Combating Hate Crime in Finland – New report maps out current state and needs for development

The new Combating Hate Crime in Finland – Current State and Measures report examines the prevention of hate crime and hate speech in Finland. The report was drawn up as part of the implementation of the Government’s equality statement and supports the follow-up work on human rights recommendations issued to Finland by international monitoring bodies.

The report provides an up-to-date picture of the work being done to combat hate crime and hate speech in Finland. It is based on a general legislative analysis, a survey addressed to authorities, municipalities and organisations and an overview of recent research data. The report is structured according to the human rights indicators used by the UN.

The key findings of the report are that Finnish legislation generally provides a strong basis for preventing hate crimes, but there are shortcomings when it comes to practical implementation. There is especially room for improvement with respect to the competence of the authorities, coordination between different actors and support services for victims. The number of hate crimes recorded by the police has increased, and underreporting is still widespread.
International human rights monitoring bodies have repeatedly called attention to the increasing prevalence of hate speech, shortcomings in training and the lack of effective procedures for the consideration of hate crimes.

The report recommends a number of concrete measures, such increasing the amount of training given to the authorities, improving practices for identifying and collecting data on hate crimes, developing victim support services and promoting closer cooperation between the authorities, municipalities and organisations.

Inquiries: Katriina Nousiainen, Chief Specialist, Strategy Department, Prime Minister’s Office, tel. +358 295 160 735, email address in the format [email protected]