Author: Migrant Tales

MTV Finland: Shoddy journalism at its shoddiest

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MTV is at it again, depicting migrants as a threat to society and feeding into its own and some of its viewer’s racist inclinations. The interview of Perusuomalaiset (PS)* Interior Minister Mari Rantanen by Ivan Puopolo, notorious for his biased views, shows us how low Finland’s largest privately owned television station can stoop.

The reporting and interview by Puopolo is an exercise in stenography journalism.

One of the questions that Puopolo asks Rantanen is one of her favorite questions about why the integration program has failed.

“I suppose you could take it as a sign that the integration program has failed and I would say common sense would tell you that,” Rantanen said. “If we have people in Finland who don’t know the language who are outside society, how can they help their children to integrate into society?

Rantanen then gets excited and states that the government program has a solution to the problem.

According to her, integration will be lowered from four to three years for quota refugees and from three to two years for asylum seekers.

Here the interview here. Source MTV

Continue reading “MTV Finland: Shoddy journalism at its shoddiest”

Being a Russian minority in an ever-hostile Finland

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The Eastern Finnish cities of Joensuu, Imatra and Lappeenranta are aiming to shut down Russian-language schools which has led to an intense debate about the future of such institutions. While some argue about economic factors and lack of demand for the closure of such schools, others point the finger at anti-Russian and anti-foreign sentiment.

Katja Marova, a local politician of Lappeenranta for the Left Alliance who has lived in Finland for 14 years, is concerned by the rising anti-Russian atmosphere in Finland.

Katja Marova speaking at a recent Aleksanteriliitto event.

“Of course, I am concerned about the [xenophobia] situation [in Finland],” she said. “What will our situation be [in the future] as a minority in Finland?”

Russian speakers, who number about 72,000, are by far the biggest language group in Finland after Finnish- and Swedish-speakers.

The war in Ukraine and the Finnish-Russian border crisis have not only fueled discrimination of Russians but have led to calls to question dual Finnish citizenship rights. President Aleksander Stubb, who recently visited Eatern Finland, did not mention once about the rising hostility against Finland’s Russian community.

President Stubb did, however, give his support for the so-called pushback law that would allow Finland to breach the human rights of asylum seekers.

A recent article published by Yle is a case in point on how some of the media writes about the Russian minority. For one, not one member of the Russian-speaking community is interviewed in the story. Marova said that there were mistakes in the reporting that Yle corrected.

“If the parents had not asked for the corrections, nothing would have happened,” she said. “The article gives the impression that Russian-language schools are not needed and are a waste of money, especially during these difficult economic times.”

Continue reading “Being a Russian minority in an ever-hostile Finland”

Paco Diop on UN Anti-Racism Day

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Writes Ahti Tolvanen, Migrant Tales board member: Paco Diop, a Senegalese Finnish kindergarten teacher who is running for Member of the European Parliament (Left Alliance), spoke at the demonstration in front of the Finnish Parliament on UN Anti-Racism Day March 21st organized by AFARS r.y. (Africans in Finland Against Racism ry).

“Dear listeners,

It’s time to talk about an important issue that deeply affects our values: human rights violations during the current Finnish government’s time.

If Finland was once known worldwide as a strong supporter of human rights, democracy, and equality, the current government has unfortunately weakened this reputation.

Lately, we have seen worrying trends that need our immediate attention and action.

The foreign policy of this government has been poor and dangerous for Finland from the start, even though they selfishly and falsely claim otherwise.

We know who represents Finland at the UN and in foreign policy arenas, and they have betrayed the trust of the Finnish people and those living in Finland.

It’s shameful that Finland has chosen to abstain in situations that require a clear stance, like the severe actions in Gaza by Israel or issues related to the criminalization of Islamophobia.

This raises questions:

Is this government supporting genocide? The answer is yes.

Is our current government against Islamophobia? The answer is no.

Friends, personally, I have not seen any real action that shows the government’s opposition to genocide, Islamophobia, racism, or any other discrimination.

Instead, this government has only strengthened its support for the far-right and Zionist political agenda. The government has not taken actions against racism in this country.

