halla-ahoon. Valtalehdistö kuitenkin pitkään joko vaikeni aiheesta tai leimasi maahanmuuttokriitikot. Milla Hannula, Maassa maan tavalla).

–Yesterday’s (February 16) publishing of Maassa maan tavalla shows that being ”critical of  immigration” is a euphemism for anti-immigration and  xenophobia. Juha Siivola, Helsingin Sanomat.

Eilen julkaistu Maassa maan tavalla osoittaa, että “maahanmuuttokritiikki” on maahanmuuton vastustamisen ja muukalaisvihamielisyyden kaunisteleva nimitys. Juha Siivola, Helsingin Sanomat).

–In US Muslim terrorists seen as representing all Muslims, but white terrorists r portrayed as “crazy fringe individuals. @haloeffekti

–If I spoke about Finns in the same way as far-right parties do of some minorities, I would be the most hated man in Finland. Enrique Tessieri @MigrantTales

–Far-right parties across Europe speak against multiculturalism but do not give us a clue what monoculturalism is. Is monoculturalism an excuse to deny who we are and exclude millions of minorities from feeling at home in Europe?  Enrique Tessieri @MigrantTales


What opinion polls tell us about Finland and anti-immigration

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By Enrique Tessieri

A lot of people are scratching their heads at the stellar rise of the True Finns in the polls. Even though we have to wait for the ballot boxes to have their final say in April, certainly the polls and the success of the True Finns tell us something about where Finland is at this moment and where it is heading.

According to a poll published by Helsingin Sanomat on February 17, the popularity of the True Finns now stands at 17.9%, which is the same as the Social Democrats and close behind the Center Party (18.2%) and Kokoomus (20.2%).  A  supporter of the True Finns told me candidly that  everyone in his party is lying low to not say or do anything that would put in jeopardy their popularity.

Even though the head of the True Finns, Timo Soini, claims that anti-immigration only accounts for 10% of the party’s supporters, some believe that immigration is one of the key driving forces behind its popularity.

In Sweden, were the far-right Sweden Democrats got 5.7% of the votes, immigrants make up 14.3% of the population.  Contrarily in Finland, our immigrant population totals 2.9%.  Alexis Kouros correctly asks in his column in Magma if these figures are out of proportion when compared with Sweden and the support that  other anti-immigration parties have elsewhere in Europe.

Any historian and person who lived during the 1930s in Finland can tell you that one characteristic of our society back then was  fear of foreigners and the outside world, especially the former Soviet Union.

The True Finns’ rising popularity and anti-immigration sentiment in Finland may reveal that we have not yet begun as a society to deal seriously and effectively with issues such as immigration, racism and exclusion. Even though sensible Finns may give their thumbs down to racism, it does not mean that political parties like Kokoomus and others have an effective strategy to combat such a social ill. We are still novices on this front.

Moreover, our geography and long geopolitical isolation from Western Europe during the cold war never gave us a chance to study deeper what happened during the Continuation War (1941-44) and what it meant to be a cobelligerant (the official term) of Nazi Germany. That question, in my opinion, has never been answered properly by Finnish historians.

Many of the concepts about ethnic groups and nationalities were never openly questioned because our country’s isolation never gave cause to challenge these views after the war.  But how can you debate immigration, racism and stereotypes if there were hardly any foreigners living in Finland at the time?

Today we have that opportunity thanks to the rise of our immigrant population.  We are now facing what other societies have gone or are going through: asking questions about our ever-growing cultural diversity and what it means in larger context. The questions that are being asked may vary from Armageddon-type threats to Finnish culture to sensible ones that look at it with a cool head.

The rise of the True Finns in the polls reveals, in my opinion, that that debate is now going on in earnest.

Kate Lundy: Minister for Immigration and Citizenship Chris Bowen – Multiculturalism in the Australian Context

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Comment: There are officially three countries (Canada, Australia and Britain) in the world that have a multicultural social policy in force.  Multiculturalism as a social policy was officially established in the 1980s in Canada.

One of  the mistakes that critics make about multiculturalism is that it’s the same in every country.  Below is a speech by minister of immigration and citizenship, Chris Bowen, highlighting Australian multiculturalism.

When I read it I felt that I was in another world when compared with Finland and Europe.

One matter that shines through in the speech are two key factors that allow societies to reap benefits from their cultural diversity: inclusion and mutual respect.

Do you agree?

___________

Speech to the Sydney Institute

Less than a month ago, millions of Australians celebrated our national day.  Among the most enthusiastic participants were our newest Australian citizens.  Thirteen thousand people – from every corner of the globe – passionately and enthusiastically took the pledge of commitment to this nation.

To keep on reading click here.

I found this link thanks to @spectrumvic