Summary: After getting Covid, Tero Nikkanen spent more than a week unconscious in intensive care with a breathing tube in his throat, but he is still concerned about side effects from a vaccine.

Last March, home care nurse  Tero Nikkanen  started having symptoms of abdominal and joint pain as well as fever. He called emergency services for guidance and was told to head to the University Hospital in Kuopio, the city where he lives.
 Emergency services initially suspected colitis, or inflammation of the colon, he said.
 Around the same time, the region's hospital district had begun offering Covid vaccines to nursing staff in the area, but Nikkanen was fundamentally sceptical about taking it.
 "Yes, I'm very hesitant, because the Covid vaccine has been studied for such a short period of time, I don't want to take it right away. I had a strong opinion that I wouldn't take it," Nikkanen explained.
 It turned out his symptoms weren't caused by colitis, but by Covid-19.
 Following his diagnosis, Nikkanen ended up in an intensive care unit briefly, breathing with the help of a ventilator. His recovery was quick, or so he thought, but post-Covid complications caused a major health ordeal requiring extensive care. He eventually recovered, but nearly six months later he said he's still hesitant to get the jabs.
 The Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has recommended that people who've had the upper respiratory disease take the vaccine around six months after they recover.
 According to  Hanna Nohynek , THL's chief physician, the antibodies caused by Covid-19 — which can protect against being reinfected — last at least six months.
 "Exceptions may be made to either administer the vaccine earlier or later than that. But given the Delta variant, I'd prefer to give it earlier," Nohynek said, referring to the more contagious strain of the coronavirus which is causing Covid cases to shoot up in many countries, including Finland.
 Hesitation
 The World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked Covid vaccine hesitation among the top 10 health threats facing people around the globe.
 Researcher  Anna Soveri , who has studied people's attitudes about vaccines, said it was hard to know how many Covid vaccine sceptics there actually are in Finland. International studies have shown that only one or two percent of populations are generally completely against vaccines.
 "At this point, more than 80 percent of people over the age of 40 have taken a Covid vaccine [in Finland]," she explained.
 Sovereign added that there may be a very small proportion of people who are completely opposed to being vaccinated, but that there may be a larger group who are only hesitant about the idea.
 Initially, home care nurse Nikkanen thought his Covid ordeal was over after spending a night in an intensive care unit.
 Following his discharge from the hospital, he spent three weeks in quarantine and his symptoms went away, and his physician said it was safe for him to return to work.
 However, Nikkanen's Covid ordeal was not over.
 Story continues after photo
 Nikkanen in an ICU unit following eight days of unconsciousness. Tero Nikkasen kotialbumi
 After five days back on the job, the lymph nodes in his neck began to swell as his body temperature rose to a fever. His wife drove him to the hospital's accident and emergency wing at about three o'clock one morning.
 His fever continued to rise at the hospital and he was diagnosed with a parapharyngeal abscess — an abscess deep in the neck — which was making it difficult for him to breathe. A decision was made to remove the abscess surgically.
 Nikkanen's condition worsened further after he was anaesthetised, and he was admitted to an intensive care unit for more than a week.
 "When I woke up in the ICU, the doctor came to tell me that the situation was really bad, saying I had pneumonia and that my lungs had collapsed and stopped working. He said that I'd been unconscious for eight days on a ventilator," he recalled.
 In order to help him breathe, a tracheotomy was also performed, a procedure which involves cutting a hole into the throat to enable breathing without use of the nose or mouth.
 At the beginning of his gradual convalescence, Nikkanen was unable to sit on the edge of his bed, let alone walk. The first time he became mobile was with the help of a crane that lifted him into a wheelchair.
 Nikkanen said he gradually began to walk again, with the help of a physiotherapist as well as a rollator and crutches.
 "The doctor couldn't confirm whether it was a [Covid-related] sequelae, but said it was possible," he said, adding that he was very grateful for the treatment he received from the staff at Kuopio Hospital, saying they saved his life.
 The doctor also told him that his Covid case gave him six months of protection from being infected again. With that period nearly over, it became time for him to consider whether to get future protection from a vaccine.
 Although he said his negative attitude towards the idea of being vaccinated has softened since the spring, he was still hesitant about their safety and potential side effects.
 "I still have a little hesitation when I hear about some people getting blood clots [from the vaccine], joint pain and long periods of fever," he said, adding that he also wonders about long-term effects of the vaccine.
 "[Maybe] it will be revealed much later on that the vaccine causes [other] diseases," he explained.
 Story continues after photo
 Tero Nikkanen  Antti-Petteri Karhunen / Yle
 About a year and a half ago, researcher Soveri studied people's attitudes about Covid vaccines as Covid arrived in Finland.
 She said it became clear that the main reason people were largely willing to take the vaccine was because it was safe.
 "The secondary reason was how serious an illness people thought Covid was," she said, adding that at the time about 70 percent of people in Finland were willing to take the vaccine.
 Jonas Sivelä , a senior researcher at THL, emphasised that residents were even more willing to take the vaccine as the pandemic continued.
 "We've been monitoring the willingness of people in Finland to be vaccinated since April 2020 and it has only grown since then. According to the latest results, about 91 percent of residents have either already taken the vaccine or said they would," Sivelä said.
 A recent government-commissioned survey, carried out by polling firm Taloustutkimus, found that about four percent said they did not plan to take a Covid vaccine.
 "According to our information, strong anti-vaccine resistance is very marginal, even though it gets a lot of media coverage. That visibility does not always correspond to reality," Sivelä emphasised.
 The government has said that in order to fully remove Covid-related restrictions, it would  require the vaccinations of 80-90 percent  of people over the age of 12.
 Currently just under 30 percent of that group has still not received a single dose of the vaccine.
 Sivelä said he believed that the government's vaccination goal will be reached but could not estimate when that might happen.
 Covid survivor Nikkanen said that as a nurse, he does not want to spread anti-vaccine sentiments, but feels the decision to take it is a personal choice for everyone. At work, he encourages his clients to get vaccinated.
 Nikkanen said it was difficult to say what, exactly, would change his mind about Covid vaccines, as not even his severe complications from the disease swayed his opinion very much.
 However, the fear of getting as sick as he was again crosses his mind every now and then, he said.
 There has been discussion about whether to make Covid vaccinations mandatory for caregivers. Nikkanen said he likes his job and doesn't want to change careers.
 "Yes, I will take it if it becomes mandatory," he said.

Home care nurse is still vaccine-hesitant, even after ICU stint


Summary: The latest arrivals include a group of Afghan citizens employed by the Finnish embassy in Kabul, along with their families.

Minister of the Interior  Maria Ohisalo  (Green) said 102 evacuees from the Afghan capital of Kabul arrived in Finland on Monday morning.
 Finnish authorities arranged the flight from the Georgian capital Tbilisi to Helsinki, Ohisalo said, as part of an EU-coordinated evacuation operation from Afghanistan. Finland has also offered other EU countries the opportunity to use Finnish flights to evacuate their own citizens.
 The group includes Finnish citizens or permanent residents of Finland as well as Afghans who have recently been employed by the Finnish state, along with their families.
 The Finnish government has committed to evacuating a total of 170 Afghan citizens, and Ohisalo said that about half of this number had arrived in Finland as of Monday morning.
 However, she told the Monday afternoon press conference that it was difficult to say how likely it was that the remainder of people in this quota would be brought to Finland.
 "The news today [from Kabul] has been very worrying, that there have even been firefights on the ground. Under these circumstances, the Finnish authorities are working to bring people to safety," Ohisalo said, referring to reports from German army officials of an exchange of fire between unidentified gunmen and security forces at an entrance to Kabul airport on Monday morning.
 Finnish Embassy guards not on evacuation list
 According to Foreign Affairs Minister  Pekka Haavisto , Finland is not planning to evacuate individuals who worked as "subcontractors' subcontractors," which in practice means that the evacuation list does not include the local security guards who worked at the Finnish Embassy in Kabul.
 "In this situation, we have not considered the possibility of including subcontractors' subcontractors to the evacuation list," Haavisto said.
 The minister also said that Finland has become aware that some individuals who are looking to flee Afghanistan were applying for protection from Pakistan or Iran, but noted that those people would not be evacuated to Finland.
 Evacuated workers not treated as asylum seekers
 The Afghan citizens that have arrived in Finland will be accommodated in reception centres across the country until their residence permits are issued, which the Finnish Immigration Service Migri are ready to process as a matter of urgency on humanitarian grounds.
 The permits will initially be valid for a period of four years.
 Ohisalo said the government's decision to evacuate the workers was based on the exceptional situation in Afghanistan.
 "Those people, who have worked for and helped the Finnish state, are now being helped by us," the minister said, adding that discussions about the impact of the situation in Afghanistan on immigration will continue at the EU level this week.
 Ohisalo added that the coordination of support measures and solidarity with Afghanistan's neighbours will be essential.
 _This week's  All Points North podcast  discussed the situation in Kabul and its impact on Finnish policy._
 You can listen to the full podcast using the embedded player here, via  Yle Areena ,  Spotify  or  Apple Podcasts  or on your usual podcast player using the  RSS feed .
 This story was edited at 17:11 on 23 August 2021 to add information about the security guards who worked at the Finnish Embassy in Kabul not being included on Finland's evacuation list. It was also amended at 18:57 to correctly quote Minister Haavisto's characterisation of the embassy's security guards as "subcontractors' subcontractors."

Ohisalo: Afghan evacuation flight lands in Helsinki


Summary: Police previously deemed that an article calling for a mass slaughter of Muslims did not warrant an investigation.

