Finland has nothing to learn from warcriminals

Photo: Hannu Häkkinen

The Finnish Defence Forces, as the only Nordic participant, recently took part in a seminar organized by the Israeli military —sharing “lessons learned” from two years of Genocide.

The topic of the seminar was Two Years of Combat Experience in Five Days. According to the seminar’s web page, more than 100 senior military representatives from 19 countries came together to “receive a live demonstration of the IDF’s activities over the past two years” and “to see up close how a lesson is conveyed that is more tangible and effective than any headline or picture”.  

We at Sumud’s Justice Not Arms Campaign, are outraged by the decision of the Finnish Defence Forces to take part in this highly cynical event. According to one of the Finnish participants, Lieutenant Colonel Markus Wahlstein, the seminar discussed the civilian casualties in Gaza “from a professional, not a moral perspective.” According to him, Israel had emphasized that it respects the rules of war.    As a professional officer Wahlstein must know, however, that this is a blatantly false testimony.

To frame the participation as technical rather than moral is not only deeply worrying, it also undermines Palestinian lives and demonstrates just how far the Finnish government has strayed from respecting the international law and accountability. Israel has carried out the Genocide with total impunity, and decisions like this expose Finland’s willingness to concur.

The Finnish people have clearly demanded that there be no business as usual with a genocidal state—echoing the findings of the UN, HRW, Amnesty International, Israeli human rights groups, Palestinian organizations, the ICJ, and the ICC. But apparently, there are no red lines set by the Finnish Government as to where our tax money is spent on. And apparently, the voices of thousands of people in the streets, the majority opinions of the Finnish civil society, and the more than 56,000 signatures on the Citizens’ Initiative Laki Särmään can easily be ignored.

We demand actions, not performative gestures, at every level of Government. The only way to hold on to our independence and sovereignty is to adhere to the international rule based system, a cornerstone of security for a small country. It is also our duty to defend the defend international the humanitarian law and human rights even though they are daily violated in Gaza. There can be no normal relations with an occupying, apartheid state, and least of all with the military force carrying out these genocide crimes and atrocities.

To take part in a grotesque charade like this seminar is a betrayal against our moral identity as a people. The Finnish people call for justice and demand humanity first.  

Justice Not Arms. No complicity. No silence.