Month: September 2012

An interesting blog that follows far-right candidates in Finland’s municipal elections

Posted on by Migrant Tales

I bumped into a blog called Kunnollisvaalit 2012 (in Finnish), which aims to expose far-right candidates running for office in the Finnish municipal elections of October 28.  The blog cites 11 Perussuomalaiset, 2 Center Party and one Muutos 2011 candidates as “far right.”

The blog aims to expose what these candidates are posting on the Internet.

Kunnollisvaalit 2012 considers far right the following groups: Suomen Sisu (Nazi-spirited association), Nuiva Manifesto (PS’ anti-immigration manifesto), Finnish Defense League (Counterjihadist), Suomen Kansalinen Vastarinata (neo-Nazi).

Remember Ulla Pyysalo, PS MP’s Juho Eerola’s aide, who was planning to join the neo-Nazi Suomen Kansalinen Vastarina? Well, she’s running for city council in Taipalsaari.

On a thread on Facebook with TU tennis, Ulla Pyysalo compared immigrants to animals and plants. ”Yes, transplanting animals or plants in a new environment has always ended in failure.”

Risto Helin is a “white power blood & honor” candidate for the PS  in Vaasa. 

Pyysalo continues, now comparing immigrants to racoon dogs.  ”I heard just recently that hunters are encouraged to kill these raccoon dogs,” she writes. ”God dang it how racist and terrible. Eeek help! :DDDDD,”

The Kunnollisvaalit 2012 list below of fascists, Nazis and racists isn’t complete. PS candidates such as James Hirvisaari, Olli Immonen, Freddy Van Wonterghem are missing.

The 11 PS candidates that Kunnollisvaalit 2012 cites are:

Muutos 2011 and Center Party:

 

How much further? A film about the lives of refugees in Greece

Posted on by Migrant Tales

This documentary about refugees in Greece is a stark reminder of how Greek authorities and the European Union have turned their backs on asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants. The answer is not higher border fences or fear-mongering by politicians, but finding proactive solutions that take into account the needs and human rights of these people.

Eighty percent of the refugees that come from war-stricken areas flee to neighboring countries like Pakistan, where there are 1.7 million refugees. In the Dadaab refugee camp alone in Kenya there are a staggering 500,000  Somali refugees.

For the sake of comparison, 27 EU states have a total of 1.3 million refugees.

Traveling under a truck is one way that asylum seekers use to cross borders in Europe.

Says the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) in a statement about the documentary, How much further:

Filmed in Athens between October 2011 and February 2012, in the midst of social, political and economic turmoil, the documentary raises the voices of those who have fled Afghanistan, Somalia or Sudan hoping to find refuge in Europe. After months or even years on the road, they arrive in Greece, a country whose population is facing the full brunt of the economic crisis and where the asylum and reception systems are completely dysfunctional. Most people see no option but to take to the road again in the hope of reaching a country that can receive them and consider their claim for asylum. But, once they have entered Greece, it is extremely difficult if not impossible to leave the country given the European policies that legally bind them to Greece.

This documentary is the fruit of the cooperation between ECRE, the Greek Forum of Refugees and the film maker Matthias Wiessler, and supported by the European Programme for Integration and Migration (EPIM).

Following the simultaneous premières in Brussels and Athens for World Refugee Day (20 June), How much further? has already been shown in two other screenings so far, at theEuropean Policy Institute and to the students of the Odysseus Network Summer School on European Law and Polciy on Immigration & Asylum.

To see documentary, How much further, click here.

 

Somalia turns a new page of hope after its new president was elected

Posted on by Migrant Tales

By Roble Bashir

Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected on Monday to a four-year presidential term. There are plans to hold nationwide elections after his mandate ends in 2016. By then, every citizen will have the opportunity to vote for the candidate he or she supports.  Even so, such a goal is  a challenging task to attain in just over four years.

President Mohamud was an active member of civil society organisations since the collapse of  the government in 1991. He has taken part in several social development projects. The newly elected head of state used to work for UNICEF in Somalia and was dean of one of the local universities of Mogadishu before he became the leader of the Peace and Development Party (PDP).

What makes this government different from previous ones?

President Mohamud’s election is  an important change for all Somalis since it puts to end eight years of transitional rule, which impeded governments to function properly.