The state prosecutor has ordered the police to launch a preliminary investigation into an online article discussing a mass annihilation of Muslims in Finland. Police initially opted not to investigate the matter, as they deemed the article to fall within the framework of freedom of speech.
 The writing dates back to 2016, when it appeared in a far right online publication.
 In January of last year, the police received a request to look into the matter, but decided two months later that there was nothing to investigate.
 "The language and style of the article is matter of fact. It is written in a general sense, and does not include any concrete elements that could be put into action," the police said of their decision.
 Among other things the article, published by an online magazine called  Sarastus  (or Dawn in English), discussed how to dispose of people's bodies killed during ethnic cleansing.
 The police, however, deemed that the article did not qualify as inciting ethnic hatred or preparing a holocaust.
 Timo Hännikäinen , the publication's editor-in-chief, also works for a publisher which was banned from the Helsinki Book Fair in 2018. The publisher was blocked for its far-right views. Exhibition company Suomen Messut later paid the publisher 2,000 euros in damages.

Prosecutor orders police to probe suspected ethnic incitement


Summary: Located at a depth of about 85 metres, the cavity allegedly contains discarded oil barrels and used explosives boxes.

Pirkanmaa District Court on Monday granted police extra time to investigate a suspected illegal dumpsite at a gold mine in the region's municipality of Orivesi.
 The dumpsite, located about 85 meters down in the mine, was discovered by authorities in the autumn of 2018. Australian-based firm Dragon Mining took over the mine in 2007.
 However, an administrative court case surrounding Dragon Mining's cost liabilities regarding its departure from the mine have caused  delays  to investigating the underground dump site, according to police.
 Pirkanmaa's Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) has deemed the site as an illegal landfill. Local police are investigating the case as aggravated environmental damage.
 According to news service STT, information about the ongoing investigation released by police has been minimal and have not confirmed the number of individuals under suspicion, for example. Mandatory summonses to appear at Pirkanmaa District Court were sent to the suspects but the individuals did not show up.
 The police investigation is still pending, due to the firm's legal delays, a situation which prompted the district court's decision on Monday to extend the probe, which in practice means that the site remains a secured crime scene.
 Police want to ensure that authorities are on site when the waste is removed from the mine.
 ELY: Dumping began in 1990s
 According to the initial descriptions of the dumpsite's contents, the cavity contained discarded oil barrels, used explosives boxes as well as plastic and metal waste.
 According to news magazine  Suomen Kuvalehti , the company claimed last year that the cost of cleaning the site could reach into millions of euros.
 Dumping at the underground site began in the 1990s, when it was owned by the Finnish steel firm Outokumpu, according to the ELY Centre.
 However, there have been previous estimates that the mine may never be completely cleaned out. At a depth of 85 meters, the deposit is also partially filled with mud and water, and Dragon Mining has said cleaning it would be dangerous.
 Outokumpu operated the mine until 2003 and Dragon Mining began operations in 2007.

Court: Police get extra time to probe gold mine's suspected illegal dump site


Summary: The initiative launched just over a month ago and by Monday had gained the support of more than 50,000 people.

A citizens' initiative to ban sexual orientation and gender identification conversion therapy in Finland reached the required 50,000 signatures on Monday, which means it will now be referred to Parliament for consideration.
 Supporters of the initiative said they want MPs to ban treatments and therapies aimed at converting gay and transgender people into cisgender heterosexuals. Cisgender refers to people whose gender identities remain the same as the genders they were assigned at birth.
 Perttu Jussila , who launched the initiative, voiced satisfaction with the support it received. Jussila started the initiative on 19 July of this year.
 "It's insane that conversion treatments have not been banned yet. After all, the regulation of alternative therapies was included in [Prime Minister  Sanna Marin 's (SDP)] government's programme. A couple of years have passed now since the government was established, and nothing has really happened. The EU has condemned conversion therapies in its policy, and Malta already banned the treatments in 2016. I simply came to the conclusion that the issue wouldn't be addressed without a citizens' initiative," Jussila explained.
 Although Jussila was glad that the initiative was heading to Parliament, the moment was also bittersweet.
 "I find it sad that we are talking about the rights of sexual and gender minorities," the initiative's main backer said, adding that each advance the LGBTQIA+ community has made in Finland has required the use of citizens' initiatives to prompt MPs' actions.
 Ban would apply to adults and children
 Jussila's initiative calls for the banning of conversion therapies for both adults as well as children.
 Acknowledging that it might be difficult to legally restrict an adult's decision to voluntarily undergo conversion therapy, Jussila said it should not prevent the drafting of a law.
 "It's hardly the easiest legal issue in the world, but it is not impossible either. Human rights really are a black and white thing. We can't avoid something because it is difficult. Moreover, we have examples from around the world that show it's possible, for example, in Malta. It's unfathomable that we can't manage to do it [in Finland] but Malta could," Jussila said.
 Similar efforts to criminalise conversion therapies are underway in Germany, Canada and some US states.
 Teemu Kärnä , chair of the Finnish Psychiatric Association's ethics committee, said he considers the passing of the citizens' initiative to be appropriate and balanced.
 "Traditionally, conversion therapy refers to attempts to influence a person's sexual orientation or gender identity. With regard to the therapies, it is important to note that there is no researched evidence that such attempts to change these things could be successful, even theoretically," he said.
 The inherent problem with such therapies, Kärnä said, was the fact that they do not work. Additionally, he noted that there is growing evidence of the suffering that they cause.
 "There is a clear view in Western medicine that homosexuality is a healthy and natural part of human sexuality in the same way that transsexuality and transgender sex are healthy and natural parts of human gender diversity. When a person's healthy phenomena become associated with suggestions that there is something bad or wrong with them, it naturally causes people to suffer," Kärnä said.
 Kärnä noted that conversion therapies harm the development of children, saying that they are known to cause suffering, depression and functional impairment that can continue into adulthood.
 Regarding adults who seek out such therapies for one reason or another, Kärnä said a healthier approach would be to offer them support so they could accept their sexual orientations or gender identities, rather than try to change them.
 The Finnish Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association, the Royal College of Psychiatrists as well as the American Psychoanalytic Association have all ceased the practice of conversion therapies due to their harmful effects.

Gay, transgender conversion therapy ban initiative heads to Parliament


Summary: On Monday Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto described embassy guards as "sub-contractors' sub-contractors".

Guards from the Finnish embassy in Kabul said they were desperate for evacuation on Monday, as the Taliban rejected the idea of extending the 31 August deadline for American withdrawal.
 The guards were told last week they would not be on the list of those evacuated from Afghanistan as western embassies shut down and staff were pulled out.
 Yle News spoke to a guard who said it was a complete shock when Finnish staff were evacuated from the embassy and they were left behind.
 "They just said it is the responsibility of your company, not us," said the guard by phone from Kabul. "I have worked with them for seven years, some of us for ten years, they don't care."
 "Since they [the Taliban] came to Kabul we have hidden in our homes."
 Yle is not naming the guard because of the security threats he currently faces.
 Evacuation lists
 Finland has evacuated more than a hundred people, including Finnish citizens and embassy staff, but the guards who provided security at the embassy are not on the list of those to be flown out.
 They were employed through a local firm, and on Monday Foreign Minister  Pekka Haavisto  (Green) had said that it was not possible to extend the list to "sub-contractors' sub-contractors".
 The guards said they were employed in visible roles, offering security to Finnish diplomats and politicians in Afghanistan, and are even more at risk than some of those directly employed by the Finnish state.
 "When they were going to the other embassies, or they had some meetings, we were escorting them," said the guard. "Behind and front, we were with them all the time. Whenever they were going somewhere we prepared the guards for them and escorted them."
 Other western countries have made similar decisions, with local staff employed by sub-contractors — often the arrangement for security guards — left off evacuation lists.
 They have faced heavy criticism and on Friday the United Kingdom  announced  that it had reversed its decision not to grant visas to embassy guards from Kabul.
 Yle has seen the guards' IDs and references. A Finn who worked in Kabul confirmed their authenticity and told Yle the guards "kept us alive and made it possible for us to do our work".
 Sub-contracting security
 They are employed by a sub-contractor in Afghanistan paid by a Finnish firm that had the contract to secure the embassy from the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
 Yle contacted the company, but they had not returned the call by the time of publication.
 "I don't know who has made the decision that they belong to a local company and should not come to Finland," said the guard. "I don't know who said that in Finland. They ignored us."
 The decision to leave guards off the evacuation order was criticised in the Finnish parliament last week, with Finns Party MP  Tom Packalén  saying that Finland was leaving behind "a group of people who have risked their own lives for Finland's security".
 Packalén warned that Finland could pay a 'steep price' one day, if future employees conclude that their safety would not be guaranteed.
 In Kabul, the guard that Yle spoke to admitted that his documents could save his life, if he manages to claim asylum outside Afghanistan — but could also be his death warrant.
 "If Taliban search our houses they will find it and can easily kill us," added the guard via an instant messaging service after the interview. "That's the fault of the Finnish embassy. We will not forgive them."

Embassy guard on Finns' departure: "We will not forgive them"


Summary: What use is a Covid passport?

Iltalehti has  a look  at efforts in several ministries to envision what a Covid passport might look like in Finland.
 The idea is that to gain entry to certain establishments, people would have to show a document proving they had been fully vaccinated or had tested negative for Covid-19 recently.
 The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health had asked for comments on Covid passports, and so far four ministries have offered their views.
 Bars could be left out of the plans, with the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Employment saying that as current legislation does not allow for bar closures, the Covid pass should not be used in an effort to keep them open.
 Swimming pools, sports centres and gyms, on the other hand — which can be closed when the Covid situation deteriorates — would be good places to use the Covid passport, according to the ministry.
 The ministry would exclude essential services, including grocery stores, hairdressers, post offices, pharmacies and libraries, from Covid pass usage.
 The Ministry of Education and Culture, on the other hand, suggested libraries could have access controlled by Covid passes.
 Rusko shooting
 The papers all cover a fatal shooting overnight in the south-western town of Rusko, in which a person died after police were called to their house.
 Local paper Turun Sanomat  says  that both the civilian and one police officer discharged their weapons, and the police officer was in hospital with mild injuries.
 Tampere's prosecutor's office will now investigate the police use of firearms, and police said they would not comment further on the case.
 To gov or not to gov
 Helsingin Sanomat  reports  on disquiet from the Institute for the Languages of Finland (Kotus), which is unhappy about a change to the email addresses used by officials at different ministries.
 The government plans to change all government email addresses to use the format  firstname.lastname@gov.fi , saying it would aid consistency and help people get in touch with officials.
 This would eliminate all the different suffixes used across different ministries, with a govsec.fi suffix used for those involved in higher security tasks. The Ministry for the Interior will only use govsec.fi email addresses.
 Kotus, however, is displeased, because gov.fi stems from English rather than Finnish.
 "In our opinion it would be consistent with good governance principles to use Finnish and Swedish language suffixes," said the centre's naming expert  Ulla Onkamo . "If an email address is needed for international or English language connections, it could be written differently."

