– It is very understandable that the conflict boils over if there are relatives in the area. For them, this can be very personal. But then there are many Finns who do not have such connections. And it shakes them up too, says a senior researcher at the Foreign Policy Institute Timo R. Stewart.
The Gaza conflict between Israel and the extremist organization Hamas has been seen both on the streets and on social media in Finland and around the world. We asked Stewart why this particular situation makes people speak their minds publicly. There are many reasons.
– Both sides have griping surfaces, where the conflict happening abroad is combined with themes, areas and issues that feel more familiar to us in Finland than many other foreign conflicts.
Proximity
The Middle East as a region feels close to Finns, not necessarily geographically, but for example through cultural-religious connections. Many Finns have also traveled in the region.
– Every single person in Finland has heard of such places as Jerusalem and Bethlehem, if not elsewhere then for example in the Christmas Gospel. The area is culturally close.
When the region and its history are familiar, it is easier to participate in the discussion that followed the conflict, Stewart reflects.
Millions of Jews live in both Europe and the United States. Millions of Palestinian refugees also live in Western countries, including Finland.
Religion
The Middle East is the home and spiritual center of three major religions, which has been a major reason for the region’s sensitivity to conflict. In Finland’s Lutheran roots, sympathies easily fall on the side of the Jewish-majority Israel.
This is reported, for example, by many Finnish Christian Israel organizations. They are maintained by churches and Christian movements.
Many connect the conflict to the debate in Finland about immigration and Islam.
– The theme here is that Hamas is an Islamist organization that uses terror. It is a reminder to them of the threats they see in the growth of the European Muslim population. In this view, Israel is both a defender and a victim of European Western-style democracy, Stewart says.
On the other hand, Jerusalem has an important religious meaning for Muslims as well, and the Palestinians, as Muslims, receive support from the world’s large Muslim community.
Holocaust guilt
Feelings of sympathy towards Israel are aroused by the fact that the conflicts in the region are seen as part of the long path of suffering of the Jews, says Stewart.
– There is definitely a certain kind of guilt and awareness of the century-long persecution faced by Jews in Europe and especially the Holocaust. The idea that this is somehow related to that continuum.
Strong opinions
Finns have a unanimous opinion about Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but the war in Gaza divides views.
– This is a conflict that has been going on for a very long time. Thus, many have formed views about it long ago.
According to Stewart, the information is not necessarily problem-free.
– When the media writes about this, the new information is compared to the old, already assimilated information, and then we feel what is being said about it now. On the other hand, about things that are known less, new information is more easily accepted.
It can be difficult to accept information that differs from your own opinion.
– There is such tenacity in attitudes here. Those who think they know enough about the matter and who have formed their opinion some time ago, find it difficult to change their opinion, says Stewart.
History
Many see similarities with history, that the conflict has been built on the basis of colonial history.
– Many seem to see from such a point of view that everything would be more or less fine if the Palestinians were satisfied with the rights and territories they have. And from the perspective of the Palestinians, their lives and rights are far from satisfactory.
On behalf of the Palestinians, on the other hand, one can see the use of US hegemony in the region.
– At the same time, let’s criticize, for example, the history of European colonialism and its traces. In Finland, there has also been a link to the left from the past. It has gone a long way that the Palestinians have been understood on the left and Israel on the right. This is not always true either.