Tag: Muslims

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.”

Count to ten when people talk about migrants “embracing Finnish values”

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I will count to ten very slowly if I hear one more time, just one more time from a politician, that migrants should embrace Finnish values. Most of them, when they make that ethnocentric statement, don’t tell us never mind give us a clue what those “Finnish values” are. Do they even know?

Finance Minister Petteri Orpo considers Iraqis “a challenge” to Finland. He suggests that all Muslim men are chauvinists who oppress women (sic!). Read the full story here.

The next time when a person says “migrants of foreign origin,” which is usually code for non-EU citizens, Muslims, Africans, ask him the following questions and see how he or she is at a loss for good answers:

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Yle’s coverage of the Oulu sexual assault cases is an example of overkill and Islamophobia

Posted on by Migrant Tales

THE STORY WAS UPDATED

How would you describe Yle’s coverage of the Oulu sexual assault cases? From November 27 to February 13, the state-owned broadcaster published a whopping 77 stories on the topic. This is not counting all the other stories that the tabloids and other print media published during that period. 

On January 14, Yle published 13 stories about the topic.

Considering the hype, victimizing and labelling of migrants and Muslims, few if any members of these communities are interviewed in these stories.

Apart from the media, the police put out 11 statements between December 1 and February 13.

On top of all this hype and attention, the president, ministers, members of Islamophobic and anti-Muslim parties like the Perussuomalaiset,* Blue Reform, and the National Coalition Party throwing dirt on Finland’s Muslim community with statements like “how poorly they understand our values.”

How many suspects are we speaking of in Oulu? About 15? Finland’s Muslim community is estimated at 70,000-100,000. That means that the suspects make up  0.02%-0.15% of the total Muslim population of Finland.

Let’s make one matter clear: sexual assault is unacceptable as the #metoo campaign has brought to light. Even so, the reaction by Yle and others raises an unsettling question: Are we make a huge deal about this because the suspects are “people of foreign origin,” a code word meaning non-EU citizen and/or Muslim. Is public outrage as strong if the suspects were white Finns?

Pinning the blame on Muslims and migrants for what happened in Oulu is keeping our eyes off the ball and finding ways to challenge sexual assault cases.

Some questions I would ask is what is the role of the police and social workers in allowing such sexual assault cases to happen in the first case? They did happen on their watch. Is it easier to pin the blame on the migrant and Muslim community instead?

The coverage and hype in Finland about these sexual assault cases are best described in two words: overkill and Islamophobia.

Coverage by Yle of the Oulu sexual assault cases during November to February:

November  (1 story)

27.11. Poliisi tutkii Oulun Tuirassa epäiltyä kahden alaikäisen …

December (37 stories)

3.12. Poliisilla on lisää epäiltyjä alle 15-vuotiaan tytön törkeästä …

3.12. Oulussa tapahtuneen alaikäisen tytön raiskauksessa lisää …

4.12. Oulussa esiin tulleet epäillyt nuoriin kohdistuneet …

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WARNING RACIST CONTENT: Helsingin Sanomat survey exposes the DNA of Finland’s racism

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THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED

Helsingin Sanomat’s survey published on Monday after another questionable story on “model immigrants” was widely criticized on social media as outright racist. Even so, I would like to thank Finland’s largest daily for exposing the DNA of Finland’s racism and the continued low caliber and racism of its journalism on topics related to asylum seekers and migrants. 

The latest survey, the daily does not cite any sociologists or other experts and gives a clear picture of Finland’s racism without the daily taking any stand on the issue. Instead, Helsingin Sanomat cites as an “expert source” Perussuomalaiset (PS)* chairperson, Jussi Halla-aho, convicted of ethnic agitation and breaching the sanctity of religion in 2012.

One of these sources that were not cited is Gavan Titley, a University of Helsinki docent in media and communications.

“These poll questions are so badly constructed they would fail a first-year research methods module,” he said. “Given that they are constructed by a professional polling company, and a national newspaper, we can only assume that this bad method is deliberate. In other words, HS has decided to gain publicity, hits and clicks by shit-stirring about ‘migrants’ in an already tense situation. Debating this strategy, of course, only amplifies it – the only response is to cancel your subscription and tweet to them why you are doing so. There has always got to be some cost for this crap, no matter how minimal.”

As long as the media continues to see Halla-aho as an “expert” on migration issues, the ongoing debate will regress into a swamp of hearsay.

Here are some of the questions the survey asks:

  • Do you believe that the main factors for sexual assault crimes hinges on the migrants culture and religion? 65% answered in the affirmative;
  •  Politicians have done enough to awaken Finns to the news about the sexual assault cases (in Oulu by asylum seekers). The far-right PS were the most critical and believed that politicians had not done enough to raise awareness;
  • The best way to thwart sexual assault crimes is to tighten laws (26%); educate foreigners on Finnish laws and values (19%); lower the number of residence permits granted on humanitarian grounds (10%); and lower migration in general to Finland (10%).

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Finnish white privilege #59: In this country, you are guilty until proven innocent

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Interior Minister Kai Mykkänen and the government are using the same tactics as the Nazis in World War 2 but in a different context. The government is not rounding up people and killing them in cold blood but punishing them severely for the crimes others did. 

Imagine the migrant community of Finland, especially Muslims and non-EU citizens, sentenced by social media kangaroo courts encouraging social media lynchings while politicians reinforce such anti-social behavior  with their hostile statements and silence.

Social media lynchings are common in Finland these days. Source: Westword.

Such irresponsible behavior will cost society dearly in the way of social exclusion and increased racism.

Due to what a handful of sexual assault suspects did in Oulu, the government now vows to get tough and deport up to 8,000 asylum seekers. The government is also studying how it can revoke Finnish citizenship from dual citizens as well as terminate permanent residence permits if a person is convicted of a serious crime.

The lowliest of their plans is to find loopholes to circumvent human rights and refugee agreements at the cost of the rights of embattled asylum seekers.

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Dr Abdul Mannan: Muslims want to live in harmony with the rest of Finnish society

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Dr. Abdul Mannan, the imam and the president of the Oulu-based Islamic Society of Northern Finland, is adamant about one matter: Those who are guilty of sexual assault should pay for their crimes. He said that the suspects, which number 16 men, have also brought shame to their community.

“These types of crimes [committed by the suspects] are unacceptable in all religions,” he said. “We strongly condemn what they did because of their gravity and the friction they cause with the rest of society. The whole community is suffering because of their crime.”

Dr. Abdul Mannan.

Dr. Mannan, who has lived 26 years in Finland, said he knows well the country’s Islamic community, which is the second biggest religion in the country with more than 100,000 members after the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church. Muslims account for 2.8% of the total population.

Being a Muslim in today’s Finland and Europe is sometimes challenging. Since September 2017, the mosque in Oulu was vandalized eight times.

The sexual assault cases in Oulu are a good example of how whole groups are easily labelled.

“The media and journalists carry a lot of responsibility on how others see us [in a negative or positive light],” he said. “Journalists must understand that they play an important role in society. What they say has a big impact.”

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White Finnish privilege #56: How Islamophobic is Finland?

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Ever thought why political parties like the Perussuomalaiset,* Blue Reform and politicians from other parties, especially from the National Coalition Party, are so keen at pointing the finger at Muslims? Do they do so because they are racists? Opportunists? Political gold diggers? 

What about the media that permits this type of anti-social behavior to go near-unchecked?

I have never heard the following statement made by a Finnish journalist when interviewing Islamophobes: “There are in Finland an estimated 70,000 Muslims and that amounts to just 1.3% of the population. What gives?”

 

Islamophobia and hate crime go hand in hand as in the case of a Pakistani migrant who was brutally attacked in February. Source: Migrant Tales.

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White Finnish privilege #55: It is that time of the year – Christmas!

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Far-right poliicians and Islamophobes of varying hues commonly blame Muslims for banning traditional Christmas parties at school. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth. Those wanting to remove Christmas parties are Finns who believe that religion should not play a role in our schools since we are officially a secular state. 

What happens when most of the students of the schools aren’t Christians and you insist that the Christmas party must go on? What does it say about our respect for other religions and cultures? Is it a power trip? Does it send a warning that we call the cultural and religious shots in Finnish society?

The Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church is by far the biggest in Finland with 72.6% (4.004 million) of the population belonging to that faith. The second- and third-biggest religions in the country are the Islamic faith and the Finnish Orthodox Church with 1.3% (70,000) and 1.1% (61,690), respectively.

One question we could ask is why do we keep under a magnifying glass a congregation that accounts for only 1.3% of the population? The answer, I believe, is obvious: Islamophobia that lives another day thanks to denial and misinformation.

