I, if anyone, wishes Finland’s new prime minister, Sanna Marin, the best of luck and success.
Someone asked me a while back what I thought about former Prime Minister Antti Rinne’s government and if it signalled major improvements and changes in immigration policy and in fighting racism.
My answer was short: It all depends on the deeds.
While there has been a lot of talk by the government about respecting human rights, the rule of law, we still have not moved forward even if suspicion and racism are no longer the narrative as was the case in Juho Sipilä’s government.
We’re still in the same place we were before: The hardline policy of the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) is still the rule; there is a national outcry and lack of leadership about repatriating 10 women and about 30 children from the al-Hol camp in Syria; racism is profitable politically as opinion polls show; there are no new effective steps to tackle racism, job discrimination, hate speech and hate crime in our society.
When Prime Minister Marin speaks of ensuring that Finland remains an inclusive and socially just society, she must mean for migrants and minorities as well.

I might be wrong and I hope I am. If the picture above and the ethnic makeup of Marin’s government is anything to go by, it sill does not show any visible minorities.
Hopefully this will change soon.
