COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CONCLUDES CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF FINLAND

Committee on the Elimination of
Racial Discrimination
63rd session
15 August 2003
Morning





The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has concluded its consideration of the sixteenth periodic report of Finland on how that country implements the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Introducing the report, Eero J. Aarnio, Counselor of Legislation at the Ministry of Justice of Finland and Head of the delegation, said studies had constantly been made on the extent and nature of ethnic discrimination in Finland in the past few years, with the aim of helping to obtain a better view of this phenomena, in order to prepare appropriate responses against such discrimination. The Finnish authorities had constantly taken active measures to combat racism and ethnic discrimination, and there were more studies and other reference materials available than before. There was increasing cooperation between different sectors of administration, and minority groups themselves had actively participated in the planning and implementation of measures against racism.

Committee Experts including Kurt Herndl, the group’s country Rapporteur for the report of Finland, raised a series of questions including on Sami land rights and the search for a solution that was juristically appropriate and yet remained practical, and the position of the Sami themselves on this issue; which body was responsible for receiving complaints linked to racial discrimination; whether the repression of racist propaganda was prohibited under the measures protecting freedom of expression; what were the reasons which had impeded the adoption of ILO Convention 169; attitudes against Muslim immigrants and attitudes of cultural racism; given that there was room for expansion in certain labour sectors, what measures were taken to increase possibilities of employment for immigrants; Finland’s interpretation of article 4 of the International Convention; and increasing incidences of violence against Arabs, Muslims, and women.

The Committee then discussed requests for support which it had received from the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, from the Chief of the Research and Right to Development Branch of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and from the Committee against Torture. The Committee also discussed letters received from the Permanent Missions of Argentina and of Israel.

The Committee also began adopting its concluding observations on the situation in Cape Verde. Once the whole text is adopted, a separate press release will be issued.

Taking part in the debate on Finland, which was held over two meetings, were Committee Experts Patrick Thornberry, Luis-Alexandre Sicilianos, Luis Valencia Rodriguez, Mohamed Aly Thiam, Mario Jorge Yutzis, Patricia Nozipho January-Bardill, Alexei S. Avtonomov, Régis de Gouttes, Ion Dionescu (Chairman speaking as Expert), Agha Shahi, and Mahmoud Aboul-Nasr.

The final conclusions and recommendations on the report of Finland will be issued towards the end of the session, which concludes on 22 August. In preliminary remarks, Mr. Herndl said the excellent exchange of views which had concluded with the praise of all members of the Committee last time in 2000 had been repeated, with evidence of compliance to the specific guidelines provided before, and it was clear that the Government of Finland wished to solve the problems of racism in Finland, and that was evident throughout the extremely honest report. The world was not perfect, but the Finnish Government was almost perfect in the field of eliminating racial discrimination. It was a model country, and how non-governmental organizations could contest this statement was incredible. The Government addressed the small problems that existed effectively. The good faith of the Finnish Government was evident in all of its programmes and projects for the elimination of racial discrimination and their wide-ranging nature.

In concluding remarks, Mr. Aarnio thanked the Committee for its comments and suggestions. Finland was very happy for the good and fertile discussion, and was grateful for the kind words heard.

Members of the delegation included Anneli Vuorinen, Minister Counselor at the Permanent Mission of Finland to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Arto Kosonen, Director, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; Pia Holm, Chief Superintendent, Ministry of the Interior; Mikko Cortes Tellez, Planning Officer, Ministry of Education; Riita-Maija Jouttimaki, Ministerial Advisor, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health; Risto Laakkonen, Ministerial Advisor, Ministry of Labour; and Juha Rainne, Intern and Secretary, Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

As one of the 169 States parties to the International Convention, Finland must present periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to eradicate racial discrimination.

When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m. this afternoon, it will begin its consideration of the sixteenth periodic report of Norway (CERD/C/430/Add.2).

Report of Finland

The sixteenth periodic report of Finland, contained in document (CERD/C/409/Add.2), describes progress in the field of human rights and in particular in the fight against racial discrimination. It contains general information on legislation, international conventions, European Community legislation, bodies monitoring the implementation of the prohibition of discrimination, advisory boards and commissions, the Government Action Plan to Combat Ethnic Discrimination and Racism, the national system for the monitoring of racism and discrimination based on ethnic origin, a report on Human Rights and Finland’s Foreign Policy, and population statistics.

