Thors accuses Zyskowicz of divisiveness in asylum debate

Minister criticised over backlog of asylum applications

Ben Zyskowicz

Astrid Thors

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Minister of Migration and European Affairs Astrid Thors (Swed. People’s Party) has accused National Coalition Party MP Ben Zyskowicz of violating basic rules set for government parties.
      The criticism came up after Zyskowicz severely criticised what he saw were meagre efforts to dismantle the backlog of asylum applications.
      According to Zyskowicz, the minister and her civil servants have an “attitude problem”.
     
“The use of expressions such as attitude problem with reference to the ministers of one’s own government is not in line with the rules of the game”, Thors said in Parliament on Thursday.
      She also said that the “public thrashing” from Zyskowicz was “strange”.
     
According to Zyskowicz, Thors is on a side track in the government on the issue of asylum policy. Speaking during the first reading of the bill for a new foreigners’ law, Zyskowicz urged Thors to implement policy lines of the government.
      “The government decided that handling times would be speeded up, which is in the interests of both applicants and of Finland.”
     
The National Coalition Party MP said that he does not want to see the kinds of problems that have emerged in neighbouring countries, after the asylum policy has “gone out of hand”, and where “integration has failed”.
      “We do not want suburbs where people riot, or where significant problems are caused”, Zyskowicz said. He said that Finland can prevent the problems from “coming to a head”.
      The number of asylum applicants rose last year to 4,000, whereas in the previous year there were just 1,400 applicants.
      Half of the applications were rejected, or lapsed.
     
“We have already agreed on a study on how application for asylum in Finland differs from that in the other Nordic Countries. In the first supplementary budget, the Finnish Immigration Service was granted more funding specifically to speed up the processing time”, Thors said.
      The government offered EUR one million, which Parliament doubled.
      Thors did not accept Zyskowicz’s claim that she was downplaying the implications of the growth in the number of applicants. “I have called for a sense of proportion. For instance, in Norway, the number of asylum seekers has grown to 15,000 already.”
     
Thors felt that Zyskowicz linked asylum seekers with the kinds of riots that have taken place in the Danish capital Copenhagen in drug-related battles between motorcycle gangs and criminal elements among immigrants.
      “That is labelling, and is in violation of an appeal by the chairs of the parliamentary groups”, Thors said. An appeal against racism emerged at the initiative of the Swedish People’s Party.
      Zyskowicz said that he regrets it if the minister took the feedback personally. He emphasised that what he said was politics, and that he had raised a serious problem.
      Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) sought to ease tensions, but was somewhat out of the loop, after having returned from a trip recently.
      “Confidence in Minister Thors is not on the line. The government has increased funding for the processing of asylum applications.”
      “Asylum applications are often without foundation, and if they are handled quickly, the news will soon spread around the world. The number of applications here is very low compared with the other Nordic Countries”, Vanhanen pointed out.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Finnish asylum policy attacked in Parliament (18.2.2009)
  Surge of asylum seekers portends new record year (12.1.2009)
  Integration training fails to significantly improve employment prospects of refugees (22.12.2008)

Links:
  Finnish Immigration Service

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