Tuesday's papers: Covid pass process, Rusko shooting, and the threat of English emails


Summary: The certificate would show that the holder has been fully vaccinated, recently tested negative or recovered from the virus.

The City of Helsinki trialled the use of a Covid pass at a specially-arranged, invitational event on Monday evening, where attendees were asked on arrival to show either an  EU Covid certificate  downloaded from the OmaKanta patient database or a related QR code in order to gain entry.
 "We are trying to discover how attending an event using a Covid pass might work," the City's Head of Enterprise Services  Jani Moliis  told Yle.
 A Covid pass is a certificate which states whether the holder has been fully vaccinated, has recovered from the virus, or has recently tested negative.
 Attendees at the Monday evening event complied with the current coronavirus restrictions on public gatherings, as the trial was not intended to test whether the pass could be used to alleviate such measures.
 "On this occasion, the Covid pass is just a small inconvenience for those invited. I think those who accepted the invitation want to support the rapid introduction of the Covid pass," Moliis said.
 A total of 120 people, made up of city officials as well as representatives from the event and hospitality industries, were invited to the event.
 Could the Covid pass end restrictions?
 Finland's government is now considering whether it would be possible to introduce a Covid pass, which would be available from the OmaKanta online portal, and would allow access to cultural or public events without restrictions.
 The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has  asked for comments on the possible introduction  of the passes, and so far four ministries have offered their views.
 According to Moliis, a Covid pass may not be necessary if vaccine coverage is high enough, but it is worth preparing for its introduction, especially as it is not yet clear how effective the current vaccine is against virus variants.
 "In that situation, it would be good that we have a Covid pass in the toolbox, so that we no longer have to return to such drastic restrictive measures as before," he said, adding that the City plans to conduct more trials in the future.

Helsinki trials use of Covid pass


Summary: Two cargo planes landed in Tampere on Saturday, according to Helsingin Sanomat.

Finnish troops who supported evacuation efforts in Kabul landed in Finland on Saturday. The Finnish Defence Forces were, however, tight-lipped on the operation's details.
 Helsingin Sanomat reported that two military cargo planes landed at Pirkkala airport in Tampere around 8am on Saturday.
 Finnish troops left the Afghan capital on Thursday around the same time suicide bombers attacked Kabul airport. The attack did not pose an immediate danger to Finnish troops.
 Ten-day mission
 Finnish military personnel arrived in Kabul more than a week ago. The Defence Forces have not said how many troops were in Kabul, though reports have suggested that the group included a few dozen individuals.
 The Finnish operation  evacuated around 330 people . Some 250 were Finnish citizens, Finnish permanent residents and locally hired embassy workers at the Finnish embassy in Kabul as well as their families. Evacuees also included 80 people working with EU and Natio missions.
 General  Timo Kivinen , Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, commended the Finnish troops in a Defence Forces statement on Saturday.
 "You've performed your mission in an exemplary way," Kivinen said.
 The operation drew further praise from Defence Minister  Antti Kaikkonen  (Cen) on Saturday.
 "The operation showed how the Defence Forces can act swiftly and professionally in difficult circumstances. We can be proud of their work," he tweeted.
 Finnish Foreign Ministry personnel were also involved in the operation.
 Dozens left behind
 Dozens of Finnish citizens and people employed by the Finnish mission in Kabul are still in the country, as they did not manage to board flights out of the country.
 In the last two days of the evacuation effort very few people got through to the airport, Foreign Minister  Pekka Haavisto  said on Friday.
 This week's All Points North podcast heard from Yle correspondent  Maija Liuhto  about the situation on the ground in Afghanistan. You can listen to the full podcast using the embedded player here, via Yle Areena, Spotify or Apple Podcasts or on your usual podcast player using the RSS feed.

Finnish troops return from Afghanistan


Summary: The Finnish President addressed diplomats in an event streamed live to officials located across the globe.

Finnish President  Sauli Niinistö  told Finland's diplomats that the world is becoming more uncertain, and that Finland has a role in helping manage increased tensions.
 Speaking at the annual Meeting of the Heads of Mission, he said that the collapse of the Afghan government has been the dominant international story in recent weeks, and Niinistö acknowledged its importance.
 "It is still too early to see the whole picture.," said Niinistö. "Still, it is already clear that these sudden turns of events will have major consequences, both in concrete and symbolic terms, both immediate and long-lasting ones."
 The president emphasised Finland's responsibility to those Afghans who had been employed by Finns in the country in the past two decades.
 In the wake of the  government's decision not to evacuate security guards from the Kabul embassy  he told journalists afterwards that he had no problem with the government's evacuation list, however.
 The future of crisis management operations was also in the balance, according to Niinistö.
 "In Afghanistan, what collapsed extends well beyond the government in Kabul," said Niinistö. "What has happened forces the whole western world to face even broader, fundamental questions. If, after two decades of massive efforts, the outcome is this, what will be the future of big international crisis management operations, particularly of the kind of operations aimed at building nations and transforming societies in a larger scale? What kind of capacity does the West have to promote its values worldwide? Or is there even a will to do so anymore? Furthermore, what will all this mean for the world order?"
 One factor to consider is that great power competition is intensifying, according to Niinistö.
 "But both Beijing and Moscow have surely come to the conclusion that what happened in Afghanistan showed that neither the United States nor the Western world as a whole can succeed in exporting their set of values," said Niinistö. "Whether the interpretation of the West being weak is right or wrong, the shadow of a doubt is difficult to shed."
 'Spirit of Helsinki'
 The president concluded his speech by touching on migration issues, asking if current rules and practices can hold as migration increases, while cautioning against blaming any individual migrant for problems.
 "But migration challenges the EU to challenge its own principles," said Niinistö. "If it really comes to the crunch, can we adhere to the human rights agreements as we are making ourselves believe? And if we cannot, what will happen then?"
 Niinistö also invoked the 'spirit of Helsinki', which is said to have created the space for the 1975 meeting in the Finnish capital which laid the foundations for the OSCE.
 He said it would be natural for Finland to assume the chairmanship of the organisation in 2025, to mark fifty years since the Helsinki Conference.
 Niinistö touched on similar themes on Monday at the Crimea Platform conference in Kiev, where he also affirmed Finland's support for "international efforts to restore Ukraine's territorial integrity".
 Parts of Ukraine have been under the control of Russia-backed separatists for several years, and the Crimean peninsula was annexed by Russia in 2014.
 Marin urges EU unity
 Prime Minister  Sanna Marin  (SDP) also addressed ambassadors at the event. She echoed Niinistö's calls for a stronger security and defence co-operation between EU countries.
 Marin said that the EU has to appear united to outsiders, even when there is not unanimity between member states.
 "The union cannot be paralysed or become a playing field for great powers," said Marin. "More efficient external policies require more united common political responsibilities, and that now has to be built."
 Marin repeated Finland's opposition to Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula. According to Marin the main responsibility for resolving the conflict ine astern Ukraine lies with Russia, but there appears to be little desire for genuine dialogue.
 Marin also defended Finland's presence in Afghanistan.
 "Maybe many would like to think that our work for Afghanistan and the future of Afghans would have somehow been destined to fail," said Marin. "I see human rights and equality, access to education and healthcare are for everyone and Afghans' desire to move forward towards a better future is clear for us all to see. Even one Afghan girl who was able to go to school can bring about change, and there are now a lot of them."

Niinistö evokes 'spirit of Helsinki' at diplomats' conference


Summary: There were 2.6 million people in employment in Finland during the month of July, an increase of 86,000 compared to the same period last year.

Finland's employment rate trend climbed to 72.7 percent in July, the highest level since February 2020, just before the coronavirus pandemic began to impact the Finnish economy.
 The effects led to the employment rate trend dropping to 69.7 percent in June last year, the lowest level throughout the pandemic.
 However, the latest Labour Force Survey from Statistics Finland revealed that there were about 86,000 more people — 45,000 men and 41,000 women — in employment in July compared to the same month last year, which brought Finland's employment figure to 2.6 million.
 Patrizio Lainà , Chief Economist with the Finnish Confederation of Professionals STTK, told Yle News that the latest employment figures are "surprising" but welcome, and may lead to an increase in workers' salaries.
 "An economic boom should normally mean that salaries pick up, but that has yet to be seen. In particular, salaries in those sectors that are experiencing labour shortages should rise," Lainà said. "Should the two percent inflation rate target be sustained into the future, we need salaries to develop at a higher pace than in the previous years."
 Statistics Finland's data also revealed that the number of unemployed people in July dropped by around 5,000 compared to July 2020.
 There were 99,000 unemployed men in July, and slightly more unemployed women (103,000). Unemployment rates dropped most significantly in the regions of Ostrobothnia (27 percent), Pirkanmaa (26 percent) and Southern Ostrobothnia (25 percent).
 Ministry figures also show improving situation
 Figures released on Tuesday by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment also demonstrate that Finland's employment situation has noticeably improved on July 2020.
 The ministry's data revealed that there were a total of 322,600 unemployed jobseekers registered with TE-offices across the country in July, which was 64,900 fewer than the same time a year ago.
 However, that figure was 53,700 more than in July 2019, showing that the effects of the pandemic are still being felt in certain sectors.
 The ministry also noted that the number of long-term unemployed — people who have been unemployed without interruption for at least a year — amounted to 113,900 in July, up 36,200 on the previous year.
 Despite these figures, there were a total of 72,200 new vacancies reported during July, or an increase of 25,800 on July 2020, and the number of unfilled vacancies in July amounted to 136,000, up by 49,300 compared to one year ago.
 The differences in the figures presented by Statistics Finland the ministry are explained by the fact that Statistics Finland's Labour Force Survey has a stricter definition of being unemployed: a person is unemployed if he or she has actively sought employment during the preceding four weeks and is available for work over the coming two weeks.
 The figures provided by Statistics Finland are internationally comparable and thus they are the official Finnish unemployment statistics.