It ends as well the interference by neighbouring countries in Somali’s internal affairs. This meddling by foreign powers has been one of the biggest obstacles in getting the country back on its feet after two decades of civil war. In fact, interim governments were formed outside the country. This made Somalis sceptical that the country’s best interests were being served. President Mohamud’s government is the first one ever elected by parliament inside the country since the early 1990s. The is not an interim government but a permanent one approved nationally.  This is very important matter to remember.

There are other factors that support the newly elected president of Somalia. Most warlord leaders have been disarmed and some are members of the new parliament. They aren’t a threat to stability as in previous transitional governments, when they had their own separate militia groups and put barriers against the government whenever they saw fit. This government controls harbours and airports, which are vital to the economy and permit foreign aid to enter the country.

The new constitution was approved by the elders.

The new constitution gives more powers to the new president to exercise his authority. This is another factor that could help President Mohamud to tackle the challenges the country faces.

The threat of Al-shabab lessens

There are many reasons that give more confidence and hope that the new government will succeed in its aims. Most areas of the capital  and surrounding towns are now under the control of government troops with the backing of African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) forces.  Al-shabab’s influence has weakened after it lost a number of battles that forced it to give up control of many strategic towns and regions of the country. Al-shabab lost many economic resources as well such as harbours and export tax revenues from charcoal, when the USA banned this year such exports to Middle Eastern states like the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. This was a huge setback for Al-shabab and undermined its influence in the country and its ability to finance its war.

The weakening of this powerful group in Somalia will eventually help the new president to restore peace and stability. Of course, re-building Somalia is an ongoing process that can only happen when the country has a powerful enough army.  ”When the national armed forces take control of the whole country, we will no longer need troops from Africa, ” President Mohamud promised during his campaign.

The Netherlands gives Geert Wilders the thumbs down

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Voters in the Netherlands did not back Geert Wilders’ calls for the country to ditch the European Union, reports the BBC. Wilders, who has dominated Dutch politics for years, is known for his tough anti-Islam and now anti-EU stance. Among many of his provocative statements, the Dutch politician has equated the Koran with Hitler’s Mein Kampf. 

The biggest victors of the Dutch elections were pro-EU parties like the center-right VVD (41 seats) and center-left Labor Party (39). Between them they could form a majority in the 150-member lower house.

Contrarily, Wilders’ Freedom Party saw its share of seats plummet from 24 to 13.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdTRPk0L3Zc&feature=related

Geert Wilders getting grilled on BBC’s Hardtalk. 

Just like the Islamophobic Danish People’s Party that supported minority governments for a decade in exchange for tougher immigration laws, the election setback to the Freedom Party comes as a big blow to their influence in national politics.

The interesting question to ask is how the setback for the Freedom Party will impact the Perussuomalaiset (PS) of Finland and other likeminded parties in Europe.

This is a valid question. It’s pretty clear that the PS’ election victory in 2011 had a positive impact on similar anti-immigration parties in the Nordic region and elsewhere in Europe.

Despite Europe’s financial woes and issues with anti-immigration populist parties, it’s clear that a growing number of Europeans are not buying their xenophobic message.

As Migrant Tales has pointed out on a number of occasions, the worst enemies of parties like the PS, Freedom Party, Danish People’s Party, Sweden Democrats and others are none other than themselves.

 

Greece and its bad case of ethnic profiling and scapegoating

Posted on by Migrant Tales

The Greek Police announced that 16,836 foreign nationals were brought for questioning  during the first month that Xenios Zeus was instigated, according to the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE). A staggering 80% of those brought in for questioning were legal residents. Only 2,144 held by the police didn’t have their residence permits in order. 

Xenios Zeus, which was the ancient Greek god of hospitality, is a good example of how ineffective immigration policies and economic problems can force xenophobia to poison a society.

Sensible people understand that scapegoating immigrants for the country’s economic problems is a red herring. Greek politicians and civil servants, with the blessings of the public, are more interested in blaming defenseless immigrants and refugees  for Greece’s problems than themselves.

Whenever a person or a group scapegoats immigrants and minorities, it is a clear sign of cowardice and opportunism.

