Viime aikoina on puhuttu siitä kuinka paljon poliitikot valehtelevat. Suomen lehdistö hyvin laiskasti seuraa näitä valheita ja kuka valheita kertoo. Puolue joka esittää vääristeltyä ja liioiteltua tietoa ja asioita, erityisesti silloin jos asia koskee maahanmuuttajia, niin perussuomalainen puolue kunnostautuu tässä.
Yhdysvaltain presidentti Donald Trump valehtele paljon. Washington Post lehdessä fakta-tarkastaa presidentin valheet. Valheet luokitellaan yhdellä, kahdella tai kolmella Pinokkiolla.
Virkaastuaisissa, Trump on tehnyt yli 13 430 valheita.
Migrant Tales otti selvää seuraavasta perussuomalaisten väittämästä: “Suuri osa postinjakajista, etenkin pääkaupunkinseudulla, on maahanmuuttajia,” sanoo Riikka Purra Jussi Halla-ahon ja Ville Tavion lehdistöttilaisuudessa.
Posti vastasi: “Suurin osa (80 %) Postin työntekijöistä Suomessa (pl Transval) on suomalaisia” JA “Suuri osa, 70 %, pääkaupunkiseudun postinjakajista on suomalaisia. Poiminnassa mukana alueet: Hki; Espoo Kirkkonummi Kauniainen; Vantaa Tuusula Nurmijärvi.”
Halla-aho, Tavio ja Purra saavat vääristelystä kolme Pinokkiota.
Suuri osa postinjakaijista pääkaupungin seudulla ovat suomalaisia, eikä maahanmuuttajia.
Kuva: Turun Sanomat ja Pinokkio nenät Hamid H. Alsammarraee.
In a bar in Lappila, located some 20 km from the city of Lahti, there is a sign on the wall the epitomizes all the hatred and mass murder committed by the Nazis: Arbeit Macht Frei (Work Sets you Free).
Why hasn’t any newspaper asked the owner of the bar, Juha Koskinen, if he will take down the Nazi sign? Migrant Tales has called numerous times. Koskinen does not answer the phone return calls.
This notorious slogan stood at the entrance of death camps like Auschwitz and Dachau.
In Finland, there is a lot of neo-Nazi sentiment these days. So much so, in fact, that small bars in small towns can place Nazi-era signs with near-impunity.
What can you expect in a country where the biggest party in the polls has sympathies and ties with neo-Nazi groups.
Steen Pramming summarizes why Nazi sympathies are still found in Finland these days, even if this country signed the armistice with the former Soviet Union in September 1944.
Just like Islamophobia and racism, our education system has failed in ridding our society of these social ills.
Finland tries to put itself as a special case, when, in fact, it wasn’t. We did not fight a separate war against the Soviet Union but were up to our necks in World War 2 and allied with Nazi Germany.
It was only this year when Finland finally acknowledged that Finnish SS recruits took part in the Holocaust in Russia.
Every voice raised against racism chips away at its power.
Reino Eddo-Lodge
Watching last Thursday’s parliamentary question time was a repulsive experience. If the opposition Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party is to be believed, all of Finland’s problems hinge on migrants.
An article inVerkkouutiset claims that since Prime Minister Antti Rinne’s government began its mandate on June 6, nine of the eleven weekly parliamentary question times have dealt with migrants and or immigration policy.
Such political tactics by the PS are a blow to the institution’s credibility and its elected members.
One reason why the PS is leading the opinion polls these days is because they are feared and due also to ignorance or denial about racism in Finland. They believe that if they are too outspoken against their lies, they will scare away voters.
We at Migrant Tales have never let down our guard or given such a racist party the benefit of the doubt as the Finnish mainstream media too often does.
My views of the PS have not changed. It is a racist and far-right party that is today taking the county towards the path of Viktor Orbán’s Hungary. Read the original story here.
These are the constant lies that the PS spreads about migrants on Thursday’s question time:
Migrants are taking money away from white Finns;
The government puts the priorities of migrants before white Finns;
Migrants are a menace to society;
Migrants commit more crime than white Finns;
We must not allow Finland to turn into a Sweden when it comes to migrants;
Blah blah blah blah…
While all these claims are exaggerated lies, the strategy of the PS is simple: Finland’s most pressing problems hinge on migrants. Get rid of migrants and, presto, problem solved.