Finland's employment rate trend returns to pre-pandemic level


Summary: The foreign affairs ministry said Finland would evacuate more than the 240 people the country pledged to previously.

In a tweet posted on Tuesday, Minister for Foreign Affairs  Pekka Haavisto  (Green) said that embassy staff members hired by Finland had been evacuated from Afghanistan along with members of their families.
 As of Tuesday morning, Haavisto said Finland had facilitated the evacuation of more than 200 people from the country, noting that most of the evacuees were women and children.
 He said that around 40 people of that number were members of the EU delegation in Kabul.
 Haavisto concluded the tweet by saying that the operation would continue.
 Meanwhile, the foreign affairs ministry said Finland would evacuate more than the 240 people the country pledged to previously.
 Photos: Finnish troops assist in Afghanistan evacuations
 Meanwhile, the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) on Tuesday published photographs of  troops assisting  in the ongoing evacuation operation in Afghanistan.
 The photographs show soldiers escorting evacuees aboard a military aircraft at Kabul airport.
 Story continues after the photo
 Puolustusvoimat
 The pictures also show Finnish troops on patrol along a fence at the airport, lined with people waiting to be evacuated, sitting and standing along a wall.
 Story continues after the photo
 Puolustusvoimat
 The Finnish troops arrived in Afghanistan on Saturday and got to work right away, according to the FDF. Finland's operations in the country are limited to Kabul airport and its immediate surroundings, the Defence Forces added.
 Some of the Finnish soldiers have previously been deployed in Afghanistan on peacekeeping missions.

Finnish troops to continue Afghanistan evacuation operations


Summary: The ambassador says the Taliban's rapid seizure of power also came as a surprise to experts.

Despite following the course of events over the past two years in the war-torn country, Finland's Ambassador to Afghanistan  Pekka Kosonen  said he was as surprised as anyone else about the events that began unfolding as the country's government collapsed and the Taliban took control.
 The ambassador made the comments on Tuesday as he attended a meeting of Finnish diplomats in Helsinki.
 Kosonen said that before the country's power structure began to fundamentally change in mid-August, he was under the impression that Western countries were prepared to support Afghan security forces, both materially and financially, after international troops made their planned withdrawal.
 "Yes, that's what was believed. But… it happened differently," he said.
 Kosonen was in Finland on holiday when the Taliban took control of the capital, Kabul, on 15 August. At midnight that day, the Finnish Embassy in Kabul was  shut down  indefinitely.
 'Deeply regrettable'
 Now, Finland, which has taken part in peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan since 2002, has received many requests from Afghans looking to leave the country.
 "Requests from people who worked for Finland have not arrived in the past couple of days, but there have been quite a number of requests from others," Kosonen said.
 The government has said that Finland  is not planning  to evacuate, for example,  security guards  who worked at the Finnish Embassy.
 "I understand the position of the government that a limit [on the number of evacuees] needed to be put in place. But of course this is concerning and deeply regrettable for those people. But at the moment, the situation is what it is," Kosonen said.
 The ambassador noted that the Taliban's rapid seizure of power also came as a surprise to experts.
 "Actually, I still don't know how this happened. Yes, there was a desire to support Afghanistan," he said.

Finland's Ambassador to Afghanistan surprised by sudden power shift


Summary: The guards had been told they would not be evacuated from Afghanistan.

Finland has reversed its decision not to evacuate security guards who worked to protect Finnish diplomats in Kabul.
 They had been employed via a sub-contractor and therefore were left off the original evacuation lists, when it became clear the Taliban would take over Afghanistan and the western presence in the country dramatically scaled back.
 At a press conference on Tuesday evening, Foreign Minister  Pekka Haavisto  (Green) said that the guards were in real danger.
 "They have been there with the Finnish flag on their sleeve, albeit employed via a private firm," said Haavisto. "If we can help improve their security, then we want to do that."
 Haavisto said that the ministry had information that searches and threats by the Taliban had stepped up, and targeted embassy staff.
 As of Tuesday evening Finland had evacuated some 250 people. Some 100 of those are Finnish citizens, while 150 are Afghan citizens eligible for evacuation.
 At Tuesday's press conference Haavisto said that the decision expanded the evacuation list to include 45 former embassy staff and family members and 83 security guards and family members.
 That brings the total number of Afghans on evacuation lists to 298, including the 170 embassy staff on the original evacuation list.

Finland u-turns, adds Kabul embassy guards to evacuation list


Summary: Get out and enjoy the weather this weekend, if you can.

After news of  improving employment figures on Tuesday , Helsingin Sanomat has  a story  on problems in the labour market. The issue, according to employers, is a labour shortage in certain sectors — and HS asks staffing agencies what needs to be done to resolve it.
 With more than 400,000 registered unemployed, you'd think this might be an easy one. But Finnish employers want qualified workers, and becoming qualified takes time.
 If you want to work as a cook, getting the correct papers can take two or three years. And there are other issues too. People can generally manage using just English in working life, but that's not generally possible in vocational training.
 "It has to be possible to create something more flexible than the current training model,"  Mira Elo  from Staffpoint tells HS. "Potential workers should have training that they are also able to complete."
 Elo says pay isn't the main issue with restaurant work, but rather the part-time and precarious nature of the profession can put people off.
 Right now, however, there are full-time and permanent positions available and unfilled in the sector.
 Tampere tram traumas
 The new tram system in Tampere has been an entertaining saga from the start. From gauche councillors  lodging ridiculous complaints  about the plans through design competitions and education campaigns teaching the provincial city how to drive and behave around trams, it's been a story that keeps on giving.
 Now local paper Aamulehti has found a whole new genre of tram stories:  noise complaints . On Wednesday the paper reports that residents of the upmarket Pyynikintori square in the city are annoyed about the noise from trams.
 The square is currently a terminus, where trams turn around and head back eastwards, and when they leave the stop the noise is keeping residents awake — especially on warmer summer nights when they have kept their windows open.
 The problem, according to the tram operating company, is the points switching trams to the other side of the road as they leave the stop. They will experiment with keeping the points open after a tram passes, rather than closing them as is currently the case to speed up departures.
 Pyynikintori will get some relief when the next section of tram tracks opens, extending the network westwards. Then the problem will move on to Lentäväniemi, where the trams will turn around.
 Last blast of summer
 Ilta-Sanomat  carries  the somewhat depressing news that this weekend could be the last time this year when summery conditions prevail in Finland.
 The paper recommends readers get the most out of the conditions, as the balmy 15-20 degree weather might not be seen again this year.
 The southernmost parts of the country may have cloudy conditions, wind and even showers, however — so if the sun shines on you this weekend, count your blessings and enjoy it.

Wednesday's papers: Staff shortages, tram noise and summer's sad end


Summary: Nearly 30,000 people called Finland's main mental health crisis helpline last month.

Finland's mental health crisis helpline saw record numbers of calls in July, according to the NGO that runs the service.
 Mieli Mental Health Finland says that the line received some 28,800 calls during the month, an average of more than 900 calls per day.
 The previous monthly record was 27,520 calls in August 2020. The figure for July 2019, the last July before the pandemic, was 22,744.
 Calls from young people at risk of self-harm were the most numerous, with young men at particular risk. Overall calls from people at risk of self-harm reduced slightly, although calls from their loved ones were at similar levels to 2020.
 Mieli offers support and counselling services by phone in several languages including English. The English helpline is available at 09 2525 0113. Service times and more information is available at  this link .

Crisis helpline sees record number of calls in July


Summary: President Sauli Niinistö says laws should be updated to ease the deployment of Finnish troops to crisis zones.

Sauli Niinistö  on Saturday said Finland was quickly able to make the historical decision to send armed personnel to Afghanistan to support evacuation efforts in Kabul. But according to Niinistö, it’s easier for Finland to deploy troops to assist operations run by other countries than it is to send military personnel to the aid of its own citizens.
 Niinistö called for updating laws to prepare for future events requiring the swift deployment of Finnish military. Foreign Minister  Pekka Haavisto  agreed with the idea.
 "It's important that Finnish troops can quickly come to the aid of Finnish authorities in situations like evacuations. We don't know what kind of crises the world will see. It's important we're able to protect Finns in these situations," Haavisto told Yle in response to Niinistö's proposal.
 Seeds of freedom
 Niinistö said Finland learned a lot during its years of crisis management in Afghanistan, but noted that the West failed in its efforts to stabilise the country.
 "It became evident that unless enough local people or groups are strongly committed to changing their way of life or society into what we consider to be good, it's not going to work out," the president told Yle.
 He also said the "seed of freedom" had been planted in the country over two decades of western presence.
 "Undoubtedly a entire generation has experienced a free or somewhat free life—very free at least compared to Taliban rule," he told Yle.
 Niinistö also said he wanted an open discussion on problems related to migration, as the Afghanistan crisis is expected to spark an influx of people seeking asylum in Europe.
 "Now we have to have the courage to openly, analytically and clearly talk about migration also causing problems," he said.

Finnish president calls for easing deployment of troops abroad


Summary: Long Covid could be a significant cause of extended illness in Finland.