The Greek public should critically look at the country’s politicians, civil servants and financial sector and launch a “Xenios Zeus” to uproot corruption that festers in that country.

ECRE writes in a statement: ”Greek authorities claim that as a result of Xenios Zeus, the influx of illegal immigration in the area of Evros has been reduced by 84%. However, according to the newspaper ‘To Vima’, the “Xenios Zeus” operation has resulted in a dramatic increase in the smuggling tariffs for entering Greece from Turkey and leaving Greece for Italy. A few months ago, smugglers would request 2,500 to 3,000 Euro for a safe passage, while would-be migrants are now asked to pay up to 5,000 Euros.”

Groups like ECRE, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Greek Council of Refugees have criticized the massive police roundup of immigrants.

 

 

 

 

Anti-racism web sites in Finland

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales was named as one of seven anti-racist web site in Finland, according to a thread by “Tutkija” on Vaasa Forum. While Counterjihadist and anti-immigration websites have sprung up like mushrooms in Finland, anti-racist forums are one answer to the message of hate of these latter sites. 

The Perussuomalaiset party openly and indirectly supports  a number of Countejihadist and anti-immigration web sites in Finland like Hommaforum and Scripta.

“Tutkija” describes Migrant Tales as ”a quality [anti-racism] online publication in Finland written in English.”

Other anti-racist sites cited by Vaasa Forum include:

What kind of a threat do Finland’s Counterjihadists pose?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

It’s pretty clear that what goes up politically must eventually come down. Some groups, which have recently surged in popularity like the Perussuomalaiset (PS), could see their bubble burst quickly. While I wouldn’t count on anything like that happening anytime soon, it could be a totally different story for the hardline Counterjihadists of the party.  

The question that should concern us all is what will these radical members of the PS do if they see their popularity wean.

Do they have  a plan B? Will they take to the streets and incite more people to parrot their message of hate?

One of the most naive ideas that Counterjihadists hold is that they can keep their hate rhetoric on a short leash. Anders Breivik’s murderous rampage in Norway proved once again that racism and Islamophobia can bite back at its ideological master.

While we are already seeing greater violence to visible minorities and immigrants after last year’s PS election victory, the question is how do we challenge such a threat effectively?

Everyone knows that the hardcore Counterjihadist MPs of the PS are Jussi Halla-aho, James Hirvisaari and Olli Immonen.

If PS chairman Timo Soini wished, he could land a fatal political blow to the Counterjihadists by banishing them from the party. As a so-called taxi party (all of its members could fit in a taxi), they would no longer be a political force like they are today in the PS.

In many respects, Soini’s relationship with these extremists could be described as that of a junkie hooked on heroin. One hates being a junkie but it sure feels good to inject oneself with such a drug.

If Soini ever kicked out the Counterjihadists from the party, would these politicians go down without a fight?

It would be naive to think so.

Their message of hate would certainly get louder and their rhetoric more violent.

How to stand up to the Counterjihadists of Finland

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Swedish-language daily HBL writes on Sunday that we must challenge the rhetoric of hatred by Counterjihadists. As everyone knows, the Counterjihadist hardcore in the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party comprises of three MPs: Jussi Halla-aho, James Hirvisaari and Olii Immonen. 

While many at Migrant Tales have valiantly challenged Counterjihadism in the past, populist radical right-wing rhetoric and hate speech in Finland, it is interesting that a major daily like HBL believes that we must now challenge such a threat.

As Maria Paaso’s report for Supo revealed, the Counterjihadist threat become more real after Norwegian mass murderer Anders Brevik went on the rampage on July 22, 2011, murdering 77 innocent victims.

If such a tragedy could happen in Norway, why not in Finland?

Migrant Tales wrote shortly after the tragedy in Norway that nothing was going to be the same for the Counterjihadists in the Nordic region after 22/7.

We wrote six days after the tragedy in Norway: ”What was acceptable before, like racist gaffes and jokes by politicians, their aides and common citizens, look terribly embarrassing today in light of Norway.”

Toby Archer is quoted as saying on HBL  that while elected politicians who are Counterjihadists are not a danger to society, it is up to the media and politicians to challenge them.

Contrarily, researcher Jussi Jalonen says that while we have elected Counterjihadist MPs in the Finnish parliament, it is a good matter that we can openly debate with them.

