Defence Minister Jussi Niinistö’s far-right past is a fact

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Defence Minister Jussi Niinistö* calls into question professor Martin Scheinin’s motives for criticising the proposed security legislation which will allow the Security Police and military intelligence to troll emails and calls of citizens without informing people they have been spied on.

Niinistö says Scheinin’s views are questionable because of activities in the professor’s youth when he had a job for a year with the Finnish Communist Party indicating that he was a supporter of totalitarianism.

Read the original blog where he criticized experts such as Martin Scheinin here.

Niinistö’s reasoning is hard to follow because Scheinin’s criticisms related to surveillance activities without democratic public oversight. Niinistö is trying to fast track the tightened security legislation through parliament and was annoyed when parliamentary speaker Paula Risikko sent the bill back to committee after the professor’s remarks.

Niinistö is walking on very thin ice when he refers to the youthful radical activities of his critics. in the early 90s, according to Uusi Suomi, he worked very closely with the extreme rightist The National Cultural Front the program of which included purging the country of refugees and other impure non-Finnish elements according to fascist traditions in Europe’s recent past.

Niinistö was an ideologue of the group and a regular contributor to their publication. For half a decade now we have had the Equality Act in place in Finland which prohibits discrimination based on things like race, religions, disability, etc… even political viewpoint. Finland has also ratified international treaties like the UN Treaty on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Yet Niinistö and his party colleagues are constantly calling for tighter laws against immigrants- whatever that means.

Continue reading “Defence Minister Jussi Niinistö’s far-right past is a fact”

A new book on media solidarities authored by Kaarina Nikunen highlights Migrant Tales’ activism

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Thank you Kaarina Nikunen, a University of Tampere professor of media and communication research, for writing about our blog community in “Media Solidarities, Emotions, Power and Justice in the Digital Age” published in February. 

“I consider activist media, such as Migrant Tales, as part of the larger concept of alternative media that includes a variety of media promotions. What unites them is their small size, independence from state and markets, horizontal participatory organization, as well as motives for solidarity, equality and justice – although we can see that not all media that claims to be alternative, assume these values (Bailey et al., 2007b; Downing 2001: Pajnik and Downing, 2008).”

“One of the reasons why Migrant Tales has been able to cover a series of exclusive stories on the conditions of asylum seekers and deportations is related to the networks and close connections with the asylum seekers and immigrants. Since many of the citizen journalists of Migrant Tales are immigrants themselves, they have been able o build trust with the community of asylum seekers and immigrants.”

“The [Migrant Tales] blog operates on a voluntary basis, on an open code WordPress-platform without any external funding. It might even characterized as a hobby. Yet, it is interconnected with professional media by feeding them stories on issues connected with migration. Despite the lack of permanent funding or support, the writers of the blog conduct investigative journalism on topics that can take weeks or even months of their personal time. The editor of Migrant Tales takes pride in the economic independence of the blog. In his view, the fact that it doesn’t accept any sponsors provides freedom from outside pressure.”

“Migrant Tales is an example of a new media economy that makes use of voluntary work in different ways. It is also an example of the shift in media landscape where blogs and social media sites have acquired central space in public debates and challenged the role of mainstream media in society.”

 

Onko natsitervehdysten jakelija natsipelle?

Posted on by Reija Härkönen

Aamulehdessä julkaistiin Tuomas Rimpiläisen asiallinen artikkeli tulossa olevasta farssioikeudenkäynnistä, Oulun syyttäjänviraston nostamasta syytteestä toimittaja Johanna Vehkoota vastaan.

Ansioitunut toimittaja Johanna Vehkoo oli sosiaalisen median kirjoituksessa Lokan häirinnästä ärsyyntyneenä kutsunut oululaista Junes Lokkaa natsipelleksi.

Lokka kuuluu äärioikeistolaiseen rähinäremmiin, jonka toimintatavoista Rimpiläinen kertoo artikkelissaan. Muutos-puolueen jäsen on saanut tuomion kiihottamisesta kansanryhmää vastaan.

