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Kaleva Readers Furious over ‘Foreign Background’ Muggers |
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By Staff Writer
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Tuesday, 19 August 2008 |
Kaleva readers have reacted angrily to a spate of attempted muggings carried out late on Saturday night by ‘youths’ of ‘foreign background.’
Quoting from a police press release, Kaleva reported that ‘threatening behaviour’ occurred in Niittyaro, a district between Toppila and Koskela. The ‘youths’ tried to obtain money and successfully stole a mobile phone.
According to Kaleva, police have ‘contacted’ the suspects and are currently actively investigating the case. The article’s discussion forum has played host to vitriolic reactions from many readers, with some comments using racial slurs such as ‘liquorice sticks.’
‘Thank you, flower-hatted social workers,’ wrote one commentator, “here we see the top people in a multicultural society on the job.’ “Don’t punish them,” another suggested sarcastically. “This sort of behaviour is part of their culture . . . At least no-one was raped this time!”
Some were particularly hostile. “Back where they came from!” ordered an angry reader. A few commentators were more shocked at the local reaction than at the crimes. “What hick reaction is this? Of course those sorts of wanna-be gang members should be punished, but, come on, are you really that primitive?” wrote one reader calling themselves ‘2000 reader.’
65DegreesNorth has investigated the case and interviewed Juhani Saranki, one of the officers looking into it. When asked how the suspects had been identified as of ‘foreign background’ and as ‘youths’ (‘nuoret’), Saranki was more specific than the press release, reporting that, ‘six were black and one was white,’ and that they ranged in age from 15 to ‘not more than 20.’
The term ‘of foreign background,’ explained Saranki, ‘means that, if somebody meets the gang and they can see that they are not Finnish.’
Saranki said that the term ‘of foreign background’ had been used in the press release to avoid readers discriminating against ‘black people.’ ‘It is not good to say they are black,’ he remarked, ‘because some people will say that all blacks are like this.’ He did not feel that the term ‘of foreign background’ was as problematic.
When asked why the press release did not report any individual details about the attackers, the officer responded that this was unnecessary because ‘the police already know who they are.’
When asked why it was necessary to report that ‘they were of foreign background,’ he claimed that doing so might assist with police enquiries.
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