Continue reading “Paco Diop on UN Anti-Racism Day”

The Finnish media and its stenography journalism on writing about migrants and asylum seekers

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“If you’re not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.”

Malcolm X

Day in and day out I see nothing more these days than hostile and negative news about migrants, especially asylum seekers, who are wrongly called “illegal” migrants. These news stories appear a lot in Yle, the state-owned broadcaster.

Even positive news, like the call from church leaders of the Finnish evangelical Lthern Church, Catcholic Church, Orthodox Church and others called for a more humane migration policy.

The call was criticized by government representatives of the anti-immigration Perussuomalaiset (PS)* and National Coalition Party. One of these, Joakim Wigelius of the PS, accused the church leaders of “left-wing policies” and for being “naive.”

A question: When did Yle publish something positive about migrants and asylum seekers? In Finland, xenophobia has poisoned perceptions to the extent that we are ready to ditch our human rights and rule of law obligations to satisfy our racist and myopic world view.

Looking at how much xenophobia has overtaken Finland, it is easy to understand how this country went to bed with Nazi Germany in World War 2.

Today, at the Mikkelin Klubi of Mikkeli, you can still find a picture of Heinrich Himmler and Marshal Karl Mannerheim drinking a schnapps together.

While the picture may portray “history” for some, it does so without context and without reminding us of the crimes against humanity carried out by Himmler and the Nazi regime. Himmler is the very person that set up the death camps for the total annihilation of the Jews and other enemies.

Mannerheim and Himmler at the Mikkeli Klubi, which sees this picture as “history.”

The picture was one of the main reasons why I resigned my membership from the Mikkelin Klubi.

Finland’s spectacular fall from grace

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In 2011, when the Islamophobic and anti-EU Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party won 39 seats versus 5 in the previous election, did anyone foresee that we’d end up here? Wreaking havoc are Prme Minister Petteri Orpo’s National Coalition Party (NCP) and the PS with their two government coalition partners, the Swedish People’s Party and the Christian Democrats.

So what is the deal? There are paradigm changes made in how business is conducted in Finland. Labor laws and social welfare spending are being uprooted never mind migration policy, which will end up making Finland less attractive to foreigners.

In Finland, institutional racism is so embedded that you can be a racist and eat your cake. Orpo speaks about zero tolerance of racism (duh!) but his government continues to pass laws that will subvert human rights as seen with the proposed push-back law.

Imagine, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen, who has a dubious record of spreading racism and conspiracy theories, is spearheading such the frightening of migration policy and the infamous pushback law. Would you call her competent if she claimed that Vladimir Putin could also get asylum in Finland?

One of the main enablers of Finland destroying its human rights record and the rule of law is Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, who in the picture reveals his true self. Source: Facebook

Continue reading “Finland’s spectacular fall from grace”

Interioir Minister Mari Rantanen and her “hybrid invaders”

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We’ll Never Know.
Yes, what Interior Minister Rantanen was thinking in introducing a law to stop “hybrid invaders” from Russia. Our ́́ investigative media` will never ask the right questions. So we can only try to imagine:

Scene: “Hybrid invaders.” Inside the Interior Ministry.

Cue Rantanen.
Rantanen (enters): Our press conference is in half an hour. Any more on the hybrid invaders.
Handler: We interviewed the 1,300 who crossed the border since last August. Half are from places like Afghanistan and Syria and seem to be running for their lives. Then there are over
400 who are just looking for a better life. Till last year, the Russian screened out these asylum seekers and we did not have these moral and legal problems.
Rantanen: Yes. Now they are passing the buck and we have to break international law ourselves. Devious plotter that Putin! Damm him!
Handler: Yes, damn him!
Rantanen: There is this blog out there called Migrant Tales which was offering a reward for anyone who anonymously volunteered to give an interview on being a hybrid invader. They say no-one came forward. No one! We need to find some way to save my law to stop hybrid invaders.
Handler: Well, Madam Minister. You did say the numbers did not matter. The important thing is to foil the Russian plot.
Rantanen: That’s true. The main thing is to foil the plot. I did say big numbers did not matter.
And “zero” is a number too- after all.
Handler: Yes. let’s just tell the press numbers are irrelevant.
Rantanen: Yes. The main thing is my historic and original initiative to keep Russia agitators behind the border.
Handler: Well there were those people in the IKL Party back in the Thirties who kidnapped hundreds of Russian sympathizers and drove them over the Russian border. They even had the courage to kidnap ex-president Svindhuvd and his wife for being communist appeasers. But that kidnapping failed. It led to the banning of the whole IKL Party.
Rantanen: Yes. That went badly. Let’s make sure to steer away from any discussion of that!
False analogy.
Handler: Yes. No false historical comparisons. And numbers of invaders don’t matter. Stopping the plot is what counts. Shall we refer to our reliable intelligence reports on that?
Rantanen: Absolutely reliable. But those intelligence reports are, of course, secret. Well, I think we are ready to meet the press, then. Let’s go.
Handler: Yes, Minister. (They exit)