It further contains information on the Sami, the Roma, the immigration and refugee policy, amendments to the Aliens Act and overall reform of that Act, information on refusal of entry and deportation, further observations concerning the status of asylum-seekers and integration of immigrants. Further topics include racism and the Internet, the right to equal treatment before the tribunals and all other organs administering justice, the right to security of person and protection by the State against violence or bodily harm, political rights, other civil rights, economic, social and cultural rights, and the right of access to any place or service intended for use by the general public.

Information is also provided on cases of discrimination and assault in courts of first instance, freedom of the press, and cases considered by the Prosecutor General, by the Deputy Prosecutor General, by the Parliamentary Ombudsman, and by the Chancellor of Justice. Finally, information is provided in the context of article 7 of the International Convention on Education, Culture, and Other work-enhancing tolerance.

Introduction of Report

ANNELI VUORINEN, Minister Councilor at the Permanent Mission of Finland to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said Finland had already, over the years, been prepared to participate fully in the work of the Committee, and had proved this intention many times. The work done by the Committee was appreciated fully. She then introduced the delegation.

EERO J. AARNIO, Counsellor of Legislation at the Ministry of Justice of Finland and Head of the delegation, said instead of repeating what was in the report, the delegation would focus more on recent developments. Various recent legislative reforms were referred to in the report, and, in the case of the overall reform of the Aliens Act, a new Bill had been introduced to Parliament in June, with the first and foremost objective of achieving a clear and consistent Aliens Act and thereby contributing to improved protection of aliens under the law. The reform of the Nationality Act had also been completed, as had the Language Act. A Government Bill for a new Sami Language Act would be submitted to the Parliament in the autumn. The provisions of law concerning the freedom of expression had also been revised. Committee recommendations had also been adopted. Other legislative reforms were planned, for example a Government Bill protecting equality before the law. European Union directives would also be enshrined in legislation, with the aim of creating a framework for the application of the principle of equal treatment in the Member States, based on a list of prohibited grounds of discrimination. The Act on the Integration of Immigrants and the Reception of Asylum-Seekers had been amended in 2002 by supplementing it, among others, with provisions on the reception of persons who had left their country of origin because of an armed conflict or other disturbance or natural catastrophe.

Various measures had been taken against racism and intolerance, including a Plan of Action to Combat Ethnic Discrimination and Racism, the (European) Community Action Programme to Combat Discrimination, and the European Union programme Joint Promotion of Anti-discrimination at Local Level. In the context of this last, Finnish school authorities were actively involved in cooperation in respect of the Roma minority, and the health authorities and the police in respect of both the Roma and immigrants. Within the police administration, particular attention had been paid to the prevention of racism, xenophobia and discrimination in the last few years. The activities of organized racist groups had been watched, and information on ethnic issues and prevention of discrimination had been increased in both basic and further training of police officers. Furthermore, specific training sessions had been provided with a view of increasing the knowledge of the police of different cultures and of problems faced by different ethnic groups, and to removing prejudices of the police and different ethnic groups towards each other. The cultural diversity of society was also taken into account in school education.

The issue of land rights of the Sami had not yet been resolved, but the Ministry of Justice had actively sought to examine the question of land ownership in terms of property law and to prepare legislation on the administration of land, whereby the right of the Sami to use the land would be confirmed. The issue continued to raise controversy, and the Sami Parliament had criticized the proposed legislative projects. Efforts were actively made to reach a resolution of this issue, and a constructive dialogue with the Sami Parliament was maintained. The status of the Roma as a minority group had improved in the past decades. Consistent and active efforts had been made to improve the situation by means of legislation and various programmes. The Office of the Minority Ombudsman had become operative at the beginning of September 2001, and the first report had been produced in June 2003.

The Finnish authorities had constantly taken active measures to combat racism and ethnic discrimination, and there were more studies and other reference materials available than before. There was increasing cooperation between different sectors of administration, and minority groups themselves had actively participated in the planning and implementation of measures against racism.