Lokka on siis tullut tunnetuksi lähinnä rasistisena nettikeskustelijana ja ikävänä häirikkönä useissa rasisminvastaisissa tilaisuuksissa, mutta myös natsimielisyydellä hän on julkisesti flirttaillut. Muistatte varmasti poliittisen kohutapauksen, kun kansanedustaja Hirvisaari kutsui eduskuntaan tamperelaisen ystävänsä ja kuvasi tätä eri puolella eduskuntataloa natsitervehdystä tekemässä. Potkuthan siitä tuli puolueesta, vaikkakin kansanedustaja sai vielä vaalikauden loppuun jatkaa toimiaan eduskunnassa.

Eipä aikaakaan, kun kansanedustajalla oli jälleen samanmielisiä vieraita, oululainen Muutos-puolueen jäsen Junes Lokka kavereineen. Tällä kertaa kuvaussessioissa käytettiin ns. käännettyä natsitervehdystä, Quenelle-tervehdystä, josta on tullut suosittu uusnatsien joukossa. Ja jälleen levisivät sosiaalisessa mediassa kuvat eduskunnan häpäisystä.

Junes Lokka quenelle

Rasisminvastainen yhteisö tarttui asiaan, eduskunnassa otetuista kuvista lähetettiin kopiot kaikkiin päämedioihin ja myös esim. eduskunnan silloiselle puhemiehelle, Eero Heinäluomalle. Kaikki olivat hiirenhiljaa. Eduskunnan arvovallalla ei niin enää ollut väliä, kun tapauksella ei saatu Soinin silloiseen puolueeseen otetta ja Hirvisaari oli jo poliittisesti unohdettu mies. Media ei enää olisi samasta aiheesta saanut klikkauksia, eikä kukaan kai halunnut uhrata omaa aikaansa ja mainettaan tämän viiteryhmän toilailuun ja jonkun kummallisen tervehdyksen tutkimiseen.

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Finland’s integration program discriminates and offers fairy tale views of our society

Posted on by Migrant Tales

I never have or want to “integrate.” I have, however, learned how to survive in Finland. 

If there is one matter that the sexual assault cases of Oulu have exposed in the raw is a false expectation about migrants. If we listen to the media, police and politicians, migrants cannot commit crimes because Finns rarely do if ever break the law.  White Finns are model humans, asylum seekers are not. 

This erroneous expectation becomes clear when the Oulu police and the media announce a new sexual abuse case by “a person of foreign origin,” which is code for Muslim, asylum seeker, and non-EU citizen.

Unfortunately, more of these types of crimes will come to light because men commit such crimes constantly.

Source: Goodreads. 

Blaming asylum seekers and migrants for not “integrating” enough reveals our false expectations and ignorance of cultural diversity.

Take effective steps to do away with racism and discrimination if you are serious about integrating newcomers.

I have worked in helping new migrants to get an understanding of Finnish society and their rightful places in it.

If a student states that there is no equality in Finland, I agree with him. All this talk about how we respect equality in Finland is a lie. The correct question you must ask is who has the right to demand equality in Finland.

Source: Goodreads. 

But what can you expect with the rise of far-right parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* in this decade and the present government that wants to label and shame Muslims and other groups? What can you expect from a country where mainstream parties like the National Coalition Party and Social Democrats lack the leadership to speak out against racism but instead succumb to it?

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Finnish government and City of Oulu officials: Where is the concern and outrage?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Almost two days have elapsed since the Oulu mosque was the target of vandalism. Did you read from any government minister expressed concern about what happened? What about the City of Oulu, which has labelled all asylum seekers as potential sex offenders by banning such people from visiting child care centers and schools?

Where is the leadership and outrage after the Oulu mosque was vandalized Tuesday for the ninth time?

The media was especially active about reporting about the sexual assault cases. A Migrant Tales story revealed that from November 27 to February 13, Ylealone had published 77 stories on the topic. On one day (January 14), it had published 13 stories.

The government in its futility and campaigning for the April parliamentary elections announced an immigration crime prevention plan. One of the aims is to give asylum seekers a test about Finnish values.

With the knee-jerk reaction of the government and City of Oulu to the sexual assault cases, which some would interpret as racist, shouldn’t these officials attend a basic course on cultural diversity and anti-racism?

In December, when the mosque was vandalized for a seventh and eight time, the Lutheran Church did express concern and offered its solidarity.

What do the silence and inaction say about the state of Finland?

Read the full story here.