When you watch politicians of the PS making their anti-immigration cases in parliament, they don’t tell us whom they are speaking of and how many.
If they were to mention these two things, we’d understand that they are explicitly targeting asylum seekers who are Muslims and only about 10% of all migrants living in Finland.
At present, there are several things that are giving Finland a bad name: Islamophobia, the hostile environment, and hardline asylum policy.
The latest setback to Finland’s image was handed down by the European Court of Human Rights for violating Article 2 and 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Article 2 states that everyone has a right to life, while Article 3 of the Convention prohibits torture and inhumane treatment.
While the ruling reinforces what anti-racism activists have been saying for a long time about the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri), we must not forget that Finland’s immigration policy has a long history of committing human rights violations.
We could begin with some recent examples of repatriated Iraqi asylum seekers who were killed. Migrant Tales documented two cases as well as other ones.
Let’s not forget that the former government of Prime Minister Juha Sipilä gave the political support to Migri to declare some of the most violent countries like Somalia, Afghanistan, and Iraq as “safe countries” to deport asylum seekers.
When an asylum seeker is killed on his return, Finnish politicians like former Minister of Interior Kai Mykkänen offer “sad-and-tragic” consolation in the same empty way like politicians in the United States offer “thoughts and prayers” after a home-grown terrorist kills innocent people.
Some cases that remain as permanent dark spots in Finnish immigration history is the deportation of Ingrians and Estonians after the Continuation War (1941-44) and Soviet citizens during the Cold War.
Our past immigration policy continues to bring shame to us. It is unfortunate that we always return to it.
*A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
When I was a young journalist, the editor of the Buenos Aires Herald approached me and gave me some sound advice.
“Remember,” I recall him saying to me, “words are like bullets. Fairness in reporting a story is important. You don’t need a bazooka to kill an ant.
Following what the media is writing about Abdirahim Husu Hussein, this golden rule of responsible and fair journalism could not be truer. Destroying people with bazookas in a hostile environment against migrants and minorities is opinionated and racist journalism.
Helsinki City Councilperson Abdirahim Husu Hussein has been in the eye of a storm over a passenger who harassed him in a racist manner and who he was planning to leave the car at a bus stop but took the person to his final destination.
Hussein posted on Facebook on Sunday that he left the passenger by a bus stop in the freeway but all of this didn’t happen on the day he claimed.
“Only last week,” he said, “a passenger insulted me in a racist manner. I should have asked him to get out of the car, but I didn’t.”
Hussein has filed charges against the passenger who insulted him in a racist manner a week ago.
Even so, and for this mistake, the Helsinki city councilperson has been lynched by social media and print media, which has branded him “a liar.”
That’s not all. The media has put Hussein under scrutiny. One article questioned the veracity of a story that happened a long time ago to him when he woke up in a hospital after being hit with a baseball bat.
The media is not only attempting to take away his credibility but to break and destroy him as a person. The Finnish media uses a bazooka to kill an ant.
Finnish white privilege #66
Racist attacks and near-constant microaggressions and racist remarks against migrant and especially black taxi drivers are a sad fact. Hussein knows this too well.
A Helsingin Sanomatarticle wrote about the near-constant racist abuse suffered by a Ghanian taxi driver, and most recently, about a Somali taxi driver. There is also the case of a Somali driver who was assaulted. Etonians, who are white, suffer racist abuse from some passengers, too.
But what does Taksi Helsinki say about these cases and the fact that their visible migrant drivers get harassed in a racist manner by passengers?
No media has yet asked the company’s CEO, Jari Kantonen, if it has guidelines for those that drive for them in case a passenger starts to insult them in a racist manner.
Since Friday, I have without luck attempted to get in touch with the Taksi Helsinki CEO. He has not returned my calls.
“There are no such guidelines or training [how to deal with a racist passenger] offered by the [Taksi Helsinki] company,” said Hussein.
Gathering by the reaction of the media, members of his Social Democratic Party (SDP), and public opinion, there is one matter that stands out: The hatred of some white Finns of black people, especially outspoken ones like Hussein.
While I am certain that foreign taxi drivers, especially black drivers, are targets of racist abuse, there is no discussion going on in the media now about such a problem and how taxi companies guarantee their employees safe working spaces.
