Category: Enrique Tessieri

MEP Henna Virkkunen: A future EU commissioner of Finland who would care less for the fate of those crossing into the EU

Posted on by Migrant Tales

National Coalition Party MEP Henna Virkkunen is hoping to become an EU commissioner. However, there is a question: Is a person qualified if he or she would care less or very little if people die when coming to Europe?

In the 2019 MEP election, she responded in the Alma Meter election compass in the affirmative to the question 13*: “The EU must save all those migrants who are at risk of drowning attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.”

Virkkunen “disagreed” that the EU must save those migrants crossing the Mediterranean from drowning.

In the 2024 election compass, Virkkunen still showed little regard for people crossing into the EU. Question 11 of Yle’s election compass asked a yes or no answer: “A person trying to reach Europe can be turned back at the border, even if it would put their life in danger.”

Virkkunen responded in the affirmative, yes, it was ok to push back the person even if his or her life were in danger.

Her response and possible naming as EU commissioner shows how low we have stooped in Europe.

Continue reading “MEP Henna Virkkunen: A future EU commissioner of Finland who would care less for the fate of those crossing into the EU”

The elephant in the room that shows us the way to Hungary, and wishful political thinking in Finland

Posted on by Migrant Tales

How can the government be so worried about “national security” if you are ready to trash our most sacred rights like Human Rights, the Constitution, and international agreements?

The Draft Act on Temporary Measures to Combat Instrumentalised Migration, or the so-called pushback law, is not only concerning how the constitutional committee can sidestep our most sacred values as a society based on Human Rights, the Constitution, and international agreements but how politicians who should know better are demanding such changes.

It’s clear that the pushback law is not only a move to undermine our rights, but will lead to other changes by using the pretext of “national security.”

I lived in Argentina during one of its most violent military régimes. The way the military could throw Human Rights and the rule of law in the trash can was “defending national security.” To do this they committed atrocities that led to the disappearance of over 30,000 people.

After they got rid of their enemies, the left-wing guerrillas, they looked for “potential” terrorists. You read right. People who could become terrorists.

Finland’s shameful politicians of the pushback law are President Alexander Stubb, National Coalition Party (NCP) Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Constituional Committee Chairperson Heikki Vestman, Perussuomalaiset (PS)* Interior Minister Mari Rantanen, Finance Minister Riikka Purra, Aministrative Committee Chairperson Mauri Peltokangas, and Justice Minister Leena Meri.

The above list is NOT conclusive. We can name many PS, NCP, and Center Party politicians who would fit the bill. One of these is former President Sauli Niinistö, who has had an ambiguously hostile view of asylum seekers and Russian dual citizens.

Upper left to right: President Alexander Stubb, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Constitutional Committee Chairperson Heikki Vestman (lower row left to right) Interior Minister Mari Rantanen, Finance Minister Riikka Purra, Administrative Committee Chairperson Mauri Peltokangas, and Justice Minister Leena Meri.

What anti-Human Rights “merits” do the following politicians have?

  • Alexander Stubb: After being elected president, Stubb has shown how little he regards Human Rights, the Constitution, international agreements, and minority rights. Apart from holding such values as suspect whenever it is convenient politically, his support of the pushback law can also be seen as payback to Petteri Orpo, who supported him as the NCP’s presidential candidate. His statements are political and lack the credibility of a statesman. One of these was to MTV, when he mentioned that the asylum seekers at the border are not “real” refugees.

Erna Bodstöm tweets: “In recent years, according to Migri, Yemenis and Syrians have practically always been granted asylum, and Iraqis and Ethiopians in at least half of the cases. So these people are genuine asylum seekers and many are likely to be eligible for protection.”

Continue reading “The elephant in the room that shows us the way to Hungary, and wishful political thinking in Finland”

Finland’s shameful “let them die” MEPs: Mika Aaltonen, Pekka Toveri, Henna Virkkunen, Sebastian Tynkkynen and Katri Kulmuni

Posted on by Migrant Tales

In the 2019 European Parliament election, Henna Virkkunen of the National Coalition Party agreed that the EU was not obligated to save people from drowning in the Mediterranean. She was in good company with the likes of Perussuomalaiset MEPs Laura Huhtasaari and Teuvo Hakkarainen.

Virkkunen reasoned that we should stop traffickers, even if it means allowing people to drown and die at sea.

After five years of being in the EU parliament, she still believes that people should die after being pushed back at the border.

Question 11 of Yle’s election compass: “A person trying to reach Europe can be turned back at the border, even if it would put their life in danger.”

Source: AP

The good news is that only five of Finland’s 15 MEPs would care less id people died trying to cross the border. These are three from the National Coalition Party (NCP), one Perussuomalaiset (PS)*, and one from the Center Party, which has a wishy-washy track record on immigration.

The Center Party MEP and then finance minister, Katri Kulmuni, posted in 2019 an Internet poll asking if repatriating “[Finnish] children only” or “children and [Finnish] mothers” from the al-Hol camp in Syria.

Tynkkynen, who was convicted three times for ethnic agitation, likes to give the image of a “tolerant” politician since he is gay and married to an African. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The last two, Mika Aaltola and Pekka Toveri, are fuelled by bravado and opportunism.

