The racist and violent comments written on a blog by Finland's deputy PM Riikka Purra in 2008 are a "tragedy" in light of the current political and geopolitical environment, according to Hanna Wass, a political researcher at the University of Helsinki.
With US President Joe Biden about to arrive in Helsinki for an official visit, and Finland attending its first Nato summit as a full-fledged member, Wass noted that the furore over Purra's comments comes at a very awkward moment for Finland's image abroad.
Purra's comments, written when she was around the age of 31, also caught the attention of many international media outlets, including The Guardian in the UK, the influential US magazine Politico, Turkey's Haber7 (which noted Purra's reference to a "Turkish monkey") and the BBC, among many others.
In a seven-tweet thread published on Tuesday afternoon, Purra admitted that she wrote the controversial comments under the username "riikka" in the guestbook of the Scripta blog of Jussi Halla-aho, her predecessor as Finns Party leader.
When the comments first came to light, Purra initially stated that she had no intention of apologizing or regretting writings or actions from her past.
However, over the course of Tuesday, her position changed amid intense scrutiny from domestic and international media. The matter also prompted a comment from Finnish President Sauli Niinistö that the government "would be wise to adopt a clear zero-tolerance stance on racism".
"I apologise for my stupid social media comments 15 years ago and for the harm and resentment that they understandably caused. I'm not a perfect person, I've made mistakes," Purra tweeted on Tuesday.
Wass: Government must add actions to words
On Tuesday evening, the Finnish government's communications department published a statement signed by the leaders of the four parties in the government coalition.
The statement, Wass said, showed that the intense pressure from around the country, and also from abroad, is being taken seriously by the four parties and it was essential that they took a common stance on how to deal with the fallout from Purra's comments.
"This is the foundation against which all government actions from now on will be judged," Wass observed.
However, she noted that such statements are generally aimed at controlling any potential reputational damage but often fail to address the problem itself, and the government's mixed messaging may leave the public wondering what the real policies are.
"Without a genuine commitment to the declaration and by backing it up with various actions, it may quickly start to backfire and become a hollow promise," Wass stated, noting that both Jussi Halla-aho and Finns Party MP Mauri Peltokangas downplayed the seriousness of Purra's comments — contradicting the spirit of the joint statement.
"It will lead to a lot of cynicism if citizens cannot trust what the government says," Wass said.
How will Finns Party voters react?
Wass further noted that Purra will also need to do some explaining to the voters of her own party, some of whom will have been disgusted by the nature of the comments.
This leaves Purra facing a tricky balancing act, as she will need to explain the party's current policies without alienating the voters that back the party because of its immigration-sceptic line.
"She should probably now tell them in concrete terms how the Finns Party can promote what they say is in Finland's interests, while at the same time unequivocally renounce all kinds of extremism, racism and discrimination, as Purra assured us in her apology," Wass said.
She added that at this stage, it is impossible to tell whether Purra will be forced into an untenable position in which she would have to tender her resignation, as happened recently to her party colleague Vilhelm Junnila.
2.8.2023 at 12:29 Clarified that Purra referred to a singular "Turkish monkey", rather than plural "Turkish monkeys".