The recent Koran burnings risk jeopardizing Swedish entry into NATO together with Finland, according to several experts.
Turkey approved Finland as a member back in March, but still does not consider that Sweden has fulfilled its part of the agreement concluded between the three countries last year.
Abolished in the 1970s
If you ask Göran Djupsund, professor emeritus of political science at Åbo Akademi, it’s really just a matter of luck on Finland’s part – at least if the recent Koran burnings have been decisive in Turkey’s view of Sweden.
— There have been plans to do something in Finland that corresponds to the Koran burnings in Sweden. You were pretty dazed and didn’t know what to do. Then someone figured out that we have this old law.
Crime against religious freedom was abolished in Sweden already in the 1970s, but is still a crime under Finnish law. It has also meant that Finnish authorities have been able to stop Koran burnings, according to Göran Djupsund.
“Don’t Come to Shots”
The last time the law was applied in Finland was against the writer Hannu Salama in the 1960s.
— He had a passage in a book that was considered to violate freedom of belief. By modern standards, the statement was mild.
A debate then ensued as to whether the law was appropriate.
— But then it fell into oblivion. They simply didn’t get shot. In today’s situation, in any case, they have been satisfied that they still have the old law, which is actually outdated, says Göran Djupsund.
Difference in freedom of expression
TT: How does freedom of expression differ in Sweden and Finland?
— In Finland we have freedom of speech, but the difference is that this law protects religious and faith matters. It’s not just about religious books. It can also be about statements that are perceived as offensive. It roughly corresponds to what is called incitement against a ethnic group in Sweden. In Sweden you are not allowed to incite against a ethnic group, but in Finland you are also not allowed to do it on a religious basis.
According to Joakim Nergelius, professor of law at Örebro University, Finland is not a unique example in Europe.
— It is not terribly unusual in Eastern Europe, but the vast majority of countries in the Western world have abolished similar blasphemy and blasphemy laws.
No one convicted since the 19th century
In England, blasphemy was abolished in 2008, in Norway in 2015 and in Denmark as recently as 2017 – despite the Danish security service PET warning of an increased threat to Denmark.
Before the law on crimes against religious freedom was abolished in Sweden, no one had been prosecuted or sentenced for the crime since the 19th century, according to Joakim Nergelius.
— Then it was August Strindberg who ran the communion. He was charged, but then acquitted and then it was decided that you are allowed to do this, says Nergelius and continues:
— But the clearest example is France, where it has always been allowed in principle. It already started with Voltaire in the 18th century. There has been criticism, for example after the attack on Charlie Hebdo, but still they have not considered criminalizing it.