Oulu mosque vandalized for the ninth time

Posted on by Migrant Tales

THIS STORY WAS UPDATED

The Oulu mosque was vandalized Tuesday for the ninth time since September 2017, according to Dr Abdul Mannan, who heads the Islamic Society of Northern Finland. The police said in a statement the attack took place at 5:10 am when a suspect smashed a window with a bike rack and threw a smoke grenade inside the premises.  The fire department was called as well. 

Dr Mannan said that the attacks against the mosque are becoming too common and he is hopeful that the perpetrator is caught.

In December the mosque was attacked a seventh and eighth time.

The suspect used a bike rack to smash the window at 5.10 am and threw a smoke grenade inside the premises. Source: Dr Abdul Amman.
The prayer matt damaged by the smoke grenade (left) with smashed glass lying over the floor and chair. Photo: Dr Abdul Mannan.

“We installed a new very good surveillance system that should [hopefully] help to identify and capture the culprit,” he said.

Dr Mannan makes no effort to hide his frustration.

“I have said many times that the media is not helping the situation but adding fuel to the fire,” he said. “The most recent attack against our mosque is an example of how hate speech encourages some to acts of violence.”

Dr Mannan said that it was unfair to blame Muslims for what happened in Oulu concerning the sexual assault cases.

“None of the suspects in custody are members of our congregation,” he said. “Muslims of Oulu are law-abiding and should not be the target of people’s anger and hate.”

Oulu’s knee-jerk reaction to the sexual assault crimes will do a lot of harm to the city’s image. Blame the media, police, politicians.

Posted on by Migrant Tales

The question Migrant Tales asked a while back if the City of Oulu’s decision to ban visits by asylum seekers to child care centers and schools is legal. Can you ban a single group, in this case, asylum seekers, from visiting such places? As far as how the law works in Finland, the ban should apply to everyone and not to one specific group.

As we all know, the ban is due to the sexual assault cases where some 16 “persons of migrant background” – code for asylum seeker, Muslim, non-EU nationals – are suspects.

We got in touch with the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman about this and have yet to get a call back from them.

The same goes for the City of Oulu’s Director of Education and Culture Mika Penttilä. He has not called back after repeated phone calls.

Section 6 of the Constitution states the following:  “Everyone is equal before the law. No one shall, without an acceptable reason, be treated differently from other persons on the ground of sex, age, origin, language, religion, conviction, opinion, health, disability or other reason that concerns his or her person.”

How should we interpret Section 6 of the Constitution? If there is a ban, like the one in Oulu, it must apply to everyone.

The ban, which is an overreaction and I believe illegal, is making Oulu trip over itself due to a lack of political leadership and the parliamentary elections in April.

An elementary school in Oulu was the target of recent attacks on social media due to a false rumor that asylum seekers had visited the school. Kello School principal, Timo Soini, said that the attacks amounted to threats and insults, according to Yle.

Read the full story (in Finnish) here.

“Two women and a man visited [the school] last week who were of multicultural origin and Finnish citizens,” said Soini. “They have lived in Finland all their lives and came to give talks to middle school students about discrimination and racism.”

Continue reading “Oulu’s knee-jerk reaction to the sexual assault crimes will do a lot of harm to the city’s image. Blame the media, police, politicians.”

Sampo Terho says clean up the mess his party created thanks to tighter asylum laws

Posted on by Migrant Tales

What is the difference between the far-right Perussuomalaiset (PS)* and Blue Reform party? The PS is openly racist while Blue Reform is a racist party with a bow tie. Both are racist parties that aim retarding and undermining migrants, minorities and Others from having a greater voice in Finland. 

Their aim is to keep Finland white by denying Others their rightful place in our society. They are not interested in integration but on how to teach and keep migrants and minorities as second- and third-class citizens.

Both the PS and Blue Reform are an aberration that represent the worst of our society. They are the first modern party that uses Islamophobic and xenophobic rhetoric to gain political party.

Sampo Terho, the chairperson and minister for European affairs, culture and sport, has the audacity to state below that we need to “manage immigration.” Manage?! After his former party, the PS, spearheaded tougher immigration laws that tightened family reunification and did away with residence permits on humanitarian grounds?! These types of policies not only told asylum seekers that we don’t want you here but created thousands of undocumented migrants from a few hundred before.   

WARNING: RACIST CONTENT – We need to “manage Immigration” is one of Terho’s favorite catchphrases. What he is saying is that we should clean up the mess his party created in government concerning immigration and asylum policy.

