Denying food aid to Russians could constitute discrimination

A Kotka association gives free food bags only to Finnish citizens

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The Ombudsman for Minorities is investigating the practice by a Kotka charity organisation to distribute bags of food aid only to Finnish citizens
      The Kotka-based association Kotkan keräys- ja avustuskeskus (”Kotka collection and assistance centre”) decided last week that foreigners were not entitled to free bags of groceries. In the association’s view, Russians had misused the free food distribution.
      However, the association will continue to distribute bread to everyone regardless of nationality.
      According to Communications Officer Maria Swanljung, the Office of the Ombudsman for Minorities will look at the matter in order to find out whether or not  the practice should be regarded as discrimination.
     
The association distributes free sacks of food bags twice a week to about 50 to 100 people. The groceries are donated mainly by local supermarkets.
      Ranja Laakso who is in charge of food distribution at the Kotka assistance centre says that food bags are now given only to familiar Finns and those who can show Finnish identification. The association decided to restrict the distribution after increasing numbers of Russian-speaking individuals turned up in the bread-line.
      ”Our own people were left without food”, Laakso says.
     
The Kotka association suspects that those claiming food bags included Russian tourists and other Russians who are not genuinely needy.
      ”Some have even parked their Mercedes right in front of the window”, Laakso notes.
      Detective Chief Inspector Bengt Brinkas from the Kymenlaakso Police Department says that it is not illegal to select those who are given assistance.
     
Kotka has about 1,500 Russian-speaking residents. According to the Finnish-Russian association Kotimme (”Our home”), many Russian people have a residence permit but lack Finnish citizenship.
      According to Anna Gendlin, the Deputy Chair of the association, for example many Russian pensioners living in the city could be in need of food assistance. She does not know whether the city’s Russian residents have asked for help from the assistance centre.
     
In other parts of Finland, citizenship is no object when it comes to food distribution to those standing in bread-lines. Heikki Hursti, the head of the organisation distributing food in Helsinki, says that nobody is denied free food.
      ”If people can queue for two to three hours asking for a free bag of food, all of them are certainly in need of one”, Hursti notes.
     


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Higher food prices bring longer breadlines (22.4.2008)
  Bread-lines getting longer and longer in Helsinki area (9.3.2010)
  Heikki Hursti’s bread feeds over 1,000 in Helsinki (18.6.2009)

Links:
  Ombudsman for Minorities

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