Hyvät Kolarilaiset ja Suomalaiset,
Olemme pakolaisia ja asumme Kolarin vastaanottokeskuksessa jossa oli rauhanomainen mielenosoitus keskiviikkona. Jotkut, joka ovat lukeneet mitä tapahtui keskiviikkona Lapin Kansasta, väittävät että olimme tehnet mielenosoituksen koska vihamme suomalaisia. Väite ei voisi olla kauempana totuudesta.
Mielenilmaisu ei ollut Suomeen tai suomalaisia vastaan vaan sitä huono kohtelua ja rasismia jota olemme kokeneet vastaanottokeskuksessa.
Jos olisi mahdollista, haluaisimme puhua kaikkien suomalaisten kanssa ja kertoa heille että olemme kiitollisia siitä mitä olemme saanet. Jotkut voi kysyä miksi emme lähde toisen maahan. Me tulimme Suomeen seuraavien syiden takia: ihmiset rakastavat rauhaa, te olette inhimillisiä, armeliaita eikä ole rasisteja ja teillä on iso sydän. Nämä ovat syyt.
Mielenosoitus oli valitus johtajalle.
Rakastemme suomalaisia ja haluamme rakentaa hyvät suhteet teidän kanssa. Jos voisin kysyä, onko kuka teistä koskaan kokeneet uhkailun ja rasismin? Mitä tekisitte jos kohtaisitte nämä ongelmat?
Meidän sanamme ovat rehellisiä ja tulevat sydämestä: Me rakastamme suomalaisia. Tämä on se syy miksi tulimme teidän maahan ja hakea turvaa.
Kiitoksia teidän inhimillisyydestänne ja kaikesta siitä mitä olette antaneet meille.
* Kävimme eilen Kolarissa keskustelemassa tästä asiasta kyläläisten kanssa.
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Dear people of Kolari* and Finland,
We are refugees staying at the Kolari asylum reception center that had a peaceful demonstration on Wednesday. Some, who have read the story in Lapin Kansa, claim falsely that we carried out the demonstration because we hate Finland and its people. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The demonstration wasn’t against Finland or the Finnish people but about the ill-treatment and racism we’ve received at the reception center.
If we could, we’d like to speak to the Finnish people and tell them that we are grateful refugees. Some may ask why don’t we go to another country. We came to Finland for the following reasons: the people love peace, are humane, are merciful and not racists and have a big heart. These are the reasons why we came to your country.
The demonstration was a complaint against the manager of the camp.
We love the Finnish people and want to build a good relationship with you. If I could, I’d ask you if you’ve ever been targets of threats and racism? What would you do if faced with such a problem?
These words are honest and come from the bottom of our hearts: We love the Finnish people. It’s for this reason why we chose your country and sought safety from the sectarian killings.
Thank you for your humanity and for everything that you have given to us.
* A group of us asylum seekers from the Kolari reception center visited some townspeople on Friday to talk to them about these matters.
What are you whining? There are thousands of finnish people who live in streets without warm food, sometimes no food at all, only in dreams they can live in hotel with full roomservice. You have shelter, food and you dont have to fear war, and still you are whining. You are now in finland and this is our way of life. Everything here costs and even you have to pay. You choose to come here. We dont change our food, habbits, culture or anything because you dont like it !!!
This is FINLAND, love it or leave it
And you have to realize that WE, the finnish people, are paying everything that you get. Evevn those who dont have enough money to buy their own food!!!
Anyone, who is suffering, be it a Finn or a non-Finn, should be helped. We have to have understanding for such people.
Masa, why don’t you stop your whining and smell the coffee. While poverty and social inequality is an ever-problematic issue in Finland, you cannot compare it with what’s going on in countries like Syria. Is our way of life threatening people and placing them in the middle of nowhere to feel forsaken? What would you do if you felt mistreated? Finns in the United States were very active in this sense.
Show more of your humane side, not your anger. It doesn’t help.