Discussion

KURT HERNDL, Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur for the report of Finland, said the introductory statement had been very interesting, and had presented the Committee with a wealth of new information. The problems of racial discrimination and the capacity of the Finnish Government to respond to these were clear to the Committee. Finland had been described in many respects as a model country, and no one could deny it was a country with an excellent record in the field of human rights. Finland’s ratification record of human rights treaties was second to none. The Government of Finland clearly followed the developments of the Conventions that it had ratified. The lack of cases under article 14, for once, was clearly not due to a lack of information, but because such issues were remedied at a national and domestic level. There was one lacuna on the record of international ratification, and that was ILO Convention 169. The Government was actively contemplating the future ratification, but some issues related to the Sami needed to be settled first. The Government of Finland was clearly on the right path.

There was concern for Article 4, some of which had been previously expressed, and these issues had begun to be resolved. Improvement had also been made in the punishment of those guilty of racist acts and consequent actions, and the creation of the Ombudsman against Ethnic Discrimination was noted with approval. However, additional information on the activities of this important new Office would probably be requested. There was also clear evidence in the report of the interaction between ethnic minorities and the Government and its bodies.

The treatment of special minorities, including the Sami, the Roma, and the so-called Russian minority, called for special discussion. The land rights and access to natural resources of the Sami caused problems, as did the language problem, and indeed the very definition of the Sami, which did not appear to be sufficiently clear nor sufficiently sensitive to this people. It was noted that the Government was currently addressing the other issues. The Government was urged not to address these issues in too legalistic a manner, and to compromise with the Sami people. The Government had taken a number of policies to strengthen the situation of the Roma, as well as strategies, which should be continued and funded sufficiently. The recognition of Roma culture was also progressing, and note was taken of the proposal to the European Union to establish a Pan European Roma Assembly. With regard to the Russian minority, there was a need to pay special attention to the group, notably in the area of education and language education.

Concluding, the Rapporteur asked what was the status of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination in Finnish law, since this was unclear, and there was a need to clarify the hierarchical structure between Finnish law and the International Convention.

Other members of the Committee also raised questions and made comments, including on such topics as Sami land rights and the search for a solution that was juristically appropriate and yet remained practical, and the position of the Sami themselves on this issue; self-identification of the Sami as a national minority and why this was preferable to the current situation; which body was responsible for receiving complaints linked to racial discrimination; whether the repression of racist propaganda was prohibited under the measures protecting freedom of expression; what were the reasons which had impeded the adoption of ILO Convention 169; unemployment among immigrants and measures to ease these rates; plans to change the criminal code; protecting the rights of those who had lived in the country for one year; whether there were legal impediments impeding the removal of racist homepages; attitudes against Muslim immigrants and attitudes of cultural racism; given that there was room for expansion in certain labour sectors, what measures were taken to increase possibilities of employment for immigrants; and how article 4 of the International Convention was implemented.

The Committee also noted the improvements in various situations that had been previously of concern to it and on which it had made recommendations. It applauded the incorporation of non-governmental organizations in the drafting process of the report, and praised its frankness and clarity. It was always a pleasure, several Experts said, to receive and read the reports of Finland.

Responding, Mr. AARNIO, Counsellor of Legislation at the Ministry of Justice and Head of the delegation, thanked the Rapporteur for his comprehensive analysis of the situation in Finland, and all Experts for their comments and questions, some of which were very complex.

Other members of the delegation then responded, first of all addressing the issue of the Pan European Roma Assembly, saying this proposal was being followed up at the international level both among the Roma and the Governments of Europe at the Council level. Political and voting rights at a municipal level for foreigners in all Northern countries were given to immigrants who had lived in a country for two years. These people could also be candidates for municipal elections. The high unemployment rate in Finland, of about 9.7 percent for the whole labour force, and of about 28 per cent for immigrants, had improved. One reason for this high rate was that general unemployment had been very high only a few years before. Many immigrants were refugees, living in the country on grounds of asylum. Finland recognized the need for more immigrants, since up to thirty percent of its labour force would retire over the coming years. Investments were being made into this unemployed work force. Work also needed to be done to remove discrimination on the labour market, and the Government was working on this at many levels. The Ombudsman was independent, the delegation pointed out. His relations with regard to the Parliament were that he was used as an Expert, to provide guidelines and make comments.

