Finland investigating racist commentaries shared on Facebook by police officers

Police officers in Finland may face criminal prosecution over racist commentaries about immigrants that they posted to a closed Facebook group after the Finnish investigative news server Long Play discovered the commentaries and reported on them. Czech news server denik.cz cites the BBC as reporting that the Finnish National Police Council has submitted material to the prosecutor on the issue.

“Each member of the Finnish state service has the right to freedom of speech, but police officers should behave in their free time in such a way as to not undermine the authority of their office,” a spokesperson for the Finnish Police told the BBC. The closed group of police officers shared anti-immigrant news reporting from ultra-right sources.

discussions included crude jokes about a rapper of mixed ethnic orign, Musta Barbaari, and ridiculed an asylum-seeker who attempted suicide in Helsinki in March. For the time being it is not clear how many officers joined the closed conversations.

According to Finnish Interior Minister Paula Risikko, the matter will be thoroughly investigated.”There must be absolutely zero tolerance for racism and all such commentaries,” she said.