About 30 immigrants have arrived in Finland via Belarus, says Ohisalo
ABOUT 30 IMMIGRANTS is believed to have arrived in Finland via Belarus, the interior minister reveals Maria Ohisalo (Green).
“The Border Guard and my own officers have given me information that these people are believed to have come here through the hybrid operation. What Belarus is doing now is completely reprehensible, he said stated At YLE A-Talk on Thursday.
Border security has recently become a hot topic of discussion in Finland. According to news reports, Belarus has transported people intending to join the European Union to the Polish border. Die Welt, one of Germany’s leading dailies, has also written that the main destinations for migrants are Finland and Germany.
On Thursday, Ohisalo said that the emergency law must be amended without delay, as it no longer reflects the new risks and threats identified in Europe.
“The coronavirus epidemic alone showed us that the Emergency Authorization Act is not in order. Hybrid influence, as it stands in the European Union, is a new thing. The reform of the mandate law must ensure that it provides the authorities with the necessary measures to act, he stressed.
President Sauli Niinistö also stated to the broadcaster that the law should be updated to meet today ‘s requirements. According to him, the act currently leaves too much interpretive space in responding to hybrid tactics.
However, Ohisalo estimates that ordinary legislation provides the means to respond to large-scale immigration. “The Border Guard has the capability to prepare for such disruptions,” he said.
Petteri OrpoThe chairman of the Coalition Party said the government did not have a clear policy on responding to hybrid threats. He added that current legislation does not provide tools to combat hybrid campaigns, stop uncontrolled immigration and suspend the receipt of asylum applications.
“We must send a clear message to the world that such activities will not affect Finland. That we can close our borders if necessary, that we do not accept asylum applications. It is a message to people that the temptations of human traffickers should not be succumbed.
“We ourselves have been the target of such an operation,” he added, referring to the arrival of almost 2,000 migrants at the Northeast Border Crossing in Salla and Raja-Jooseppi, Finnish Lapland in 2016.
Orpo served as Minister of the Interior under Prime Minister Juha Sipilä (Central) in 2015–2016.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT