Finns Party – Eye on Islamism

Muslim groups condemn Riikka Purra’s ‘black sacks’ blog comment Purra's 'black sacks' comment, made in 2019, presumably referred to burqas, the full-cover garments worn by some Muslim women.

July 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Yle) A total of 26 Muslim groups and organisations in Finland have issued a joint statement condemning a blog comment written in 2019 by the country’s finance minister, Riikka Purra (Finns). Purra’s comment, in Finnish but translated here in English, stated: “There […]

Finland’s Islamic community demands government take concrete steps towards ‘zero tolerance’ of racism A total of 26 Islamic congregations and organisations signed the joint statement.

July 17, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Yle) A group of Islamic communities and organisations in Finland have issued a joint statement calling on the government to take concrete steps towards achieving “zero tolerance” on racism. “We call on the Finnish government and especially Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) […]

Finns Party MP facing third ethnic agitation charge Sebastian Tynkkynen has been found guilty on two previous occasions of agitating against an ethnic group.

April 2, 2021 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Finns Party Member of Parliament Sebastian Tynkkynen has been charged for a third time with ethnic agitation, after an indictment was filed in Oulu District Court at the end of March. Tynkkynen has two previous convictions for similar offences. He was […]

Committee rules Foreign Minister Haavisto broke law, but shouldn’t be charged — Greens leave dissenting opinion Haavisto's actions in relation to Finnish citizens at the al-Hol camp in Syria are under the microscope.

December 9, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Parliament’s Constitutional Law Committee says Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto (Green) broke the law in his efforts to repatriate Finnish citizens from the al-Hol camp in northern Syria — but he should not be prosecuted. At a press conference on Wednesday evening, […]

Parliament votes against lifting MP’s immunity from hate speech prosecution The Finns Party [MP] described asylum seekers as an 'invasive species.'

June 26, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Finns Party MP Juha Mäenpää will not be prosecuted for inciting ethnic hatred after a vote in parliament on lifting his immunity as a legislator fell short of the required five-sixths majority. The proposal to lift his immunity was supported by […]

Prosecutor general aims to charge Finns Party MP for incitement In a speech to parliament last summer MP Juha Mäenpää likened asylum seekers to an invasive species.

January 23, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Finland’s Prosecutor General Raija Toiviainen wants to bring charges against Finns Party MP Juha Mäenpää for inciting hatred against an ethnic group. As Mäenpää delivered a speech before the legislature last June, he likened asylum seekers to an invasive species. According […]

Sanna Marin: ‘It’s not the government’s job to decide individual al-Hol cases’ The new PM told Yle on Saturday she wondered why the conservative NCP decided to take a hard line on Finns at al-Hol.

December 21, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Speaking on Yle’s talk show Ykkösaamu on Saturday, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said she was very pleased with the government’s decision to repatriate Finnish children from the al-Hol refugee camp. “It’s up to ministry officials to determine whether Finland will also […]

Foreign minister wins confidence vote over al-Hol furore Pekka Haavisto received majority support from 110 MPs on Wednesday on the issue of the repatriation of Finns from Syria.

December 18, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto received the support of 110 MPs in a confidence vote held in Parliament on Wednesday concerning the repatriation of Finns living in the al-Hol camp in Syria. Out of 200 MPs, 79 MPs voted against […]

‘Aren’t you ashamed?’ PM Marin stands ground during heated al-Hol debate Opposition parties came together to grill the government over a plan to repatriate Finns from a Syrian refugee camp.

December 17, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Opposition and government MPs clashed during a tense parliamentary debate over the government’s position on repatriating Finnish citizens currently at the al-Hol refugee camp in Syria on Tuesday afternoon. An opposition interpellation tabled last week set its sight on putting the […]

Is Finland looking to repatriate ‘terrorists’? 5 relevant questions about the security issues around Finns held at al-Hol Finnish citizens in Syria pose a security risk that is not removed by leaving them in a prison camp.

December 15, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Finnish women should not be repatriated from the camp, because they are a security risk. That’s the reasoning of those opposed to bringing back Finnish citizens in the al-Hol camp in northern Syria, which holds refugees from the war in Syria […]

Finns Party MP fined €4K over ethnic agitation conviction The MP says his Facebook updates did not constitute a punishable offence and that he will appeal the verdict.

October 10, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) An Oulu court has slapped Finns Party lawmaker Sebastian Tynkkynen with a 50-day fine after convicting him on charges of ethnic agitation. The total fine amounts to slightly more than 4,000 euros. The conviction came over texts and images Tynkkynen posted […]

Finns Party MP stands trial for ethnic agitation Sebastian Tynkkynen is in court for a second time on charges of agitation against an ethnic group via social media posts.

October 3, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Yle) The trial of Finns Party MP Sebastian Tynkkynen began on Thursday in the Oulu District Court. A lawmaker from the northwest municipality where the proceedings are being held, Tynkkynen is suspected of agitation against an ethnic group in a 2016 Facebook […]

Jussi Halla-aho, quiet hardliner behind Finland’s populist uproar

April 14, 2019 Sam Kingsley

(AFP) Jussi Halla-aho, who led his nationalist Finns Party to more than double its seats in parliament in Finland’s election, is a former medieval language lecturer turned hardline MEP and vehement critic of immigration and Islam. Less than six months ago, the […]