Aaltola is a media creation and Toveri is a general who likes to talk tough.

The elephant in the racist room is the Perusuomalaiset and the government

Posted on by Migrant Tales

If the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* is a far-right party, is it correct to say that the National Coalition Party a radical-right party?

After the second stabbing in a week in Oulu, politicians are sending their condolesneces. The question we should be looking at is the level of disingenuity. Parties like the PS and politicians like Interioir Minister Mari Rantanen and Finance minister Riikka Purra are to blame.

President Alexander Stubb, who has been quite after the first stabbing, is now quoted by Yle as saying the second stabbing is “perhaps” a wakeup call for Finland.

It IS a long overdue wake up call! Wake up Stubb!

Rantanen, who based her campaign on racist and far-right conspiracy theories, was quoted as saying in an Helsingin Sanomat interview that there is no connection between the stabbings in Oulu and the government’s migration policy and debate of the issue.

One of Rantanen’s racist soundbite “hits:” “We must not be so blue-eyed that soon we will not be blue-eyed.” In Finnish, sinisilmäinen, or blue-eyed, means being naive. Source: Facebook

“I don’t see any connection between the stabbings in Oulu and immigration policy and talking about it,” she said, adding that her infamous statement about blue eyes was not racist.

“I don’t think I have spread racist thinking in Finland.,” continued Rantanen. “And what does that have to do with this stabbing in Oulu?”

And then there was Purra, who blamed the first stabbing on youth gangs comprising of brown and black members. She was later forced to eat her words.

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Mari Rantanen has no credibility and should resign – her racist posts reveal who she is

Posted on by Migrant Tales

In the face of the far right in government, the only thing that Prime Minister Petteri Orpo can parrot is that we have a good government program.

The recent MEP election revealed how little credibility Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s government has. The Perussuomalaiset (PS)*, suffered a stinging blow. The National Coalition Party (NCP) was spared by the good showing of three candidates, Mika Aaltola, Pekka Toveri, and Henna Virkkunen.

The election changed a lot of matters. For one, did it weaken the support of the pushback law getting the needed two-thirds majority? Has the PS’ stint in Orpo’s government shortened? Did the poor showing of the PS embolden some MPs not to give their vote of confidence Tuesday to PS Minister of Economic Affairs Wille Rydman?

Two stories with legal experts, university professors and other social influencers speaking out against the pushback law drafted by the government in Helsingin Sanomat and Yle.

The  Draft Act on Temporary Measures to Combat Instrumentalised Migration, or pushback law is now at the constitutional committee. I am certain that its chairperson, Heikki Vestman of the NCP, would not think twice at throwing Finland’s Human Rights, international agreements and constitution under the bus. He does so because he falsely believes he’ll never become a refugee.

Moreover, and taking a look at other EU borders, it’s clear that in Finland will see violence, suffering, and death.

If we look at the brainchild and cheerleader of the pushback law, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen and the PS with the support of the NCP, we only have to look at her social media history to conclude that she is the last person we should be listening to.

Looking at Rantanen’s and the PS’ racist history can be found in social media. It is there, trying to desperately hide from the public’s view.

Below, are some of Minister Rantanen’s most racist and infamous quotes:

Just before the MEP election on 9 June, the PS reached up the fear-mongering of asylum seekers in its campaign brochure by picturing them as hoards.

Continue reading “Mari Rantanen has no credibility and should resign – her racist posts reveal who she is”

There is a connection between far-right conspiracy theories and violence

Posted on by Migrant Tales

After Perussuomalaiset (PS)* Finance Minister Riikka Purra was forced to eat her words after falsely claiming that the stabbing of a 12-year-old in Oulu was the work of youth gangs, few if any analysis is being made about the government’s hard-right immigration policy and its spread of conspiracy theories like the great replacement.

In racist code, “youth gangs” means non-white youths.

A twelve-year old boy, “who is a Finnish citizen but with a foreign background, was stabbed in Oulu Thursday. Source: Yle.

Fiancne Minister Purra and Interior Minister Mari Rantanen disguise far-right conspiracy theories like the great replacement as “statistics.” The most recent example was a talk a little over a week by Purra and Rantanen.

Continue reading “There is a connection between far-right conspiracy theories and violence”

Riikka Purra and the PS are desperate for “news”

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales has published many stories exposing how parties like the Perussuomlaiset (PS)* use migrant crime to attract support and votes. Finance Minister and PS Chairperson Riikka Purra jumped the gun Thursday by blaming a terrible stabbing in Oulu on “youth gangs.”

“Youth gangs” is code for black and brown youths.

Masters at making storms in tea cups, especially when it involves migrants and asylum seekers, Purra wishes in the first tweet a speedy recovery to the victim. In the second tweet, where she is forced to eat her words, Purra does not even wish a recovery apparently because the victim is a so-called “person with a migrant background.”

On Thursday, Purra tweeted (formerly Twitter):

“In broad daylight, in the middle of a shopping center, a young man is stabbed. I hope the victim survives. With street crime, gangs, etc., we are unfortunately following the same trend as in other [European] countries. The government is working, but it’s horrible, what have we arrived to in this country!”

