Ilta-Sanomat told readers that if anyone expected that the government's statement on measures it plans to implement in order to tackle racism and discrimination in Finnish society would end the racism debate that that raged all summer, they waited in vain.
In an editorial on the debate in parliament on Wednesday, this paper described the atmosphere as "historically tense".
"Wednesday's loud and angry debate deepened the confrontation rather than eased it," wrote Ilta-Sanomat.
The paper said that one rarely hears voices in the legislative chamber as aggressive as were heard on Wednesday, with accusations hurled from both sides.
According to Ilta-Sanomat, Centre Party chair Annika Saarikko summed up well how far from consensus the political parties in parliament now are, when she described the atmosphere during the debate as being so thick that one could cut it with a knife.
There were voices heard urging calm discussion of the issue across party lines.
But, Ilta-Sanomat noted, based on what was heard on Wednesday, that doesn't look likely. In any case, the government and its ministers will probably win a vote of confidence on Friday.
Immigrants and the job market
Iltalehti took a look at some of the main barriers met by foreigners in the Finnish job market.
The paper interviewed Olivia Kumpula, an immigrant from Nigeria, who works as a lawyer and helps highly educated immigrants with job searches. She told the paper she is worried about the reform planned by the government, according to which a foreign job seeker should find employment within three months of arriving in the country.
"The reform sounds as if the government thinks that immigrants don't want to get a job. That is not true," said Kumpula.
She said that finding a job has been made too difficult for immigrants in Finland, and point out some of the main barriers.
The first she noted is the equivalence of qualifications. In many fields, private employers can decide if a potential employee's education meets requirements for a job. Meanwhile, a university degree of a certain level is often required for positions in the public sector. If the degree was completed abroad, the job seeker must obtain a decision on equivalence from the National Agency for Education.
In addition, some professions are regulated, in which case the law defines what kind of training is required for the job.
Kumpula also pointed out that some level of proficiency in the Finnish language is required in every field, even when one could get by well in English.
"Why does a cleaner necessarily need to know Finnish? I think that language skills are sometimes just an excuse," she told Iltalehti.
Furthermore, jobs are often not advertised with the employment office. If one doesn't have networks, these jobs are "hidden".
And then there is the impact of racism.
Kumpula told Iltalehti that she feels that Finland is a safe country to live in. She said she has not encountered blatant racism. On the other hand, she concedes there is a lot of hidden racism that can be seen, for example, in a job search. In addition to language skills, the job seeker may be required to have work experience or certificates for work in which this experience or education is not needed.
"No one needs special training to make coffee or start a dishwasher. In my opinion, the certificates required by employers are sometimes an excuse to say they don't want to hire international workers," she said.
Kumpula thinks it would be fair for the government to set requirements not only for foreign job seekers but also for employers.
"We should find out why employers don't hire international job seekers and how they can be helped to hire foreign workers."
Cutting drug-related deaths
Helsingin Sanomat reported that figures from the National Institute of Health and Welfare (THL) show an increase in the use of illicit drugs and in drug-related deaths in Finland.
According to THL, the increase in the number of drug deaths in the under-25 age group is particularly worrying. The majority of such fatalities are accidental and preventable poisonings, in which a person dies after using medicinal opioids, alcohol and sedatives mixed, or at the same time.
THL has reviewed and evaluated 12 ways to prevent further drug-related deaths.
Sanna Kailanto, an expert at THL, said that one of the most important means would be to improve access to opioid replacement therapy.
Another key measure would be to train both professionals and drug users themselves to recognize the signs of overdose and to provide first aid in overdose situations. THL is also suggesting that the opioid antidote naloxone should be made more widely available.
Many of the methods evaluated by the health agency, such as a trial of supervised drug use facilities and the decriminalization of drug use, would require changes in the law in order to be implemented.
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