It is surprising how the foreign and local media treat the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*differently, even if The Guardian and El País of Madrid refer to the party as far right. Other adjectives are used, like Eurosceptic, nationalistic, and right-wing populist.
In Finland, we rarely, if ever, see such descriptions of the PS. Yle News, for example, refers to the radical right party as “nationalist.”
The fact that the media treats the PS as a “normal” party explains how its radical policies are becoming normalized.
Here are some things PS head Riikka Purra has spread recently:
The PS will not form part of a government that does not tighten immigration policy further.
Stop people from outside the EU from moving and working in Finland.
Islam and white Finland are incompatible.
Seeking asylum is not a right.
Cultural programs are a luxury.
Everything that does not work is due to poor immigration policy.
Only Finnish citizens can get social welfare.
Leave the European Union in the long term.
Harden criminal sentences, especially when migrants or minorities are involved.
If these are “normal” political opinions, they are nothing more than a betrayal of our most important values based on human rights and human dignity. The fact that the media appears not to take such opinions seriously, coming from the second-biggest party in Finland, reveals our country’s denial of the social ill.
One headline onYle caught my eye: Finns voted to oust Sanna Marin’s government. Or was it something like this that the New York Timesheadlined: “Finland’s prime minister toppled in tight election.“
Headlines Madrid’s El País: “The conservatives win the election in Finland, a short distance from the far right [PS].”
Here’s my headline suggestion: “Finland continues to deny and whitewash its radical right problem [PS].”
National Coalition Party (NCP), Perussuomalaiset (Finns), Social Democratic Party (SDP, Center Party (Cen), Green, Left Alliance (Left), Swedish People’s Party (SPP), Christian Democrats (CD), Movement Now (MN). Source: Yle
Second, what do the numbers tell us about Finland?
The Guardianwrites: “Her [Prime Miniter Sanna Marin] personal popularity remained high, but with a recession forecast and inflation surging, the opposition leaders’ accusations of excessive government borrowing and inflated public spending – along with their pledges to impose tough cuts, particularly on welfare budgets – hit home.”
It is disappointing to note how carelessly the Finnish media turns a blind eye to a party like the PS that aims to turn the country into a country modeled after Viktor Orbán of Hungary.
The Media Monitoring Group of Finland published in March a report that showed how the PS has used in all parliamentary elections since 2011 the migrant crime topic to attract voters.
One wonders why the media is not interested in defending minority rights in Finland.
Here are some things PS head Riikka Purra has spewed:
The PS will not form part of a government that does not tighten immigration policy further.
Stop people from outside the EU from moving and working in Finland.
Islam and white Finland are incompatible.
Seeking asylum is not a right.
Cultural programs are a luxury.
Everything that does not work is due to poor immigration policy.
Only Finnish citizens can get social welfare.
Leave the European Union in the long term.
Harden criminal sentences, especially when migrants or minorities are involved.
Why have we yet to see enough editorials and columns in Finland’s leading dailies questioning these exclusionary politics?
After 2011, when the PS won 39 seats from five seats previously, many still want to make believe that there is no “r” problem after all. It’s only something that the left has concocted.My view is that after 2011, when the PS won 39 seats from five seats previously, many want to make believe that there is no problem after all. It’s only something that the left has concocted. We’re good.
Kokoomus’ Petteri Orpo said that the Finnish voters gave it the mandate to instigate right-wing social and economic policy. In plain English, this means hitting the most vulnerable sectors of Finnish society by slashing their social benefits.
The last time we had a right-wing government was in 2015-2019 under Prime Minister Juha Sipilä of the Center Party, where the PS formed part of the government with Kokoomus.
People still remember how Sipilä’s government harmed the unemployed, the education system, and other sectors by slashing public spending. The entry of the PS in government meant a nosedive in opinion polls and implosion, splitting the party into two factions.
One positive outcome of the elections is that parties like the Social Democrats, Left Alliance, Greens, and Swedish People’s Party refuse to form part of a government with the PS.
An election victory by the Perussuomalaiset (PS),* like in the 2011 election, exposes the same ogre populism and xenophobia. The PS could have never dreamed of joining the major leagues of Finnish politics without the help of the National Coalition Party (Kokoomus), the Social Democratic party, and the Center Party.
While the latter is true, the most critical support came from the Finnish voter. How do you explain the PS winning 39 seats in 2011 from five in the previous election?
The PS should offer gratitude to its victims: immigrants, refugees, and minorities.
What will Sunday’s election reveal behind the mask that covers the many real faces of Finland?
The leading ideologues of the PS are its former head, Timo Soini, and Jussi Halla-aho, who raised to political fame through his hateful blog posts.
TV personality Maryan Abdulkarim has described Soini in the following words:
d. Yle published an opinion poll today showing the radical-right Perussuomalaiset (PS)*, Social Democrats, and National Coalition Party (Kokoomus) neck and neck.
Another poll published Wednesday by Helsingin Sanomat showed Kokoomus leading (19.8%), followed by the Social Democrats and PS, tied at 19.2% apiece.