Even parties like the Social Democrats, of which Hussein is a member, appear to worry more about their poll standings than the rise of racism in Finland and of a racist party like the Perussuomalaiset (PS).* The party’s image is paramount now for the SDP.
The latest opinion poll published by Yle last week showed that support for the SDP had sunk by 1.7 percentage points to 13.9%, with the PS gaining 2.1 percentage points to lead the polls with 23%.
I wrote in May about the hypocrisy and double standards of the Finnish media when it came to another SDP politician, MP Hussein al-Taee. The SDP MP’s and Hussein’s cases expose the dark side, a blind spot of our collective denial of racism in our society and how we treat people of color.
While Hussein has apologized for what happened, it seems that many want blood since he has been outspoken against racism in Finnish society and in parties like the PS.
Many may see this as an opportunity to climb back into their shells and reassure themselves that racism is not a problem in Finland.
Believe me, it is. And Hussein’s case proves it beyond any doubt.
Ali Jahangiri, Hussein’s radio host partner, puts what happened into perspective by tweeting: “#husugate is a good example of the power structures [in our society]. When a member of the minority makes a mistake, he ends up losing all his credibility. Then again, a person [Jussi Halla-aho] in power who dreams of killing homosexuals ends up becoming the head of his party.”
Despite what happened, anti-racism activism will not disappear in Finland but get stronger.
*A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
In the ever exposed hypocrisy of Finland’s migrant integration program, it’s clear that two-way adaption is for the gullible.Do you believe in social fairy tales?
I don’t.
It is surprising why the Finnish school system has apparently done too little to look after children who are not white. As some studies reveal, schools are not safe places for non-white Finnish children but hostile and dangerous spaces.
For some, Finland is a very hostile country to children of color and other visible minorities. An Iraqi child looks out of the window from her detention cell in Joutseno. Source: Iltalehti.
With the hostile environment gaining pace in Finland, it’s clear that these spaces in school, which should be safe, will become ever-hostile.
The fact that the school system treats non-white Finns as second-class pupils, reveals a deep misunderstanding and ignorance of third-culture children and cultural diversity. Even if your child was born in Finland, has never visited his or her parents’ home country, and speaks Finnish better than their home language, the school system regards such pupils as of “foreign origin.”
Aminkeng A. Alemanji, a Cameroonian researcher who defended successfully in October 2016 his doctoral dissertation on anti-racism education, offers a solution.
“The issue in Finland is that we’re officially told that we are all [irrespective of our background] equal members of society but unofficially it is another story,” he continues. “If we claim that we are all equal, issues like racism cannot be tackled.”
According to Alemanji, a good example of the latter is the “appalling” treatment of minorities like the Somalis, who were born in Finland and are Finnish citizens and other non-white children who are often asked to go back home – when paradoxically their only home they know is Finland.
An Iraqi friend told me that at an elementary school in Mikkeli where both of his children are enrolled, the teacher recommended that he place “Finnish” as their mother tongue to avoid being in a special class with “foreigners.”
While this may be a pragmatic way to ensure that your children are put in the same class as white children, it is a step in the amalgamation-assimilation process. Speaking two languages or more at school is seen as a disadvantage that impairs your knowledge of Finnish.
The present system of classifying children at schools as “pupils with migrant origin” versus”natives” is outright discriminatory. It only serves to turn out second-class citizens with second-class rights.
Mika Koskinen is an Iltalehti reporter for a tabloid that likes to write sensationalist stories about migrants, especially asylum seekers.
Usually citing himself and other unreliable sources, Koskinen was at it again when he tried to figure out in a column how much do asylum seekers cost Finland.
Mika Koskinen of Iltalehi asks the Finnish state, municipalities and Kela (The Social Insurance Institution) how much do asylum seekers cost Finland.
In a video interview in mid-January, he falsely claimed that Finland was naive in allowing over 30,000 asylum seekers in 2015 because there is “evidence” that suggests that such people are prone to committing sexual assault crimes.
Of all the hysteria that his writing caused and which played right in to the Islamophobic rhetoric of far-right parties like the Perussuomalaiset*, only eight people of color were sentenced to prison terms in light of the sexual assault cases in Oulu.
Koskinen’s brand of journalism is shameful and racist. It resembles the clarion call of a social media lynch mob.
In the same way like Koskinen, we could ask how much does racism cost tax payers? If you spread lies and suspicion about asylum seekers and migrants, there chances of finding employment is hindered. Unemployment means social benefits.