The downside — according to Jalonen — is that if the same hate rhetoric that is allowed in parliament by these Counterjihadists encourages the same mimicking in the streets.

HBL writes that the turning point for Finland’s Counterjihadists came in summer, when Halla-aho, the chairman of the administration committee, was forced to resign after the Supreme Court slapped him with a fine for defaming a religion and inciting ethnic hatred.

Other members of the PS have since then distanced themselves from the xenophobic Counterjihadists like Halla-aho, according to Jalonen.

 

Teach me that we are more alike than different…

Posted on by Migrant Tales

 …teach me not to hate. Teach me the lie and shame of racism [because] it hurts all people. Teach me to learn from you and to learn about me… 

Inspirational words from the Center for the Healing of Racism that should be the guiding light enshrined in our national curriculum for schools (opetussuunnitelma) concerning cultural diversity.

What is our aim when we speak of integration of elementary school students?

Is the goal of the teacher to convert these students into ”white Finns” or to socially exclude them by pointing out how different they are? Is the aim between these two extremes?

Identity is a personal matter. Who you are depends on who you think you are. If some have a problem with this, it should be viewed as their problem, not yours.

Social exclusion is like a toxic poison. If  you take away a child’s identity at an early age by seeing no worth in his ethnicity and background, you’ll end up undermining his or her self-esteem. People with low self-esteem do poorly at school.

Low self-esteem is a factor behind prejudice as well, according to a study published by Psychological Science.

In the same way as racism is costly to society, it can impair children’s learning abilities, according to a study by Essex University.

Even if Finland has become more culturally diverse from the 1990s, the biggest mistake we can make – in my opinion – is forgetting the importance of diversity and values such as mutual acceptance and respect.

Thus Finnish schools should teach their students that we are more alike than different..the lie and shame of racism because it hurts all people.

It should teach student the value of their culture and the culture of others.

 

How sincere is PS MP Immonen about Finnish Karelia?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Finnish Karelia, Salla, and Petsamo were territories ceded to the former Soviet Union after the Continuation War (1941-44).  Counterjihadist Perussuomalaiset (PS) MP Olli Immonen sent a parliamentary question Friday asking the government to investigate whether Russia offered in 1991 then President Mauno Koivisto (1982-94) the possibility to buy back the ceded region.

Koivisto, who was the country’s last cold war president, denied in a Helsingin Sanomat interview in 2007 (15 years later!) that then Russian President Boris Yeltsin had offered Finland the opportunity to buy back Finnish Karelia.

Finland used to look like a maiden before 1944. It lost part of its skirt (Finnish Karelia) and an arm (Petsamo) to the former Soviet Union after the war. 

Finnish Karelia represents everything that was and went wrong with Europe at the time. It is a small jigsaw puzzle of a terrible war that ended up costing the lives of an estimated 60 million people.

If the offer by Moscow to Helsinki is true, speculation has it that the sizable Russian population in the ceded region was one important reason why President Koivisto did not want to negotiate with the Russians.

In 1991, Finland’s immigrant population was miniscule, totaling 26,255, or 0.5% of the population.

Finns were back then – as today – very set in their ethnic perceptions of themselves and suspicion of the Russians continues to be high in Finland.

The interesting question to ask about the purchase of Finnish Karelia is what role did issues like ethnic and national ”purity,” Finland’s deep-seated cold war mentality and fear of its giant neighbor.

What kinds of passions does PS MP Immonen’s parliamentary question awaken? Is it another PS election ploy to incite nationalist sentiment and lure voters to the embattled party?

If Karelia were returned to Finland under the leadership of Immonen and the PS, what would they do about the Russian population and other ethnic minorities living there? What kind of ethnic cleansing would take place and how would it affect relations with Moscow? Would we return back to the same tensions that characterized Finnish-Soviet relations in the 1930s?

Since Immonen is a radical Counterjihadist who predicts a war between the Christian West and Islam, we should ask what political mileage does the PS MP want to get from such a parliamentary question.

While it is positive to debate our history openly, Immonen’s parliamentary question should be seen as a sham that exposes his ultra-nationalistic credentials.

Politicians  like Immonen don’t bring us closer to understanding the Karlian question, but take us further from it.