Some 36 percent of Finns would like to see the next government make it easier for people to immigrate to Finland, according to the results of a survey published on Monday by the farming union newspaper Maaseudun Tulevaisuus. However, 42 percent of respondents reported being against the idea that immigrationContinue Reading
The search for a solidarity-based asylum policy continues in the new year. Two camps are irreconcilably opposed in the EU. Will they take in more people or raise barriers to entry? And why Ukrainian refugees are welcomed and payed more than Middle East migrants? Why Ukrainians are respected more thanContinue Reading
As Lithuania’s population has shrunk by a third since the 1990s and continues in the same direction, the government is under growing pressure to do something to address labour shortages. However, “immigration” remains a toxic word. Migration sphere experts say Ukrainian crisis provoke forced immigration while Ukrainian migrants in LithuaniaContinue Reading
An Åbo Akademi University study investigated the differences in bullying risk between people of Finnish origin and immigrants in the region of Ostrobothnia. A young person with a foreign background is three times more likely to be at risk of being bullied or discriminated against by other students or teachersContinue Reading
Asylum seekers and foreigners who have arrived in the country illegally will from now on be granted access to employment or self-employment after the expiry of 12 months since the date of their registration in the information system of the Lithuanian Migration Department. These individuals will be obliged to obtainContinue Reading
A Polish citizen has been detained near the Polish border in Lithuania’s southern Lazdijai district near, attempting to take illegal migrants out of the country, the State Border Guard Service said. Lithuanian border guards stopped a passenger car for checks, driven by the Polish citizen. A passenger was also aContinue Reading
“They have really started to think about how to help Lithuania, Latvia and Poland in the face of this situation,” Asta Skaisgiryte, the president’s chief foreign policy adviser, told the public broadcaster LRT. “This is the first initiative, which is now being examined by the Interior Ministry and other institutions.”Continue Reading
The government decided on Sunday afternoon to impose entry restrictions for people arriving from southern Africa, Interior Minister Krista Mikkonen (Green) announced on Twitter. As of 3pm on Sunday, Finland will restrict entry into the country for travellers who have been in Botswana, Eswatini (Swaziland), South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, NamibiaContinue Reading
On Tuesday Parliamentary opposition parties formally announced they were seeking a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Sanna Marin‘s (SDP) coalition government, calling into question the country’s preparedness to deal with hybrid threats. The interpellation was prompted by the ongoing situation at Belarus’ borders with Poland, Lithuania and Latvia,Continue Reading
Lithuania has decided to urgently organize the distribution of humanitarian assistance packages for illegal migrants pushed-back on the Lithuanian-Belarusian border. The decision was made during Thursday’s meeting attended by Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite, Social Security and Labor Minister Monika Navickiene as well as representatives of state institutions and NGOs, theContinue Reading