Finland's Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has established an expert group to investigate the phenomenon of Long Covid.
 At a press conference on Wednesday, Minister  Krista Kiuru  (SDP) said that some ten percent of those who contract Covid are likely to suffer symptoms for an extended period, defined as symptoms lasting for longer than 12 weeks.
 "Long Covid will place a burden on health services and it is a global threat," said Kiuru, who added that the working group is expected to have a direct impact on Finnish health policy.
 The group will gather information up to the end of 2022, to evaluate the longer-term effects of Covid and see if it is a risk factor for other illnesses.
 "Knowledge is available to use pretty quickly, but building the reasoning [for that] takes time. I am expecting the group to give policy recommendations on what we should do."
 The group is to be led by  Risto O. Roine , Professor of Neurology at Turku University, and includes a further 14 experts from academia and public and private healthcare providers.
 Roine said on Tuesday that there could be more than 50 symptoms associated with Long Covid, but the most common are tiredness, headaches and concentration difficulties.

Finland sets up Long Covid working group


Summary: Drivers should use extra caution due to the risk of hydroplaning as well as flooded underpasses.

The Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) issued warnings for heavy rains across regions in southern and western Finland on Wednesday.
 Some areas in the south could get up to 50mm of rain before it's over.
 A low-pressure system will bring rain and strong winds to the regions of Uusimaa, Kanta-Häme, Päijät-Häme as well as Southwest Finland, FMI said.
 The heavy rain could also cause local flooding, according to Yle meteorologist  Nina Karusto .
 Story continues after weather map
 Rainfall accumulation forecast for Finland on Wednesday (KE), Thursday (TO) and Friday (PE). Yle
 The rain is expected to head eastward during the afternoon and evening, and will continue across southern, western and eastern areas, according to the forecast.
 Strong winds are also expected throughout Wednesday, both at sea and on land. However, wind speeds are not likely to reach storm-level. Winds could reach 15 metres per second in western areas.
 Karusto said that scattered showers will continue on Thursday, when it is expected to get a bit warmer as well.
 Towards the weekend, due to an anticipated high-pressure system, the rainy, windy weather is expected to calm down with  warmer temperatures  and drier conditions.

FMI: Heavy rain warnings issued for southern, western Finland on Wednesday


Summary: Finland's competitiveness began to slip before the pandemic, and could fall further in the next few years due to costly labour, a central bank economist says.

Finland may lose its competitive edge compared to other nearby countries after the coronavirus crisis, warns an article published by the Bank of Finland on Wednesday.
 According to Bank of Finland adviser  Lauri Kajanoja , the price of labour in Finland increased between 2019 and 2021 in relation to the eurozone average.
 If the price of labour continues to rise in Finland in relation to its main trading partner countries without a corresponding increase in long-term productivity compared to its rivals, the outlook for exports and employment will deteriorate, Kajanoja said.
 In the pre-Covid years of 2018 and 2019, Finland's cost competitiveness remained broadly unchanged, after improving considerably in 2016 and 2017.
 The centre-right government led by PM  Juha Sipilä  (Cen) in 2015-2019 introduced controversial measures aimed at  boosting competitiveness  and attracting more foreign corporate investment.
 Outpacing the eurozone average
 "Productivity developments during the coronavirus crisis in Finland have been stronger than the eurozone average, but according to forecasts, this difference will level off as the coronavirus crisis gradually recedes," Kajanoja said.
 "If this happens, Finland's cost competitiveness may weaken. Much also depends on what working conditions are agreed in the coming months," he added, referring to the autumn rounds of collective agreement negotiations.
 Kajanoja, who is responsible for advising the central bank's board on domestic economic policy issues, was previously an economic analyst for the European Commission and the European Central Bank.

Bank of Finland economist warns of a decline in cost competitiveness


The number of passengers travelling through Finnish airports fell by 78.9 percent in the first half of this year compared to the January-June period of 2020, airport operator Finavia said on Wednesday. The pandemic began to affect Finland about midway through that period last year.
 In the first six months of this year, just over one million passengers went through Finland's airports. The vast majority of those – some 800,000 – passed by way of Helsinki Airport. About 8.4 percent of these were transfer passengers on international flights, who did not leave the airport.
 Its passenger volume fell by slightly more than the national average from January to June, down by 79.9 percent year-on-year.
 The declines were broadly in line with those of national flag carrier Finnair, which saw its number of passengers fall by 80 percent in the first half of this year.
 Slower recovery than elsewhere in Europe
 Finnish airports seem to be recovering more slowly than others in Europe, partly due to tougher travel restrictions.
 According to ACI Europe, passenger numbers at European airports during the first half of this year were on average 45 percent lower than in 2020 and 79 percent lower than in 2019.
 Fewer than a third of a million passengers travelled through Finnish regional airports in January–June 2021, a decline of more than 75 percent.
 During this period, the state carried out competitive tendering for scheduled flights to five domestic destinations. This resulted in new airlines beginning scheduled flights from Helsinki to Joensuu, Jyväskylä, Kokkola-Pietarsaari, Kemi-Tornio and Kajaani in May.
 Finavia invests in Helsinki Airport, health and environment
 Finavia said its own revenues fell significantly compared to the same period of last year. January-June revenues sank by 53.4 percent to 47.6 million euros.
 This year, Finavia decided to focus on accelerating the recovery of its business, safeguarding its financial position and ensuring the well-being and future of its staff. It also pledged to invest more toward mitigating climate change.
 Known until 15 years ago as the Civil Aviation Administration, the company continued its upgrading of Helsinki Airport, a project costing over a billion euros in total.
 This included work on a new main entrance of Terminal 2, new arrival and departure halls and a travel centre linking to other modes of transport. Improvements on the air traffic side included repaving of taxiways and an upgrade of the stormwater sewer system. A seven-million-euro investment in environmental protection and smoother airport traffic is to be wrapped up this autumn.

Passenger volume at Finnish airports still down by nearly 80%


Summary: After getting Covid, Tero Nikkanen spent more than a week unconscious in intensive care with a breathing tube in his throat, but he is still concerned about side effects from a vaccine.

Last March, home care nurse  Tero Nikkanen  started having symptoms of abdominal and joint pain as well as fever. He called emergency services for guidance and was told to head to the University Hospital in Kuopio, the city where he lives.
 Emergency services initially suspected colitis, or inflammation of the colon, he said.
 Around the same time, the region's hospital district had begun offering Covid vaccines to nursing staff in the area, but Nikkanen was fundamentally sceptical about taking it.
 "Yes, I'm very hesitant, because the Covid vaccine has been studied for such a short period of time, I don't want to take it right away. I had a strong opinion that I wouldn't take it," Nikkanen explained.
 It turned out his symptoms weren't caused by colitis, but by Covid-19.
 Following his diagnosis, Nikkanen ended up in an intensive care unit briefly, breathing with the help of a ventilator. His recovery was quick, or so he thought, but post-Covid complications caused a major health ordeal requiring extensive care. He eventually recovered, but nearly six months later he said he's still hesitant to get the jabs.
 The Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has recommended that people who've had the upper respiratory disease take the vaccine around six months after they recover.
 According to  Hanna Nohynek , THL's chief physician, the antibodies caused by Covid-19 — which can protect against being reinfected — last at least six months.
 "Exceptions may be made to either administer the vaccine earlier or later than that. But given the Delta variant, I'd prefer to give it earlier," Nohynek said, referring to the more contagious strain of the coronavirus which is causing Covid cases to shoot up in many countries, including Finland.
 Hesitation
 The World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked Covid vaccine hesitation among the top 10 health threats facing people around the globe.
 Researcher  Anna Soveri , who has studied people's attitudes about vaccines, said it was hard to know how many Covid vaccine sceptics there actually are in Finland. International studies have shown that only one or two percent of populations are generally completely against vaccines.
 "At this point, more than 80 percent of people over the age of 40 have taken a Covid vaccine [in Finland]," she explained.
 Soveri added that there may be a very small proportion of people who are completely opposed to being vaccinated, but that there may be a larger group who are only hesitant about the idea.
 Initially, home care nurse Nikkanen thought his Covid ordeal was over after spending a night in an intensive care unit.
 Following his discharge from the hospital, he spent three weeks in quarantine and his symptoms went away, and his physician said it was safe for him to return to work.
 However, Nikkanen's Covid ordeal was not over.
 Story continues after photo
 Nikkanen in an ICU unit following eight days of unconsciousness. Tero Nikkasen kotialbumi
 After five days back on the job, the lymph nodes in his neck began to swell as his body temperature rose to a fever. His wife drove him to the hospital's accident and emergency wing at about three o'clock one morning.
 His fever continued to rise at the hospital and he was diagnosed with a parapharyngeal abscess — an abscess deep in the neck — which was making it difficult for him to breathe. A decision was made to remove the abscess surgically.
 Nikkanen's condition worsened further after he was anaesthetised, and he was admitted to an intensive care unit for more than a week.
 "When I woke up in the ICU, the doctor came to tell me that the situation was really bad, saying I had pneumonia and that my lungs had collapsed and stopped working. He said that I'd been unconscious for eight days on a ventilator," he recalled.
 In order to help him breathe, a tracheotomy was also performed, a procedure which involves cutting a hole into the throat to enable breathing without use of the nose or mouth.
 At the beginning of his gradual convalescence, Nikkanen was unable to sit on the edge of his bed, let alone walk. The first time he became mobile was with the help of a crane that lifted him into a wheelchair.
 Nikkanen said he gradually began to walk again, with the help of a physiotherapist as well as a rollator and crutches.
 "The doctor couldn't confirm whether it was a [Covid-related] sequelae, but said it was possible," he said, adding that he was very grateful for the treatment he received from the staff at Kuopio Hospital, saying they saved his life.
 The doctor also told him that his Covid case gave him six months of protection from being infected again. With that period nearly over, it became time for him to consider whether to get future protection from a vaccine.
 Although he said his negative attitude towards the idea of being vaccinated has softened since the spring, he was still hesitant about their safety and potential side effects.
 "I still have a little hesitation when I hear about some people getting blood clots [from the vaccine], joint pain and long periods of fever," he said, adding that he also wonders about long-term effects of the vaccine.
 "[Maybe] it will be revealed much later on that the vaccine causes [other] diseases," he explained.
 Story continues after photo
 Tero Nikkanen  Antti-Petteri Karhunen / Yle
 About a year and a half ago, researcher Soveri studied people's attitudes about Covid vaccines as Covid arrived in Finland.
 She said it became clear that the main reason people were largely willing to take the vaccine was because it was safe.
 "The secondary reason was how serious an illness people thought Covid was," she said, adding that at the time about 70 percent of people in Finland were willing to take the vaccine.
 Jonas Sivelä , a senior researcher at THL, emphasised that residents were even more willing to take the vaccine as the pandemic continued.
 "We've been monitoring the willingness of people in Finland to be vaccinated since April 2020 and it has only grown since then. According to the latest results, about 91 percent of residents have either already taken the vaccine or said they would," Sivelä said.
 A recent government-commissioned survey, carried out by polling firm Taloustutkimus, found that about four percent said they did not plan to take a Covid vaccine.
 "According to our information, strong anti-vaccine resistance is very marginal, even though it gets a lot of media coverage. That visibility does not always correspond to reality," Sivelä emphasised.
 The government has said that in order to fully remove Covid-related restrictions, it would  require the vaccinations of 80-90 percent  of people over the age of 12.
 Currently just under 30 percent of that group has still not received a single dose of the vaccine.
 Sivelä said he believed that the government's vaccination goal will be reached but could not estimate when that might happen.
 Covid survivor Nikkanen said that as a nurse, he does not want to spread anti-vaccine sentiments, but feels the decision to take it is a personal choice for everyone. At work, he encourages his clients to get vaccinated.
 Nikkanen said it was difficult to say what, exactly, would change his mind about Covid vaccines, as not even his severe complications from the disease swayed his opinion very much.
 However, the fear of getting as sick as he was again crosses his mind every now and then, he said.
 There has been discussion about whether to make Covid vaccinations mandatory for caregivers. Nikkanen said he likes his job and doesn't want to change careers.
 "Yes, I will take it if it becomes mandatory," he said.