Finnish attitudes towards immigrants and ethnic minorities were a concern of those working in the Administration. As noted in the report, this had been monitored since 1987, at which time the attitude was very positive, since the issue of immigration was largely theoretical, as in practice there were very few immigrants in the country. The economy was also strong at that period. At the beginning of the 1990s, Finland suffered an economic and social crisis of great magnitude, and it was suspected that this economic recession was a reason that many Finns developed negative attitudes towards immigrants. Once the economic and social situation began to improve, attitudes had paralleled this development, but there were still strands of the population with more negative attitudes. It was important to send a clear message from the Governmental level that Finland did not tolerate racial intolerance, and this was done by implementing Government programmes.

Finland and the other Nordic countries were currently receiving very strong impulses from outside countries, not just from Europe but from other areas of the world, and this was causing a mixture of cultures with an infusion of immigrant culture into Finnish culture. This was happening very slowly, but it was evident in certain areas such as the arts.

Responding further, Mr. AARNIO said that with regard to the mandates and powers of the Chancellor of Justice, the Ombudsman and the Ombudsman for Minorities, these bodies had general duties to oversee the implementation of human rights in public activities in the case of the first two, and in the case of the latter to promote ethnic relations, monitoring and overseeing the rights of minorities, taking initiatives, and providing information. They also had other tasks and duties.

With regard to the Sami, the committee set up in 2000 and mentioned in paragraph 102 of the report proposed the establishment of an administrative board for the Sami Homeland, for the purpose of resolving certain relevant questions of land ownership, consisting of both representatives of the Sami and local residents to the lands under contestation. Amendments to legislation had then been discussed in the Ministry of Justice, again in concert with the Sami Parliament. Solutions proposed had, after lengthy discussion, proved so controversial that it was decided to resolve the issue by specific measures. Historical research was undertaken to prove a sound basis for political decision making, whilst the Sami Parliament undertook its own discussions. The issue was still under consideration and discussion, and was proving increasingly thorny, although work was continuing to find a solution considering historical fact. The Government believed that there was a definite need to resolve the issue, whether it was for legal or political grounds. With regards to self-identification and community acceptance, the requirements of the first were fulfilled by registration on the electoral roll, and the Sami Parliament resolved the second issue.

The delegation then responded to other questions, beginning with the decrease in racially motivated acts reported to the police in 2000-2001. This was due maybe to the lack of reporting, or simply to a diminution in offences. A study, however, noted that the first might be the case, since victims believed that either it was not important, or that reporting the issue might cause a repeat or an escalation of the number of offences against them.

The number of applications for asylum had diminished over the last few years. There was no list of Safe Countries in Finland. There was an accelerated procedure for asylum, but this was only done in certain exceptional cases which were defined by law. The decision on refusal of entry could be enforced within eight days from the decision unless the Helsinki Administrative Court prohibited deportation. The Government was ever more attentive to issues related to inhuman treatment, but the non-suspensive nature of an appeal was not contrary to the International Convention. There was a need for substantial grounds that proved that if the person was deported then he or she would be subject to inhuman treatment for a rejected asylum application to be reconsidered on those grounds. An application could be repeated several times, and the concept was that non-arguable cases were dealt with rapidly in order to leave more resources for arguable cases.

With regard to the status of the International Convention, it could be applied directly as could other international conventions. The International Convention was not at risk in Finland, and never would be. The new Constitution in article 6 forbade all discrimination, and this was a basic in the internal legal system. Further, the International Convention had been referred to many times in Governmental Bills and by the Courts. Human rights were applied not only through laws, but through Acts and Decrees. The Constitutional Committee ensured that all new Acts contained human rights provisions and secured this issue.

As for the Russian-speaking population, a report had been created to discover how the Government could better protect the rights of these people, and after contribution from ministries, NGOs and other organizations, it would be dealt with and its provisions implemented in order to better preserve and protect the language and culture of these people in the context of Finland’s desire to give all its people the best possible life. Another report on the Protection of Equality would be submitted to Parliament in November, and an Advisory Board would undoubtedly be set up to monitor the situation and make guidelines for all responsible authorities.

