Women in Games Finland’s constitutive meeting in March 2019

When we think of a gamer, it often connotes stereotypical imagery of the young white cis-het lad playing a shooter game amongst dirty socks and take-out boxes. Yet stereotypes are often outdated nonsense and the stupidity of generalising an entire group of people just because they share only one specific criterion is obvious. In fact, since the 2010s, statistics have shown that sex does not in any way indicate whether someone is more or less likely to play video games, with pretty much an even split.

A women walking at al-Hol, a Kurdish-controlled detention camp for the displaced families of the so-called Islamic State (IS), in Syria on 8 December 2019. (Delil Souleiman – AFP/Lehtikuva)

OLLI-POIKA PARVIAINEN, the state secretary of Minister of the Interior Maria Ohisalo (Greens), has reminded that it is an offence to leak classified information on the effort to bring Finnish nationals from al-Hol, Syria, to Finland.

Finnish news outlets have in recent days written exhaustively about the preparations made by authorities, citing documents related to, for example, the operations of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Petteri Orpo, the chairperson of the National Coalition, in the Finnish Parliament in Helsinki on Tuesday, 3 December 2019. (Jussi Nukari – Lehtikuva)

THE CHAIRPERSON of the National Coalition, Petteri Orpo, has expressed his pride in the composition of the newly appointed government and what it tells about Finland.

“It’s a historic day,” he stated on Twitter on Tuesday. “The world gets its youngest serving prime minister and Finland a government made up of parties that all have women as their chairpersons. It’s wonderful that this is possible specifically in Finland.”

The timber harvest in Finland increased by eight per cent year-on-year to a record-high level in 2018, according to Helsingin Sanomat. (Roni Rekomaa – Lehtikuva)

THE FINNISH GOVERNMENT has a lot of catching up to do if it intends to reach its carbon neutrality goal by 2035, reports Helsingin Sanomat.

Statistics Finland on Thursday kindled doubts about the attainability of the goal by publishing preliminary data on the size of carbon sinks in Finland, revealing that they shrunk by as much as 43 per cent between 2017 and 2018.

Olli Rehn of the Bank of Finland (left) and Jyri Häkämies of the Confederation of Finnish Industries (right) posed for a photograph at the autumn meeting of EK in Helsinki on 20 November 2019. (Martti Kainulainen – Lehtikuva)

JYRI HÄKÄMIES, the director of the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK), has warned the government of the serious problems looming over Finland.

Häkämies on Wednesday said the newly appointed government has been rightfully congratulated for the young age of its core members, but added that it is for that very reason that the government should take the youth of today into consideration in its decision-making.

Minister of Education Li Andersson (left), Minister of the Interior Maria Ohisalo (second from left) and Minister of Finance Katri Kulmuni (right) met the press for the first time as members of Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s (second from right) government in Helsinki on Tuesday, 10 December 2019. (Jussi Nukari – Lehtikuva)

THERE IS NO disagreement between the five ruling parties concerning labour market policy, insists Sanna Marin (SDP), the newly appointed Prime Minister of Finland.

Questions about the labour market policy approach of the government arose following recent comments by Minister of Finance Katri Kulmuni (Centre). Kulmuni on Sunday criticised the previous government for its general handling of labour market issues.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto (Greens) spoke during yesterday’s question-time debate in the Finnish Parliament in Helsinki. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto – Lehtikuva)

PEKKA HAAVISTO (Greens), the Minister for Foreign Affairs, has provided some clarity to the government’s position on the situation of Finns at al-Hol, a detention camp for the relatives of the so-called Islamic State (IS).

Haavisto on Thursday stated that the course of action he presented to his fellow cabinet members a few weeks ago is to consider, on a case-by-case basis, which detainees to bring back to Finland.

President Sauli Niinistö has told Helsingin Sanomat that the Finnish government should consider making a political decision on organising returns for Finns held in al-Hol, Syria. (Markku Ulander – Lehtikuva)

PRESIDENT Sauli Niinistö has urged the Finnish government to make a clear political decision regarding its position on the repatriations of Finnish women and children from al-Hol, a detention camp for the relatives of so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria.

Prime Minister Sanna Marin (SDP) on Tuesday stated that the matter is being examined by government officials under a mandate granted by the act on consular services.

Finland new Prime Minister with the Minister of Education, Finance Minister, and Minister of the Interior (Image: Lehtikuva)

THE LARGELY YOUNG AND FEMALE CABINET of Finland's new government met in Helsinki today, with PM Sanna Marin serving as the youngest sitting prime minister in the world. Joining her cabinet Li Andersson, the Minister of Education since June 2019, Minister of Finance Katri Kulmuni, and Minister of the Interior Maria Ohisalo. 

IN TODAY'S BEST PHOTOS FROM AROUND THE WORLD, we lead with an image of a humpback whale off the coast of British Columbia. We also have a manta ray with Santa Claus and a dog at a polling station in the UK. 

Greta Thunberg on the cover of TIME Magazine's Person of the Year issue (Image: Lehtikuva)

IN TODAY'S BEST PHOTOS FROM AROUND THE WORLD, we lead with the cover of TIME Magazine, where teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg has been named as Person of the Year. We also have a hospital attack in Lahore, a satellite launch in India, and a photo from a Rohingya refugee camp. 

Public transport made up 22 per cent of journeys made in Greater Helsinki in 2018, shows a new study. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto – Lehtikuva)

THE MOBILITY HABITS of Finns in the capital region have remained largely unchanged despite the number of newly completed transport infrastructure projects and newly introduced mobility apps and services, reports Helsingin Sanomat.

Its report is based on a study conducted collaboratively by municipalities in and around Greater Helsinki and Helsinki Region Transport (HSL).

FINLAND HAS LONG BEEN A FRONTRUNNER in the so-called ‘cashless revolution’, with card and mobile payments overtaking cash payments for the first time several years back. Across the EU, a total of 78% of all payments are made in cash. However, the reverse is true in Finland, where more than 80% of all payments are made via debit or online banking. 

As a percentage of the total of all payments in Finland, online payments are rapidly emerging as the most popular option, with the number of such payments growing by 28% in 2018.

Prime Minister Sanna Marin (SDP) spoke to the media for the first time in her new capacity in the Government Palace in Helsinki on Tuesday, 10 December 2019. (Vesa Moilanen – Lehtikuva)

SANNA MARIN (SDP) faced a number of difficult questions during her first appearance as Prime Minister of Finland on YLE’s A-studio on Tuesday.

Marin was asked, for example, whether the government will assume an active role in organising returns for the Finnish nationals at al-Hol, a detention camp for relatives of the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria.

Chancellor of Justice Tuomas Pöysti prepared for a hearing at the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee in Helsinki on Monday, 3 December 2019. (Seppo Samuli – Lehtikuva)

CHANCELLOR OF JUSTICE Tuomas Pöysti will examine the actions of Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto (Greens) and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in regards to the situation of Finnish nationals at al-Hol, a detention camp for the women and children of the so-called Islamic State.

Pöysti on Monday stated to YLE that serious allegations about possibly illicit actions have been made in the public debate and formal complaints.