Home care nurse still vaccine-hesitant even after ICU stint


Summary: Many firms expressed disappointment with government compensation for losses due to official restrictions.

Despite warm weather and many domestic tourists, this summer season has been disappointing for many restaurants and hotels. That is according to a membership survey published by the Finnish Hospitality Association (MaRa) on Wednesday.
 More than 60 percent of companies that responded to the poll reported declines in turnover of at least 20 percent compared to the pre-pandemic summer of 2019. Just over 20 percent said that their turnover increased.
 With colder weather settling in, expectations for this autumn are low. More than 70 percent of companies expect revenue to decline by at least 20 percent, while only seven percent expect growth.
 This summer, an upsurge in domestic tourism, encouraged by a long spell of sunny weather, was not sufficient to fill the gap left by missing foreign visitors, according to the MaRa survey. This was especially evident in Helsinki metropolitan area and its hotels.
 Otherwise, the summer was a split picture in the hotel and spa sector. Slightly more than half of companies said that net sales decreased by at least 20 percent compared to the summer of 2019. On the other hand, 30 percent said sales rose at least somewhat, with 10 percent reporting increases of more than a quarter.
 Campsites reported a very strong season, with two thirds increasing turnover. One in five said sales had risen by more than 30 percent. However amusement parks had a slow summer, with three quarters of companies in the sector saying that turnover dropped by 20-60 percent compared to the summer of 2019.
 "Congresses, trade fairs, staff and student restaurants as well as pubs and nightclubs are still languishing in the doldrums," MaRa CEO  Timo Lappi  said in a statement. "Our membership survey clearly shows the impact of the very strict restrictive measures decided by the government and regional government agencies," he added.
 Autumn outlook dim
 Just over 70 percent of firms said they expect revenue to decline by at least 20 percent in September-November compared to the autumn of 2019. Only seven percent expect their revenue to grow.
 The shakiest situation is in the congress and trade fair sector, where all companies expect turnover to fall by at least 30 percent. Three-quarters of staff and student restaurants expect their turnover to fall by at least 30 percent. Meanwhile 28 percent of night-oriented restaurants and clubs said they are at risk of bankruptcy.
 Many respondents also expressed disappointment with government compensation for losses due to official restrictions.
 Two thirds of companies said they had received state compensation for less than 30 percent of their losses. Eight percent said they had not received any subsidies at all.
 The survival of the industry requires the rapid lifting of restrictions on restaurant and public events and the telework recommendation, Lappi said. The latter has threatened the survival of canteens, student cafeterias and restaurants that cater to workers' lunchtime business, for instance.
 Staff and student restaurants said they have lost some 150 million euros in turnover in the first half of this year compared to the corresponding period of 2019. A quarter of companies in this sector said they haven't received any support at all.
 The hotel and spa sector has also claimed that it has received little compensation for its losses. Three out of four firms said that subsidies have made up for less than 30 percent of lost income.
 A total of 557 companies, with thousands of locations and tens of thousands of employees, responded to the MaRa membership survey.

Hospitality survey: Domestic tourism did not make up for summer losses


Summary: Economists have worried about levels of household debt in Finland.

The Centre Party found itself embroiled in controversy on Wednesday when the party's MPs held a summer meeting in Seinäjoki, Ostrobothnia.
 The new chair of the group, Oulu MP  Juha Pylväs , addressed his people with a speech mostly focused on traditional Centre Party themes — focusing on Finnish issues rather than international ones, and a supposed conflict between action on climate change and people's economic well-being.
 It was the line on immigration that caused a row across social media and the newspapers.
 "Yes, we need people who can make ends meet through their own work in Finland," said Pylväs. "Parasitic living standard surfers who live on social benefits, on the other hand, we don't need."
 That kind of language is not usually associated with the Centre, an agrarian political force which is often the establishment party in Finland's smaller, rural towns.
 He was immediately criticised on Twitter by one of his own MPs,  Hanna Kosonen , and the leader of the Centre youth,  Hanna Markkanen . Party leader  Annika Saarikko  told reporters that Pylväs was responsible for his own words.
 Ilta-Sanomat was present and  asked  Pylväs for clarification, but he did not back down, saying that sometimes you need to dial up the rhetoric.
 HS also  asked  for more details, and Pylväs expanded on the theme. In his opinion, the quota refugee system is good, because Finland 'knows who is coming', whereas the asylum system is not, because people claim asylum once they arrive in the country.
 This somewhat overshadowed Saarikko'sspeech, which talked about climate action and rural issues.
 The party still faces a struggle to recover support, as shown by a poll in Helsingin Sanomat. That suggested the Finns Party's support is down at 17.9 percent, but that's still nearly five percentage points higher than the Centre Party.
 Tram bridge approval
 Tampere's tram system was completed this year under budget and ahead of schedule, but one Helsinki project has not been so efficient.
 The Crown Bridges (Kruunusilta) between Laajasalo and Hakaniemi were originally meant to cost 255 million euros, but that has now risen to 326 million euros.
 Helsingin Sanomat  reports  that the new cost base was approved at a meeting of Helsinki City Council on Wednesday evening, as councillors voted by 71 to 8 to spend the extra money.
 The 10km project includes one 1.2km bridge that will be the longest in Finland, and is supposed to be ready by 2026. It was originally controversial, as it has tram tracks and space for cyclists, but no road for private cars.
 Action on joint housing company loans
 Financial paper Talouselämä  reports  on Thursday that the Ministry of Finance is preparing action to modify one problematic aspect of the Finnish housing market, according to a policy paper obtained by Talouselämä.
 Finnish economists have long worried about household debt rising, and a key component of that has been debt jointly held by housing companies.
 A lot of Finnish real estate is owned through these housing companies, with a certain shareholding entitling the owner to use an apartment in the block, or a house owned by the company.
 When repairs are needed, all the shareholders take out a joint loan, each assuming responsibility for their share of the debt.
 This works well for renovations, but in recent years new developments have been sold with large housing company debt attached. That helps those who might otherwise struggle to get a mortgage afford the properties.
 It's also good for investors, who get certain tax advantages when debt is jointly held by the company, and some new buildings are now sold with 70 or even 80 percent of the purchase price as housing company debt.
 That means individual buyers only need to have a small fraction of the purchase price, in cash or mortgage debt, to buy the property.
 Putting more of the purchase price in joint debt, as opposed to a mortgage, is a great deal for them but increases the risks for everyone else: if someone defaults on their housing company loan repayments, the housing company has to pay the debt. That's not a risk with individual mortgages.
 According to Talouselämä, the ministry wants to limit housing company debt on newly-built properties to 60 percent of the purchase price.
 The ministry also wants an overall individual 'debt ceiling' of 500 percent of a person's gross income, and to limit maximum repayment periods on mortgages to 25 years (although Finance Minister Saarikko(Cen) would prefer that to be 30 years).
 The paper also looks at transferring regulation of payday loan firms to the Financial Supervisory Authority (Fiva). They are currently regulated by the Southern Finland Regional Administrative Agency (Avi).

Thursday's papers: Centre controversy, bridge building decision, and a debt ceiling


Summary: Yle has learned that Finland will halt evacuations via Kabul Airport on Friday. As of Thursday afternoon nearly 340 people had been evacuated.

