By Enrique Tessieri
The opportunity to make political capital out of immigrants, refugees and asylum-seeker has proven irresistible to some politicians ranging from the True Finns to Social Democrats. Certainly on this list you will find politicians from all of Finland’s major and minor parties.
It’s pretty clear that the election in April will be dominated by immigration and refugees. The answer is simple: immigrants and refugees are easy targets and they awaken voters’ passions even if 2.9% of the population in Finland are foreigners.
A recent review of Milla Hannula’s book, Maassa maan tavalla, by Helsingin Sanomat blasts her arguments to pieces and with it the central argument of the so-called “immigration critics.” The daily states, correctly, that being an “immigration critic” is only a word hiding anti-immigration sentiment attempting to make xenophobia acceptable.
We at Migrant Tales had spotted the red herring of the “immigration critics” a long time ago.
It is sad but never in the history of Finland have so many politicians jumped on the “immigration critic” bandwagon and appealed to the worst in Finns: blatant racism and hatred of people in need.
When the True Finns’ bubble bursts there will be a lot of angry voters because they will have noted that they have been taken for a ride.
It will be the day when these so-called “immigration critics” will lose face among the voters for good.