Narrator: That ends our Black Box reports. What really happened we’ll never know. And our mainstream media will never ask.

Finland sleepwalking into fascism

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The new “pushback” law made public on Friday by the government shows the perilous human rights path of Finland. While the new law may pass in parliament, the question is what will the government do next to undermine Finland’s commitment to human rights.

If the law is passed by a two-thirds majority, it is the best indication of how Finland’s commitment to human rights weaning. When times are good, we can speak out for human rights, but when we are in a rut we will be the first to throw such right under the bus.

Add to the mix our hatred of Muslims and other minorities like the Russians and the situation is clear.

The pushback law is an indication of how Finland is pushing back its liberal reforms after it became an EU member in 1995.

We are mentioning one law without pointing out the radical changes in social policy, labor laws and migration polic.

Finland is sleepwalking into fasism.

Let the asylum seekers in and help us solve our demographic woes

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THE STORY WAS UPDATED

There is a strange logic that is counterproductive, like shooting oneself in the leg. Finland has a labor shortage that is going to get worse. According to some sources, Finland will need up to 50,000 migrants a year to plug the deficit.

I wonder why these types of estimates haven’t been published recently. I it because the government is doing everything possible to restrict labor migration, especially from outside the EU?

Since the government wants to tarnish Finland’s human rights record with a pushback law, I have an easier and less painful way to move forward: Instead of restricting these people from coming to Finland, welcome them with open arms.

With the present anti-immigration policy, Finland is showing its worst. We are no longer a beacon of hope to others who are less fortunate, but a beacon of greed.

Any Russian asylum seekers? Migrant Tales wants to contact you.

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We are seeking to speak with any person who has in any way been sent by Russian officials to Finland since August 2023 as an asylum seeker – or anyone who knows such a person.

As you know the Petteri Orpo government is seeking to adopt a law to turn such persons away at the border before entry with a special law circumventing basic rights in the Finnish Constitution as well as several international agreements.

Because of the high priority the government is placing on this action supposedly there must be many asylum seekers among the over 1300 who have arrived across the Eastern border since August 2023. We will be pleased to pay a reward of

100 EU to any such person willing to be interviewed by Migrant Tales. We promise to respect the confidentiality request of any such person willing to speak to us who will be protected under the law concerning confidentiality of news sources.

Thanking you in anticipation for helping to throw light on this important public issue regarding “hybrid immigrants”.  

Ahti Tolvanen

Contact [email protected]

Finland’s slippery slope

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On Friday, the government revealed its plan to subvert our constitution, international agreements, and human rights by denying people escaping strife and poverty asylum.

Even if the government does not use the term push back, it is exactly that: a law that allows Finland to deny and push back people seeking asylum.

What is most incredible is how the government speculates and spreads fear, claiming that the law is necessary to ensure domestic security and protect the country’s sovereignty from Russian aggression.

A question: Didn’t the tens of thousands of Ukrainians who fled war and came to Finland threaten our security and sovereignty? What about the over 30,000 asylum seekers who came to Finland in 2015? Why are matters different? The answer: xenophobic government scoring brownie points with the voters.

If the new law is approved by parliament by a two-thirds majority, it shows how successful Vladimir Putin’s strategy has been to undermine the rule of law in Finland.

The other important question we should ask is what will be the government’s next step to undermine migrant and human rights?

Unfortunately, the sky is the limit here.