Considering how close the three parties are in the opinion polls, anything can happen and have for the first time a PS prime minister. That would be quite a feat in the face of the party’s historic victory in 2011 when it raised the number of MPs to 39 from 5 previously.
I remember apprehension that election day 11 years ago. Some were in shock, while others played it down. You’ll see, it is only a matter before they implode, some said, assuring themselves.
One of the lessons learned from the entry of a major Islamophobic party in Finnish politics in the last decade is that matters only get more polarized and the rhetoric more hostile.
The PS bases its politics on anti-immigration sentiment, which has crippled Finland’s ability to debate the topic and cultural diversity civilly. Spreading fear of other groups is the elixir that the PS drinks to get political power.
The rise of the PS in Finnish politics is a blow to its exceptionalism and alleged “happiness,” as it has won for a sixth time in a row the title of the happiest country in the world. How can such a happy country house so much hatred for other groups?
A political analyst told me recently that he hoped the PS would win big on Sunday.
Veteran National Coalition Party (Kokoomus) MP Ben Zyskowicz was attacked a second time Saturday in Eastern Helsinki by a man who threatened to kill him, according to Helsingin Sanomat. While waiting for the metro, a man approached the MP, started to yell, and punched him in the face.
The police apprehended the suspect.
In 2011, A middle-aged man stepped in front of Zyskowicz and tried to attack him, according to the tabloid Iltalehti.
The National Bureau of Investigation (KRP) has remanded in custody a 28-year-old white Finn who used to be a municipal candidate for the Islamophobic Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party but now belongs to the far-right Sinimusta Liike (Blue-and-Black Movement), according to Helsingin Sanomat.
The police’s intelligence gathering of the suspect led to a search of his home, where arms were found. KRP is investigating the suspect’s activities and if other suspects are involved.
The case is not the first white Finnish suspect. In December 2021, the police announced the country’s first far-right terrorist case. In November, detective inspector Toni Sjöblom told Migrant Tales that charges would be brought against five suspects “within a few weeks.” By mid-March, no charges have been brought against the suspects.
The Finnish Security and Intelligence Service’s (SUPO)In National Security Overview 2022 said that the threat of a terrorist attack in Finland would come from “supporters of right-wing extremist or racial Islamist ideology, and from small covert cells [comprising] of such individuals.”
The latest terrorist suspect, who studied law, was a Perussuomalaiset (PS) candidate for councilperson who lobbied at the university against “woke culture” and “cultural Marxism,” a concept used by far-right activists.
The same type of bias in how the media, politicians, and even the police treat “white” terrorism is evident in the case of the 28-year-old. He was active with the PS Youth of Lapland, representing the party’s most far-right views, and was a strong proponent of ethnonationalism.
One active member of the PS Youth of Lapland was Johannes Sipola, who was convicted with Toni Jalonen for ethnic agitation in 2020. Sipola blamed in a tweet below the Christchurch massacre on multiculturalism.
Perussuomalaisten puheenjohtaja Riikka Purra on useaan otteeseen todennut, että hänen puolueensa pitkän aikavälin tavoitteena on, että vain Suomen kansalaisilla on oikeus sosiaaliturvaan.
Vaikka tällainen suunnitelma on erittäin syrjivä, jopa rasistinen, on valitettavaa, että toimittajat eivät kysy Purralta, mitä hän tarkoittaa ja mitä haasteita syntyisi, jos sosiaaliturva kielletään ulkomaalaisilta. Sen lisäksi, että se vaatisi perustuslain muutoksen, jonka pitäisi saada kahden kolmasosan enemmistö taakse, onko tällainen suunnitelma vain vaalitemppu?
Sen lisäksi, että se rikkoo EU:n lainsäädäntöä ja ihmisoikeuksia ja on syrjivää, pitäisikö Suomessa asuvien ulkomaalaisten maksaa vähemmän veroja, koska he eivät ole oikeutettuja sosiaaliturvaan? Onko muita suunniteltuja maksuja, kuten peruskoulua käyvien lasten lukukausimaksut ja terveydenhoito?
Joidenkin arvioiden mukaan Suomi tarvitsee vuosittain noin 40 000 työperäistä maahanmuuttajaa paikkaamaan kroonista työvoimapulaa.
Tällaiset PS:n toimenpiteet tekevät Suomesta varmasti vähemmän houkuttelevan työperäisten maahanmuuttajien kannalta.
Miksi haluaisit muuttaa maahan, joka kohtelee sinua kuin toisen luokan yhteiskunnan jäsentä?
*Suomen mediaseurantakollektiivi (Smk) pyrkii edistämään suomalaisten tiedotusvälineiden tasapuolista ja täsmällistä raportointia aliedustetuista kulttuurisista, rodullisista, etnisistä ja uskonnollisista ryhmistä. Kulttuurisen monimuotoisuuden kasvaessa Suomessa media muokkaa yhä voimakkaammin yleistä mielipidettä ja asenteita vähemmistöjä kohtaan.