The Finnish Government was aware that there existed racial material on the Internet, some of which were in Finnish domains, and measures had been applied to combat racist content. A study had been carried out to determine the contents and quality of these pages. From the legal point of view, the situation was the same as for any other racist propaganda, in that it was illegal and punishable. The problem was the large number of global web pages, which made it difficult for authorities to monitor Internet content and to locate these pages; in practice the system was for individuals to alert the authorities, after which action was implemented to remove the problem.

Human rights education in schools by the current guidelines was ensured in the curricula, but these rights and minority issues were not given as a separate chapter but as part and parcel of other subjects such as history. There was a current proposal to emphasise the human rights and multicultural issues in the next curricululum, and information would be provided on the changes decided upon in the next report. Teachers were also free to provide information on human rights, minority issues and immigration that was not provided in official scholastic texts. Teacher training included several weeks of training on these topics. Further training was also provided to existing teachers in the new multi-cultural society so as to ensure that they could teach these issues. The Government had made special funds available for these programmes.

Finland had a comprehensive scheme covering health care and social welfare services to residents, regardless of their ability to pay and social status. This system was supplemented by occupational and private healthcare services. All employers had to ensure the occupational safety of all workers, including migrant workers.

Experts then asked further questions regarding such issues as Finland’s interpretation of article 4 of the International Convention; the number of attacks on immigrants, particularly on Arabs and Muslims and the measures taken by the Finnish Government to counter this; increasing violence against women including domestic abuse and trafficking; the still weak socio-economic situation of the Roma and prejudices and discrimination against these people and what could be and was done to resolve these negative attitudes.

Once more, members of the Committee applauded the work done by the Government of Finland on the elimination of racial discrimination, and hoped that the efforts to resolve the issue of land rights for the Sami would be fruitful shortly. Finland had always been a country where views were exchanged and others were respected, said the Committee.

Answering these questions, the delegation said the future of the International Convention appeared to be brilliant, and it could be applied directly, no matter the level of implementation, and Finland followed a human rights-friendly interpretation of its provisions. With regard to the attacks against Arabs and Muslims, there had been some assaults and property damage where the victims were Arabs and Muslims, but the majority of these offences had been made against Somalis. The reason did not appear to be religion, but physical appearance. The perpetrators were not all skinheads. The perpetrators were usually young men, however. As for increasing violence against women, studies had been made, and in practice it was quite difficult to investigate, since women frequently did not report offenses of domestic violence to the police. The Government had a Programme where resources were allocated to prevent domestic violence and violence against women, as well as discourage prostitution. The Ministry of Justice was currently considering the criminalisation of purchase of sexual services, and prosecutions of domestic violence had increased. The situation of the Roma would hopefully be resolved at many levels, among other solutions, by education of the young, including Roma children. The situation of the Roma in Finland was different to that in many other areas, however, since they were often long-term residents in particular municipalities.


Preliminary Remarks

In preliminary remarks, Mr. HERNDL, the Rapporteur on the report of Finland, said the excellent exchange of views which had concluded with the praise of all members of the Committee last time in 2000 had been repeated, with evidence of compliance to the specific guidelines provided before, and it was clear that the Government of Finland wished to solve the problems of racism in Finland, and that was evident throughout the extremely honest report. The world was not perfect, but the Finnish Government was almost perfect in the field of eliminating racial discrimination. It was a model country, and how non-governmental organizations could contest this statement was incredible. The Government addressed the small problems that existed effectively. With regard to the brilliant future of the International Convention, this was evident at least in this one country under discussion. The Committee as a whole did not feel that there was a problem in the country. The amendments to the Constitution were particularly applauded. Points which still stood were the ratification of ILO Convention 169, although it appeared that Finland was preparing this without mentioning it, and this was a very positive spirit. The problem of the Sami, which was at the base of the reluctance to ratify the ILO Convention, was clearly being worked on very hard in concert with the Sami themselves. The good faith of the Finnish Government was evident in all of its programmes and projects for the elimination of racial discrimination and the wide-ranging nature of these. Overall, the debate was very positive on both sides, and the fruitful, open and honest dialogue would hopefully continue to be repeated over the years.


Concluding Remarks by Delegation

In concluding remarks, Mr. AARNIO, the Head of the delegation of Finland, thanked the Committee for its comments and suggestions. Finland was very happy for the good and fertile discussion, and was grateful for the kind words heard. The answers to questions which had not been supplied would be in the next periodic report.



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