Yle has learned that Finland will end evacuations by air from Afghanistan on Friday even though there may still be up to 170 people waiting to be evacuated to Finland. According to the Foreign Ministry, not everyone on Finland's list may have time to leave Afghanistan by the deadline.
 About 250 people had been brought to Finland from Afghanistan by Tuesday evening, said Foreign Minister  Pekka Haavisto  (Green). Most are women and children.
 Of these, 150 are Afghans who worked for the Finnish Embassy, the EU Mission and the NATO Crisis Management Mission with their families.
 The others are Finnish citizens or people with permanent residence permits in Finland who requested consular assistance.
 All recent local employees of the Finnish Embassy and their families have been evacuated from Afghanistan.
 On Thursday afternoon, the Foreign Ministry said in a tweet: "51 people were evacuated to Finland yesterday. To date, the total number of evacuees has risen to close to 340 people. In addition, Finland assisted four people on their way to other countries yesterday. In total, we have evacuated more than 30 people who have assisted our partner countries."
 Article continues after photo
 Thousands of people are waiting to be evacuated at Kabul Airport. Ulkoministeriö
 Finland decided to evacuate 128 more people - who are they?
 The Finnish government decided  on Tuesday  that it intends to bring 128 more people from Afghanistan, in addition to those previously approved.
 This group consists of 45 former employees of the Finnish Embassy in Kabul with their immediate families and 83 embassy security guards with their families. These are Afghans who have asked Finland for security.
 Finland has previously decided to help bring 170 Afghans to Finland. They are individuals who worked for Finland, the EU or Nato, along with immediate family members.
 The latest decision brought the total to 298 Afghans. They are considered to be in danger because they have worked for western countries.
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 Finnish soldiers overseeing the evacuation. Ulkoministeriö
 How many people are still waiting to be evacuated?
 As of late Tuesday there were still an estimated 170 people in Afghanistan waiting to be evacuated to Finland.
 These included about 20 Finnish citizens or permanent residence permit holders who had applied for consular assistance, as well as about 150 locals who have worked for Finland, the EU or Nato.
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 An evacuation officer greets people entering the plane. Ulkoministeriö
 What condition are the evacuees in?
 Those who have arrived in Finland have not had any serious physical injuries, according to  Krista Lyyra  of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
 Evacuees are met at the airport in Finland by a support team that provides coronavirus tests and immediate health care, surveys their need for help and offers discussion support. Initially, there has been a need for food and clothing in particular.
 “These people have boarded the plane without any luggage or property, so they have nothing but the clothes they were wearing,” Lyyra told Yle.
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 Evacuees queuing to board the plane. Ulkoministeriö
 What happens to the evacuees in Finland?
 The Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) is responsible for the reception of Afghans in Finland. They have been promised four-year residence permits.
 Newcomers are first placed in reception centres across Finland. Once personal data and biometric identifiers have been collected from them, they are to be transferred to various municipalities.
 Pekka Nuutinen , Director of the Finnish Immigration Service's reception unit, said that Migri is able to accommodate hundreds of people even at short notice.
 "In 2015, 30,000 people were accommodated within a couple of months. Of course, this has kept our situation centre busy, and we have been working around the clock, Nuutinen said.
 According to Nuutinen, those arriving have been tired and relieved, but concerned.
 "Most have left close relatives behind in Afghanistan. The concern for them is great. Getting to Kabul Airport and the whole process have certainly been tough," Nuutinen said.
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 People waiting to board the evacuation aircraft. Ulkoministeriö
 Will everyone on the list have time to be brought to safety before the end of the month?
 Time is running out for the evacuation, as according to Yle sources, Finland is to complete its operation on Friday. According to the Foreign Ministry, not everyone on the Finnish list may have time to get out of Afghanistan by then.
 "It is very possible that within the time available we may not be able to help everyone at this stage. We are now focusing on the air operation. After that, we will look at other methods and assess how these people can be helped in the future, said  Pekka Kaihilahti , the Foreign Ministry's Special Representative for Afghanistan.
 When air transport ends, routes to neighbouring countries may be possible. The borders with Iran and Pakistan, for example, are still partially open.
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 Evacuees waiting for the plane to close and take off. Ulkoministeriö
 Have Finnish troops been in danger?
 According to Yle sources, Finnish troops have not been exposed to threats at Kabul airport. They have not had to use their weapons.
 Finland sent 30 soldiers to Kabul Airport to secure the evacuations to Finland. Soldiers can only secure operations at and in the immediate vicinity of the airport. Defence Forces security forces arrived in the area on Saturday.
 The Defence Forces' support operation for the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has so far gone very well, said Lt. Commander  Matti Sirkkola , a senior staff officer at the Ministry of Defence.
 "The results speak for themselves. However, the end of the time available is a fact that has been prepared for by planning a controlled termination of this operation. The goal is for Finnish officials and the security unit to be evacuated at the end of the mission. For the time being, operations at the Kabul field will continue," Sirkkola said.
 The photos in this story were provided by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs for media use. The Ministry has blurred the faces of civilians to protect their privacy.
 15.30: Updated with latest number of evacuees.

Finland to end air evacuations from Afghanistan on Friday


Summary: Destia, formerly the Finnish Road Administration, traces its roots back to the 18th century.

Finnish investment firm Ahlström Capital is selling the infrastructure company Destia to French corporation.
 The buyer is the Colas Group, which bills itself as "the world leader in road construction."
 Francis Grass , CEO of Colas EMEA, which operates in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said that the acquisition is an opportunity to strengthen the group's presence in Northern Europe.
 "We are strongly impressed by the competencies of Destia, particularly in terms of digitalisation of construction sites and their expertise in maintenance services in harsh conditions. We see the opportunity to further develop business lines such as rail, earth and rock services," Grass said in a statement.
 "Together with the management of Destia, we have developed the company to a leading Finnish infrastructure service-provider in a competitive market. The company has strengthened its capabilities in many key areas including digitalisation in the maintenance business," said Ahlström Capital CEO  Lasse Heinonen .
 The transaction must still be approved by competition authorities. The parties have declined to announce the purchase price.
 Roots under Swedish rule
 Ahlström Capital acquired Destia from the Finnish state in 2014. Destia was created in 2008 when it became a wholly state-owned limited liability company, established to carry on the work of the Finnish Road Enterprise. Before that, it was known as the Finnish Road Administration, originally part of the National Board of Public Roads. That, in turn, had its roots in a Royal Committee set up in 1799 by the Swedish king, who then ruled Finland.
 Last year, Destia had net sales of about 564 million euros, while Colas had a consolidated turnover of 12.3 billion.
 Destia, Finland's largest infrastructure company, is responsible for designing, building and maintaining traffic routes, as well as traffic, industrial and living environments. It has about 1,700 employees.
 Tero Kiviniemi has been Destia's CEO since 2018. One of his predecessors,  Jukka Laaksovirta , was charged with  breach of confidence  in 2010, but acquitted of the charges a year later. The case also led to a legal dispute with the accounting firm Ernst & Young.
 In 2013, a court found that Destia was aware and approved of a  cartel  involving eight road-building companies that artificially inflated prices for asphalting work. They were ordered to pay a group of Finnish municipalities nearly 40 million euros in damages, at the time the largest financial settlement in Finnish history.

French giant buys Finland's largest infrastructure company


Summary: The number of Covid cases have decreased, but a record number of people are under quarantine.

The prevailing Covid infections can largely be attributed to the Delta variant, said  Mika Salminen , director of the department for health security at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, THL, at the weekly press conference detailing the Covid situation in Finland, held by the THL and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
 "There is little else in Finland other than the Delta variant. The Delta variant has largely conquered the world and supplanted other variants," said Salminen.
 On Thursday, 650 new cases were reported in Finland. Infections are largely concentrated in the Helsinki metropolitan area.
 To date, about 72 percent of the Finnish population has received a single vaccine dose, while almost 48 percent have received both. According to Salminen, almost half of 12–15-year-olds have received their first dose. The vaccine coverage in people aged 20–35 has not increased as hoped.
 "There is a chance that even those who are considered low-risk can get a serious infection at that age. I would highly recommend considering taking the vaccine," said Salminen. He urged men, in particular, to get vaccinated as vaccine coverage is lower in men than in women.
 The number of Covid tests currently administered in Finland is high, but the number of positive results from the tests has decreased. A record 13,800 people, however, have been quarantined. Of the new infections, 27 percent were found in quarantined individuals.
 The largest decrease in infection rates has occurred among young adults. Infections within the same household are currently the most common source of cases.
 Remote work recommendation extended
 Juha Sarkio , department head at the Ministry of Finance, announced that the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health recommend working from home until the end of September in the areas in the acceleration and community spread phases, due to insufficient vaccine coverage. The recommendation will be re-evaluated in mid-September.
 There is no clear answer as to what percentage of vaccine coverage will allow for society’s return to normal.
 "I understand that the Ministry of Finance has set the goal for 80-90 percent of the population to be vaccinated. With that amount of vaccine coverage, the infection rates can be effectively lowered," said Salminen, adding that Finland has received a larger than usual shipment of vaccine in the past few weeks, which should speed up coverage.
 Liisa-Maria Voipio-Pulkki , Director of Strategy at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, however, pointed out that there is currently no known number for herd immunity and achieving those last few percentage points may be a slow process.
 With the onset of autumn sniffles, Salminen recommended that those who have been twice vaccinated and show symptoms should stay home until their condition improves. If one receives a positive result with an at-home test, a PCR test should be taken immediately.
 14.10: Corrected fully vaccinated rate

Covid cases declining in Finland, remote working recommendation extended


Summary: Tytti Yli-Viikari's expense account hit the headlines earlier this year.

Police suspect two former senior officials at the National Audit Office of aggravated misconduct in a public office and malfeasance in a public office. The case relates to a work contract that allowed an official to receive a salary for two years without doing any work.
 Officers have concluded their preliminary investigation and are asking prosecutors to press charges. Both officials deny all charges.
 The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) did not confirm the names of the suspects in the work contract case, but it has been reported earlier that the individuals in question are former Auditor-General  Tytti Yli-Viikari  and  Mikko Koiranen , another senior official at the National Audit Office.
 "Based on the preliminary investigation, there are grounds to suspect that an official has used frequent flyer points accrued on work trips, which therefore belong to the employer, for personal needs," said Inspector  Tommi Reen  in an NBI statement.
 One person is also suspected of payment fraud and misconduct in a public office over the Finnair Plus points.
 NBI started their investigation in February 2021 after extensive publicity relating to Yli-Viikari's expenses.
 Yli-Viikari was removed from her post in June after a vote in Parliament, but she has appealed against that decision in the administrative courts. Koiranen was also removed from his post by the National Audit Office.