Lue 17. maaliskuuta julkaistu ensimmäinen raporttitäältä.
The chairperson of the Finns Party, Riikka Purra, has said on several occasions that her party’s long-term goal is that only Finnish citizens have the right to social welfare.
While such a plan is highly discriminatory, even racist, it is unfortunate that journalists don’t ask Purra what she means and what challenges would arise if they ban social welfare for foreigners. Apart from requiring a change in the constitution, which would have to get a two-thirds majority, is such a plan only a campaign stand and a pipe dream?
Apart from breaching EU law and human rights and being discriminatory, should foreigners in Finland pay less taxes since they will not be eligible for social welfare? Are there other hidden charges like tuition for children attending comprehensive school and health care?
According to some estimates, Finland needs about 40,000 labor migrants a year to plug its chronic labor shortage.
Such measures by the PS will certainly make Finland unattractive to labor migrants.
Why would you want to move to a country that treats you like a second-class member of society?
*Media Monitoring Group of Finland aims to promote fair and accurate reporting by the Finnish media of underrepresented cultural, racial, ethnic, and religious groups. As Finland’s cultural diversity continues to grow, the role of the media in forming public opinion and attitudes about minorities becomes even more relevant.
Sometimes, the hunger for power is so voracious that politicians and their parties will make pacts with the devil. It was the case in September in Sweden when the conservative Moderate Party joined forces with the Sweden Democrats, a party with neo-Nazi roots. Finland will hold its election on April 2, and there is the same trend: the National Coalition Party (Kokoomus) is looking at the radical-right Perussuomalaiset (PS)* to form a government.
Apart from losing credibility, a conservative party that goes to bed with a party like the Sweden Democrats or PS may devour the party’s support.
The Moderate Party came in second place after the Sweden Democrats. The arrangement was like in Denmark with the Danish People’s Party (DPP), which supported a minority government in return for concessions on the anti-immigration front.
Contrary to the DPP and the Sweden Democrats, the PS has said it will support a minority government arrangement. In Finnish political terms, it means they have to either win the election, giving them the power to form the next government, or be an integral part of the new government if Kokoomus wins.
Finland will hold its parliamentary election on April 2.Source: vaalit.fi
The Social Democrats (SDP), Left Alliance, Greens, and Swedish People’s Party have said they will not form a government with the PS. The reason? SDP Prime Minister Sanna Martin has branded the PS a racist party.
With the parliamentary election only 12 days away, recent opinion polls show Kokoomus, SDP, and the PS neck-and-neck for the top spot.
Vaalien sinimusta pari taistelee samoista äänestäjistä. Kuva: Iltalehti
Helmikuussa sattui Hyvinkäällä kauppareissulla silmiimme kokoomuksen vaaliteltta. Kauppakeskuksen edessä paistettiin isolla joukolla makkaraa ja jaettiin ruisleipää. Suuri banderolli mainosti julkirasistista ehdokasta. Se oli hätkähdyttävää: onhan se tiedetty, että kokoomus liukuu koko ajan oikeammalle ja rasistiset möläytykset ovat eduskuntaryhmässäkin lisääntyneet, mutta että kuljetaan vaalikampanjassakin isoin satsauksin rasistit edellä.
Puoluetta ei voi pestä rasismista puhtaaksi sillä, että kokoomuslainen sanoo: ”Kyllä minä hyväksyn maahanmuuton, meillehän tarvitaan lähihoitajia” tai ”Kyllä tänne ovat tervetulleita kaikki ne, jotka ovat valmiita töitä tekemään”. Molemmat tokaisut sisältävät rasistien yleisesti rummuttamat valheet, että maahanmuuttajat kelpaavat vain alempien palkkaluokkien töihin ja suurin osa heistäkin yrittää päästä tänne laiskottelemaan sosiaaliturvan varaan.
Kokoomus julkaisi vuoden 2021 heinäkuussa maahanmuutto- ja kotiuttamisohjelman, jossa se ehdotti maahanmuuttajien ja kantasuomalaisten sosiaaliturvan eriyttämistä. Suuri yleisö puuttui termiin ”kantasuomalainen”, jota pidettiin rasistisena. Termi poistettiin, mutta ohjelma oli ilman sitäkin umpirasistinen. Sehän sisälsi ajatuksen ”meistä kantasuomalaisista” ja niistä muista, jotka eivät ansaitse samaa sosiaaliturvaa, jos jäävät työttömiksi eivätkä heti löydä uutta työpaikkaa. Perustuslain mukaan kaikki asukkaat ovat samanarvoisia.
Maahanmuutto-ohjelman äiti oli Pia Kauma, joka edellisellä vaalikaudella tipahti eduskunnasta kadehdittuaan turhan näkyvästi maahanmuuttajien hankkimia upouusia lastenvaunuja. Tälle kaudelle hän pääsi takaisin ja peräti kolmanneksi varapuheenjohtajaksi touhuamaan vääränlaisten maahanmuuttajien vastustamista.