On Friday, Purra was forced to eat her words.

Note that in the first tweet she blames “youth gangs” at the top but mentioned the suspect’s far-right ties at the end of the second tweet.

“Extremism, drugs, robberies, gangs – the problems are growing. We must take the deterioration in security seriously, increase penalties, and stop shying away from all kinds of violence. The victim in Oulu is 12 years old, the perpetrator has a background in the far-right movement, according to the police.”

These two tweets demonstrate how desperate the PS is after its stinging election defeat on Sunday.

The Perussuomalaiset’s political Stalingrad

Posted on by Migrant Tales

I still remember clearly the 2011 general election when the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party saw the number of MPs surge to 39 from 5 previously. Some thought that the PS would implode as the Rural Party did in 1972.

It took over 13 years for the PS to suffer its worst election loss in the European parliamentary election, when it saw its support dive from 13.8% in 2019 with three MEPs to 7.6% to one MEP.

The shock of the MEP election result was written all over Riikka Purra’s and PS secretary Harri Vuorenpää’s faces. Source: Iltalehti.

Before the election and if opinion polls are to be believed, PS chairperson and Finance Minister Riikka Purra thought that the party would end up in third place with three MEPs.

The secret to the PS’ success would be its favorite scapegoat: migration. Purra and her party poured it on before the election by villifying migrants and supporting a Rwanda model to send asylum seekers to Africa.

Four days before the election, Interioir Minister Mari Rantanen and Riikka Purra hosted a talk about how migration means trouble for society. It was an opportunity to step up on the xenophobia gas pedal and spread the conspiracy theories like the great replacement.

Interioir Minister Mari Rantanen, copies Nigel Farage and depicts migrants as “swarms.” Source: Perusuomalainen

Two critical questions emerge after the MEP election:
– Was it a knock-out blow that will send the PS flying back to the minor single-digit political leagues?
– With growing dissent against Purra and her party’s austerity policies, will it force the party to split like in 2017?

If the political price that the PS will pay for its defeat on Sunday was a massive political blow, it’s clear that 2011-2014 was a lost decade when Finland flirted with racism and fascism.

Continue reading “The Perussuomalaiset’s political Stalingrad”

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, the facilitator of Finland’s hard right who concocts political mirages and lies

Posted on by Migrant Tales

One of the matters that has amazed me about National Coalition Party Prime Minister Petteri Orpo is his alternative truth about non-existent the threat of the hard right in Finland. Despite the racism and far right scandals that have eaten away at his government’s credibility, Orpo actually believes that parties will change if you go to bed with them.

“In my opinion, [the Perussuomalaiset PS*] are not a far-right party anymore,” Orpo was quoted as saying in March in Politico.

That statement was made after he repeatedly said that there are no far-right parties in government.

Prime Minister Petter Orpo revealing his true colors. Source: Facebook

Source: Politico

When the issue of far-right parties in government was brought up at a session of parliament by Green MP Maria Ohisalo, Orpo was evidently irritated by the question.

“There is no hard right or extreme right in Finland,” he snapped. “Those are pretty strong accusations If you give the impression that some people are Putinists or pro-Russian, or that some party in Finland is destroying the rule of law! I hope this is not about campaigning in the European elections.”

Continue reading “Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, the facilitator of Finland’s hard right who concocts political mirages and lies”

Finland’s Islamophobic network

Posted on by Migrant Tales

In writing the Finland chapter for the European Islamophobia Report 2023, I sometimes give a partial preview of the “Central Figures in the Islamophobic Network.” Last year’s pick could well be the same candidates for 2024.

An imam I spoke to a few years ago described well the difference of the racism of the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* and the National Coalition Party (NCP). “The Perussuomalaiset don’t hide their racism but the NCP does,” he said.

With the entry of the PS in government, I have noticed that the party has gone in the closet like the NCP with its hostile racist views. The PS, like the NCP, can claim with a poker face that the migration policy of the government isn’t racist because it is in line with other Nordic countries.

If this is the case, we could then conclude that all the Nordic countries’ migration policy is racist.

Despite the latter, the PS continues to be one of the most important facilitators for Finland’s Islamophobic, far-right network. It is Hungarian Trojan Horse making its presence felt in all circles. Like the NCP, it uses the cover of institutional racism to hide its vile racism.

The PS continues to have close ties with groups that are hostile to Muslim groups like Suomen Sisu, Soldiers of Odin, Hommaforum, Kansallismielisten liitouma (National Alliance), Sinimusta Liike (Black-and-Blue Movement), the banned neo-Nazi Pohjoismainen vastarintaliike, and others.

All the 39 MPs of the PS elected to parliament based their campaign on the party’s anti-immigration theme.

The main PS ministers of government, Minister of Finance Riikka Purra, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen, Justice Minister Leena Meri, Minister for Development Cooperation Ville Tavio, present and former Minister of Economic Affairs Wille Rydman and Vilhelm Junnla, Speaker of Parliament Jussi Halla-aho, maintain the hostile environment against migrants and minorities.

The European Islamophobia Report 2023 will come out in the summer.