Police recommend charges in Auditor General probe


Summary: The boy's parents secretly recorded staff racially abusing their child.

A school pupil in Ilmajoki has returned to class this week after  parents recorded staff racially abusing him  — but his mum will sit in on classes 'until trust is restored'.
 The boy stopped attending school last spring, when his behaviour deteriorated and his parents discovered he had been racially abused by staff.
 The boy's parents confirmed their suspicions when they hid a recording device in the boy's backpack, securing evidence of racist abuse of the boy by staff.
 Progress 'as planned'
 Ilmajoki's head of education  Janne Hakala  says the case has proceeded in the way he'd agreed with the parents.
 The municipality's education committee considered the case in early August, hearing from the parties involved and examining that plan.
 "Among other things, resources for special needs education have increased," said Hakala, adding that Ilmajoki has appointed a special needs education rector.
 In practice that's a change of job title that is not linked to the boy's case, according to Hakala. The person in that role had previously served as a learning support co-ordinator.
 Mother in attendance
 Hakala declined to discuss the details of the case, but the boy's mother said that the boy has been promised his own youth worker will assist in attending school.
 The boy's school year started late because the person selected for that job declined the position, and a new candidate is currently being sought.
 Yle is not naming the mother or child because of the sensitive nature of the case.
 This week the boy returned to school, however, with his mother alongside him on a temporary basis.
 Because the boy is not always able to say exactly what happened at school, his mother wants to be able to see for herself what takes place.
 "Until trust is restored," said the mother.
 "We have agreed that the boy is at school for 2-3 hours a day. We're taking each day as it comes."
 The parents hoped that their son would be able to switch to a school in neighbouring Kurikka, but the mother says that plan did not come to fruition.
 The new everyday school routine is therefore being built piece by piece in the old school in Ilmajoki.
 "We really hope that our son can return as quickly as possible to a normal school rhythm," said the mother.
 The parents have made an official complaint over their son's treatment to the regional administrative agency, and asked the police to investigate.
 Neither investigation has advanced much, with the police saying they were still deciding whether or not to launch a preliminary investigation.

Autistic pupil returns to school with mum after racist abuse from staff


Summary: We look into the Finnish evacuation operation in Afghanistan as well as the challenges many people face when relocating to Finland.

This week Yle News' All Points North podcast probes some of the obstacles people face when they arrive in the country — a host of issues relocation specialist  Minna Franck  told APN was a "big problem".
 "We have to discuss the structural racism and xenophobia that exists in Finnish working life," Franck told the APN podcast. "I help highly educated people that are trying to find work in Finland, and I hear the stories about their struggles, even trying to get their foot in the door."
 You can listen to the full podcast using the embedded player here, via Yle Areena, Spotify or Apple Podcasts or on your usual podcast player using the RSS feed.
 Article continues after audio.
 We also heard from  Philipp von dem Knesebeck , who moved to Finland in July with his wife and has been documenting their relocation experience in a blog called 'Living HEL'. The Von dem Knesebecks have faced challenges getting Finnish social security numbers, opening bank accounts and registering their address.
 Following this experience, he suggested Finland's immigration process should be significantly simplified and streamlined.
 "There is no need for all these different processes, because they are all from the Finnish government and it's all based on the same central database, so why is it so damn complicated," he asked.
 Evacuation uncertainty grows in Afghanistan
 As Finland  announced plans to end air evacuations  from Afghanistan on Friday, we spoke with Yle's correspondent in the region  Maija Liuhto , who said the situation in Kabul is very tense and uncertain.
 "The feeling that Afghans on the ground have is that mostly only westerners are being evacuated, and there have been these stories of planes taking off almost completely empty, so it's a pretty terrible situation," Liuhto said.
 Join the conversation!
 This week's show was presented by  Ronan Browne  and  Zena Iovino . The producer was  Mark B. Odom  and the audio engineer was  Laura Koso .
 If you have any questions or would like to share your thoughts, just contact us via WhatsApp on +358 44 421 0909, on our Facebook or Twitter accounts, or at yle.news@yle.fi and allpointsnorth@yle.fi.

APN podcast: How can Finland improve the integration process?


Summary: President Sauli Niinistö and the Ministerial Committee on Foreign and Security Policy made the decision on Thursday.

Finland will participate in the EU military training mission in Mozambique, Southern Africa, and increase the number of soldiers in the training operation in Mali, West Africa.
 President  Sauli Niinistö  and the Ministerial Committee on Foreign and Security Policy decided on the issue on Thursday.
 Finland plans to increase the number of soldiers participating in crisis management in Mali this year to about 20. Next year, the number of soldiers will be further increased to about 55.
 According to the EU, the security and humanitarian situation in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province has been deteriorating since 2017, with nearly three quarters of a million people internally displaced by a surge in violence.
 In March, Islamist insurgents with links to the terror group IS carried out an attack on the coastal town of Palma, where French company Total is developing a gas liquification plant. According to the BBC, after the attackers left Palma, members of the Mozambican army looted the city, including foreign contractors' facilities.
 More troops to Mali after coup
 In May, the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) said that just four Finnish soldiers were taking part in infantry and medical training in Mali. Based on previous government decisions, Finland could have sent a maximum of 12 people to the operation. That figure may now more than quadruple.
 Finland was originally asked to send troops to Mali in 2013 by former colonial power France. Its own military operations were suspended following a coup in Mali in May, the country's third in a decade.

Finland to join EU military training mission in Mozambique, send more troops to Mali


Summary: Irish sports and culture will be celebrated at a 'GAA festival' this August.

Minority sports have struggled to keep players and teams together through the pandemic. Gatherings have been limited, practice is difficult, and facilities have been shut down for long spells.
 Add to the mix the fact that only a few dozen people in Finland play your sport, and you have something like the situation faced by Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) enthusiasts.
 But then, they're used to adversity and have retained their enthusiasm for their sports and channelled it through Helsinki Harps, Finland's first GAA club.
 While developing a relatively-unknown sport in Finland can be challenging, the club's Youth Development Officer  William O'Gorman  told Yle News that it is still possible, with minor adjustments.
 "My number one tip for anyone hoping to develop their own culture's sport in Finland is: be flexible," O'Gorman explained. "We have trained by kicking footballs around small gymnasiums. We've used old ice hockey helmets as hurling headgear. We've taped PVC pipes and wooden planks to soccer goals to turn them into the GAA version."
 So far the Harps have focused on Gaelic football, but this weekend Finland gets its first taste of hurling — an exciting, fast-paced outdoor team sport of ancient Gaelic Irish origin — when an exhibition game is played in Helsinki on 28 August.
 "We wanted to organise this game because it has never been done before in Finland to this level," club PRO  Paddy Reynolds  said. "I personally feel it's a very accessible sport for Finnish people, with their love of other stick sports such as ice hockey, floorball and  pesäpallo  [Finnish baseball]. I think we felt that if we didn't try it we would always wonder, 'what if'."
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 The festival will include a showcasing of Irish sports such as Gaelic Football. Paddy Reynolds
 The game is part of Helsinki's inaugural 'GAA festival' — a day celebrating Irish sports and culture — and to mark the Harps' 10th anniversary.
 It's also a bit of an act of defiance in the midst of the pandemic.
 "For us to organise any event or compete against any other club in these uncertain times is a huge win for everyone, no matter what the scoreboard says," club chair  Ryan Turpin  said, adding that the event will comply with regional coronavirus restrictions.
 The festival programme also includes seven-a-side games of Ireland's other national sport, Gaelic Football, as well as live Irish music throughout the day.
 Ireland's ambassador to Finland  Ruth Parkin  praised the organisers for their determination in bringing a taste of Irish sports and culture to Finland despite the various challenges, including the ongoing pandemic.
 "It is fantastic that the Harps have been able to put on this event especially after such a challenging year in terms of gatherings and even holding training sessions," Parkin told Yle News. "The GAA is an enormous part of life across Ireland and has been brought around the world by Irish people who are also replicating the sense of community and inclusiveness."
 The Harps experience: Developing foreign sports in Finland
 The Helsinki Harps were established by the Irish community in the capital to play Gaelic Football, and the team initially competed against clubs in specially-arranged tournaments around the Nordic region.
 Although mostly made up of members from Ireland, the physical and skillful nature of the game soon attracted the interest and attention of Finnish players as well as other foreigners living in Helsinki.
 Currently the Harps have players from Brazil, Peru, Turkey, Germany and Pakistan, among others.
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 Two players from Helsinki Harps (blue) and Stockholm Gaels (black) jump for the ball. Paddy Reynolds
 "The reason that non-Irish members stick around is that we are not just a Gaelic Football team, we are a GAA club," O'Gorman said. "We identify ourselves as a community organisation, and the relationships between members go far beyond just being teammates."
 The game's growing popularity in Finland even led to the establishment of two other teams, first in Oulu and later in Jyväskylä. A game between Oulu and Helsinki in October 2013 garnered significant media attention in Ireland as the most northerly match in the GAA's 130 year history.
 Pre-christian warriors
 Although hugely popular in Ireland, where history of the game predates Christianity and mythical tales of warrior players have been passed down from one generation to the next, hurling is not widely known in Finland.
 The game involves two teams trying to hit a small ball through their opponent's goalposts, either over the crossbar for one point or under the crossbar for three. Each player carries a wooden stick called a hurley, roughly the size of a Finnish baseball or  pesäpallo  bat, and the ball — called a  sliotar  — is about the same size and weight as a baseball.
 The deft skill and frenetic pace of the sport make for a hugely entertaining spectacle, and the All-Ireland final is one of the most important dates in the Irish sporting calendar, watched by millions of Irish people and hibernophiles around the world.
 Finland's first hurling match takes place on 28 August at Talin liikuntapuisto in Helsinki, starting at approximately 1pm.

Hurling hits Helsinki in a first for Finland