The brutal attack against a Pakistani on Friday night (February 23) must be one of the worst-ever against a migrant. It took four hours last week to remove his stitches. As a result of what happened, the Pakistani and Muslim communities of Finland don’t feel safe.
Even if the police made no mention of it in a statement, Detective Chief Inspector Mikko Minkkinen is quoted as saying in Tuesday’s Helsingin Sanomat that what happened less than a week and a half ago it is not a hate crime.
If this is the case, and considering the gravity of the attack against the victim, the police should tell the Pakistani, Muslim, and migrant community of Finland how they arrived at such a conclusion.
Migrant Tales published Thursday a story on how the police in Ireland use bias indicators to decide if an attack is a hate crime or not.
Why isn’t it a hate crime? Were the attackers intoxicated? You can be drunk and commit a hate crime. It doesn’t preclude it or stops a group of people from stabbing an innocent victim over 20 times and hitting him on the head with an ax and cause double skull fractures.
One of the words repeatedly used by the attackers against the victim was vittu, the Finnish term for the f-word.
If the crime was horrendous, it has shaken the Pakistani and Muslim community of Finland.
The wife of the victim said that she’s afraid to go outdoors after what happened to her husband.
“Before it was nothing out of the ordinary to go outdoors,” she continued. “Now I must be careful.”
One of the many wounds that the victim endured from his attackers. Picture published with the permission of the victim. Photo: Enrique Tessieri.
Another Pakistani, who visited the victim in the hospital on Sunday, said that there is concern in the Muslim community for their safety.
“When people heard about this thing [the attack],” he said, “they became afraid and feel insecure when they go out at night.”
The Pakistani said that he would never walk through a forest at night again as in the past.
“I have two options: to walk 3-4 kilometers or take a shortcut through the forest,” he continued. “I would rather walk 3-4 kilometers.”
Another Somali Muslim said that he has always felt insecure in places where there are few migrants.
“In East Helsinki [where I used to live], I don’t feel in danger because there are so many people like myself,” he said, adding that the attack against the Pakistani in Vantaa is confirmation that Finland is a dangerous place for Muslims and migrants.