The paper that was used to print this column could be used as toilet paper.
*A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
Suspected hate crimes reported to the police in Finland during 2018 totaled 910 cases, which is a 21.9% fall from 1,165 hate crimes in the previous year, according to the Police University College.
As in previous years, the lion’s share (86.8% versus 89% in 2017) of all hate crimes were motivated by national-ethnic origin (635 cases) and religion (155). That was followed by sexual orientation (73) and disability (48).
The only group that saw a rise in hate crime compared with 2017 was sexual orientation, which rose by 21.7%.
Suspected hate crimes during 2011-2018: Ethnic or national background (etninen tai kansallinen tausta); religion or belief (uskonto tai vakamus); sexual orientatation (seksuaalinen suuntatuminen); disability (vammaisuus); total (yhteensä). Souce: Police University College.
Of all national groups, the Iraqis faced the highest frequency of hate crime due to national and ethnic origin. The majority of hate crimes due to religious backgrounds were against Muslims.
“One of the biggest reasons why Iraqis saw the highest frequency of hate crime [in 2018] was because they were in 2015 the majroity of newcomers,” said W. Che, a Migrant Tales associate editor. “Vigilante groups like the Soldiers of Odin justified hate crimes with the support of a hostile environment against Muslims supported indirectly or directly by the police, politicians and the media.”
Twelve percent of all hate crimes reported were directed towards a member of the Roma minority. in Finland.
Jenita Ranta, a researcher at the Police University College, believed that a number of factors caused the fall in reported hate crime cases.
“The first [reason] is that hate crimes went down and that there were less of them,” she was quoted as saying in Yle. “One reason could be that people don’t report them to the police. I believe that the biggest reason is that in 2015, there came a lot of migrants and asylum seekers, which after that we saw a rise in hate crimes. Now there haven’t been so many immigrants [coming to Finland], and it could explain the fall [in hate crimes].”
According to some estimates, only one in five hate crimes is reported to the police in Finland.
Sometimes hate crimes aren’t treated as such as was the case of a Pakistani who was attacked by three Finnish youths in February 2018, who still believes that he was a victim of a hate crime.
A salient question that can be asked in light of the Pakistani case is how the Finnish police treat hate crimes.
Helsinki City Councilperson Abdirahim Husu Hussein has a lot of grit against racist parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* and its band of followers. The latest incident proves beyond any shadow of a doubt that the PS is a racist party.
Hussein is a courageous politician who gets stronger with every racist death threat and harassment hurled at him. In July, the white fragility of the party suffered a blow in summer when Hussein tweeted that the PS, those who voted and supported the party, are racists.
In their misguided and blind racism, politicians like PS leader Jussi Halla-aho, who was convicted of ethnic agitation and breaching the sanctity of religion in 2012, take constant snipes at Hussein. They ask themselves in anger how a black Finn can question their white supremacy and racism?
Hussein tweeted Monday that while he was driving his taxi, a passenger started to insult him in a racist manner. The councilperson decided that he had heard enough and told the passenger to get out of the car.
“He [the passenger] was quite surprised that I did not accept his money [for part of the ride]. I told him that I do not accept money from racists.”
Hussein asked in the tweet why the passenger thought he had the right to insult him in such a racist manner. “I would not go to your work an start to tell you off,” he ended the tweet.
Traffic law section 37: “A motor vehicle cannot stop on the motorway. We don’t want Somali taxi culture [in Finland], thank you!
Attempting to score political points and to satisfy his hatred of the Somalis, Halla-aho tweets that what Hussein did was wrong and that you cannot ask a passenger to get off a vehicle on a motorway.
Halla-aho even gives us that the section of the law that incorrectly prohibits motor vehicles from stopping on the freeway. Indeed, people on buses or in a taxi can get off on the motorway if there is a bus stop.
The PS under Halla-aho has shown clearly its far-right racist colors. Robin DiAngelo gives an excellent definition of racism that sits perfectly with the PS leader and his followers.
A racist is an individual, always an individual, who does not like people based on race – must be conscious – and who intentionally seems to be mean to them.
Blogger Saku Timonen offers some advice to Hussein.
“He [the passenger] could have been taken to the nearest police station [and charged with racist harassment and hate speech].”
*A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
