A story published Wednesday in Politico exposed the misogyny against Finland’s woman prime minister, Sanna Marin, and the women members of her cabinet. Considering that Finland’s biggest opposition party, the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* which is also leading in opinion polls, hate speech has raised its head for many years.
Hate speech and the PS are like a perfect couple walking in the park with a rabid dog on a short leash. The dog, which is used to impress voters, eventually bites its owners, and hard.
A report from the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence concluded that Marin’s government is “overwhelmingly” targeted by sexist online harassment.
Politico writes: “The five most targeted ministers, all female, were overwhelmingly victimized by misogynistic abuse attacking their values, demeaning their decision-making skills, and questioning their leadership abilities.”
So much for the myth of gender equality in Finland and that the police clamping down on online hate speech.
One of the most revealing matters about the report is that there are many similarities to the hate tactics of former US President Donald Trump.
In the United States, white supremacists and nationalists were so much emboldened by Trump that they are today the biggest terrorist threat in the country.
Like in Trump’s the United States, PS chairperson Jussi Halla-aho uses dog whistles as well to target attacks against minorities, women, and anyone he does not like.
It should not come to any surprise that he strongly questioned the Nato report in a tweet.
Irrespective of the PS’ popularity, it will be interesting to watch which party would like to become the bedfellow of a racist, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic, and misogynic party.
Another important reminder that the report repeats is when will Finland get serious about hate speech and racism.