First deputy parliamentary speaker Tuula Haatainen has condemned a doctored video of a parliamentary exchange between nationalist Finns Party chair Jussi Halla-aho and Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo.
In the video, Halla-aho talks about "bullets flying and bombs exploding" in Sweden as a result of an open migration policy. He then asks the minister whether the security of foreigners takes precedence over that of Finns.
The fake video suggests that Ohisalo responds by saying that the government wants to do just that -- place the security of foreigners ahead of that of Finns.
However in reality, the minister said that in a constitutional state, people should not be placed in opposition to each other. Ohisalo’s comment in the video was in response to a different issue.
Deputy speaker: Video manipulation "reprehensible"
The minutes of the parliamentary session (in Finnish) also reflect an accurate account of the exchange.
On Saturday afternoon Haatainen took to Twitter to condemn the video, saying that she will table it for discussion among her parliamentary speaker colleagues.
"The manipulation of content from a plenary session of parliament is extremely reprehensible, base and worrying to our democracy. I will raise the matter with [other] speakers. This phenomenon must be stopped," Haatainen wrote.
Minister Ohisalo quoted the deputy speaker’s tweet and thanked her for addressing the issue.
"The manipulation of photos and videos, fake quotes and the like, which undermine trust in politicians and at worst lead to threats of violence, are extremely worrying and sad from the perspective of democracy," she tweeted.