A contentious bill allowing border guards to deny asylum requests from third-country migrants seeking to enter from neighboring Russia was narrowly approved by Finnish lawmakers last Friday, July 12. Helsinki claims Moscow is coordinating a wave of migrants heading toward the border.
The government’s bill, which would temporarily restrict immigration into the Nordic country, is a reaction to what Finland perceives to be Russian “hybrid warfare” It thinks Moscow is directing unauthorized immigrants toward the border between the two nations.
The Finnish government reports that since August 2023, over 1 300 citizens of third countries have entered Finland from Russia without a valid visa. The authorities have stated that it was evident that other actors, including foreign authorities, were aiding in the instrumentalization of migration. Preparing for more severe cases of this type of migration push is another goal.The act would only be applied in the most extraordinary circumstances.
The temporary law, which has a one-year validity period, received the support of 167 legislators, which is the bare minimum required to pass in the 200-seat Finnish Parliament, Eduskunta. Among the thirty-one lawmakers who voted against the bill were members of the Green League and the Left Alliance.
The new law permits Finnish border guards to deny migrant asylum applications at crossing points in specific situations, subject to President Alexander Stubb’s approval. However, they will not deny entry to minors, the disabled, or any migrants who border guards believe to be in a particularly vulnerable position.
The law has generated controversy because its opponents claim it violates the Finnish Constitution, international human rights agreements outlined by the UN, and promises made by the EU and Finland. These opponents include academics, legal experts, and human rights organizations.
Reactions to the Proposed Legislation
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo called the new law “a strong message to Russia, a strong message to our allies, that Finland takes care of its own security, we take care of the security of the EU border.”
The prime minister had claimed that the law was necessary to combat Russia’s tactics of purposefully guiding migrants to the normally closely guarded Russia-Finland border zone, which also serves as the northern external border of the European Union, on the grounds of national security.
Finance Minister Riikka Purra, chair of the nationalist far-right Finns Party that forms the Cabinet’s core together with Orpo’s conservative National Coalition Party, said that nothing can take precedence over maintaining national security. “We cannot allow Russia to exploit weaknesses in our legislation and international agreements,” Purra said.
The draft law had previously drawn criticism from Michael O’Flaherty, the Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe, who urged against its adoption: “The relationship between national security and human rights is not a zero-sum game,” a Council of Europe statement said in June. The Commissioner also raises concerns that “the (Finnish) draft law, if adopted, would set a worrying precedent for other countries and for the global asylum system.”
Eve Geddie, the Amnesty International’s Director European Institutions Office, highlighted: “Regarding the Finnish Government’s proposal for an emergency law on the so-called >>instrumentalization<< of migration, defined in the text as actions by >>states or other actors<< to facilitate irregular migration movements into another country in an attempt to destabilize it. She emphasized: “This law gravely undermines access to asylum and the protection from refoulement in Finland. It risks serving as a green light for violence and pushbacks at the border.”
“This law is inconsistent with the newly approved EU crisis and force majeure regulation. It goes beyond all powers granted under EU law and we expect the European Commission to rigorously scrutinize its legality” – AI’s Deputy Regional Director for Europe, Dinushika Dissanayake condemn the act.
Background of the Finish Border Crisis
Finland’s proposal is a worrisome continuation of the policies and practices that, since 2021, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland have introduced in violation of human rights law to combat so-called “instrumentalization” attempts.
The Finnish concern of weaponized migration emerged in the fall of 2023 when attempts to cross the border by land in the east started to increase, though the daily total for the Finnish portion of the border did not surpass 100. The aslyum seekers coming from the Middle East who were lack the necessary documentation to enter Finland. People frequently tried to cross the border on bicycles from the Russian side to Finland because it is forbidden to cross on foot and bicycles are classified as vehicles.
The Finnish government has taken an unprecedented measure to address the issue, closing the entire length of the country’s eastern border on December 15, 2023, even though the number of migrants would not necessarily be a reason to do so.
Additionally, there was a lot of pressure in 2015 on the 1,343-kilometer eastern border with Russia. The number of people applying for asylum was about 1,000 per day at that time, which is a much higher rate than what is currently seen.
But there is a clear difference in the Finnish government’s approach compared to the 2015 refugee crisis. The government has viewed the increase in immigration as a Russian threat from the beginning. According to Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, there is a hybrid attack and a risk to national security, not a matter of individual asylum seekers coming. A few of the land border crossing points with Russia would have remained open at first, but they were eventually closed.
The scenario at the Finnish border serves as an example of how the migration crisis can spark new crises in EU member states, which could quickly turn into a security risk for the entire EU.