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Suojeleeko Antti Häkkänen lapsia vai ministerin salkkua?

Posted on by Reija Härkönen
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Kuva: Yle

Alaikäisten avioliitot kielletään vihdoin Suomessa. Asia on oikea, mutta tapa, jolla oikeusministeri Häkkänen markkinoi lainvalmistelua itselleen vaaliaseeksi, on vastenmielinen.

Kun Häkkänen sopivasti näin vaalien alla kehaisee Twitterissä: ”Aloittaessani oikeusministerinä pöydälleni tuotiin alaikäisten tyttöjen hakemuksia avioliittoon. Pidin tätä maan tapaa vääränä ja käynnistin lainvalmistelun, jolla alaikäisten avioliitot kielletään Suomessa. Lapsia on suojeltava. @kokoomus”, Keskustan Aila Paloniemi käy kuittaamassa; ”Eduskunnassa on toistuvasti nostettu lapsiavioliittojen kieltäminen esille. Hyvä, että olemme voineet olla vauhdittamassa ministeriön lainvalmistelua. Yhteistyöllä syntyvät parhaat tulokset !”

Monet ovatkin pitäneet tätä tärkeää asiaa esillä ja useimmat varmasti vilpittömästi kaikkia lapsia suojellakseen.

Antti Häkkäsen Twitter-seinältä käy ilmi, mille äänestäjäryhmälle asian käsittely ja sen nosto otsikoihin juuri nyt on tarkoitettu:

Lopettakaa näiden laittomien turvapaikanhakijoiden tulo niin loppuu ne anomuksetkin.Menikö jakeluun.

Parempi myöhään kuin ei milloinkaan! Mutta mitäs jos lapsi lähetetään kotimaahansa avioitumaan, voiko Suomessa tehdä asialle mitään? Kun ympärileikkauksistakin vaietaan rasismin pelossa, ainakin koulujen henkilökunta eli juuri he jotka asiasta voisivat tietää?

Hyvä @anttihakkanen !! Nämä lapsiavioliitot ovat sairasta!

Kuvaavaa on se, että Häkkänen ei millään lailla korjaa sitä käsitystä, että hakemukset tulevat muslimeilta ja nimenomaan pikkutyttöjen naimiseksi.

Onko nyt niin, että Antti on päässyt peräti ministeriksi, mutta ei keksi muita tapoja kuin rasistien kutittelu uusiakseen kansanedustajan mandaattinsa? Vain onko Kokoomuksen sisällä rasistien kilpailu jo niin tiukkaa, että kaikkien pitää näyttää kykynsä tällä alueella pysyäkseen johtoportaan mielessä?

Tunteisiin ja muukalaisvihaan tätäkään asiaa ei tarvitse vaalien alla perustaa. Oikeusministeriössäkin on asiaa tarkasteltu asia- ja tilastopohjalta ja muistio alaikäisavioliittojen sääntelytarpeesta on julkaistu kesäkuussa 2018.

Ministeri Häkkäsen ministerivuosina 2017-18 tehdyistä päätöksistä en löytänyt tietoa tuosta paperista tai muualta. Vuonna 2016 on hakemuksia alle 18- vuotiaiden avioitumisesta jätetty 8 kpl ja lupia myönnetty 5, vuonna 2015 hakemuksia oli 14 ja lupia myönnettiin 8. Kovin suurta anomusnippua ei siis liene Häkkäsen pöydälle laskettu seuraavinakaan vuosina, eikä pikkulasten vuoksi ole herran ihan tarvinnut surusta riutua, kun hakijat lienevät olleet enimmäkseen n. 17-vuotiaita, kuten aiemminkin.

Useimmiten poikkeusluvan myöntämisen perusteena on ollut uskonnollinen vakaumus. Alle 17-vuotiaille on tarvittu perusteeksi raskaus. Vuosien 2010 – 2016 aikana 80 prosentissa tapauksista molemmat hakijat ovat olleet Suomen kansalaisia. Alle 16-vuotias on saanut avioliittoluvan vain yhden ainoan kerran (v. 2012), jolloin poikkeuslupa myönnettiin raskauden perusteella 15-vuotiaalle tytölle ja hänen 18-vuotiaalle puolisolleen.

Continue reading “Suojeleeko Antti Häkkänen lapsia vai ministerin salkkua?”