Why the open hostility if Finland is a country that guarantees religious freedom? Why is there so much hostility?

White Finnish privilege #55

A good example of white Finnish privilege is organizing Christmas parties at schools and by denying other religions the same public spaces. While Finland states publicly that the adaption of newcomers to Finland is a two-way process (Integration), it is in practice a one-way process (assimilation).

Disagree? Wasn’t President Sauli Niinistö quoted as saying in YLE, just before presidential election day that the only “public” spaces that foreigners have are the four walls of their homes?

Source: Yle News

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He said:

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The violent attack against a Pakistani migrant in Vantaa should be treated as a hate crime

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The Pakistani, who was attacked brutally in Vantaa on February 23 by three white Finnish youths carrying a knife, ax, and a pointed object, sees what happened to him was a hate crime.*  

If the incident had occurred in the UK, it would be recorded as a hate crime by the police because the victim perceived it to happen against him because of his ethnic background or faith.

For some unknown reason, the Finnish police investigating the case are still not clear on the motive of the crime. The fact that the victim considers what happened to him a hate crime is a strong sign that the police will have to see it in that way.

The police’s reaction to what happened to the Pakistani in Vantaa shows the daily experiences of ethnic minorities who are confronted by racist violence in Europe and Finland. This, we believe, is a classic example of institutional racism.

In an email to Migrant Tales, the Itä-Uusimaa police state that motive is the primary factor in determining a hate crime. It pointed out in another email: a hate crime is registered as such if “the injured party [victim or other injured party], other parties or police see it as a hate crime.” [1]

This case, which must be one of the worst ever reported against a migrant in Finland irrespective of its classification, should help us to see some of the weaknesses that hate-crime victims face in this country.

One of these that became clear immediately is the police’s reaction. Not only did it take the police until February 27 to come out with a statement, the officer in charge of the case, Detective Chief Inspector Mikko Minkkinen, was quoted as saying in Helsingin Sanomat  and YLE News here is nothing that suggests it was a racist crime.

What is surprising is that the police makes such a claim without asking what the victim thinks. It may believe that since the attackers were intoxicated or that the attack was not planned absolves the attackers of a hate crime. Wrong.

A hate crime can occur when intoxicated and doesn’t have to be planned. Both factors are totally irrelevant.

The OSCE ODIHR Hate Crime Reporting manual establishes motive through a background check of the crime.

Some of these bias indicators that point to an Islamophobic or anti-migrant hate crime are:

  • Difference of ethnicity/background between the perpetrator and victim;
  • Timing
  • Proximity to a mosque as well or another venue associated with Muslims/migrants;
  • What does the victim’s community say?
  • What does the perpetrator say why he did it?
  • The vehemence of the attack – this is a very strong indicator.

Any two of the above would warrant the police investigation Bias/hate as a motive.

So far, and as far as we can gather, there are three points: (1) difference of ethnic background; (2) what does the victim’s community say; (3) and the vehemence of the attack.

The violence of the attack speaks volumes. Without going into gruesome detail, it took four hours to remove the victim’s stitches. A recent operation that the victim underwent took eight hours.

Read the full guide here.

According to another comprehensive guide for hate crime victims and NGOs published by the UK Race and Europe Network (EKREN) and the European Network Against Racism (ENAR), a hate crime sends a terrible message. The police should recognize that by attacking an individual, as in the case of the Pakistani, a warning to a broader group of people who share the same characteristics.

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Finding help if you are a victim of a hate crime is difficult in Finland

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There was a horrible attack against a Pakistani father of two over on February 23. Just to get an idea of the wounds he sustained on that terrible night, it took last week four hours to remove his stitches. 

What would have happened if the attackers were three Pakistanis who attacked a white Finn in such a vile manner? What would be the public’s and media’s reaction?

We got an example of this in 2015 when Finnish youths of non-white background sexually assaulted a white woman in the Helsinki neighborhood of Tapanila.

Reporting on such a terrible story is difficult. I still remember a plea that the Pakistani victim told the attackers as he laid on the ground: “Please don’t kill me, I have two children.”

A Pakistani was attacked by three white Finns on February 23 and was near death. Pictured published with the permission of the victim. Photo by Enrique Tessieri.

Getting justice in Finland from a suspected hate crime is difficult.

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