activist journalism Anti-Israel bigotry and bias Finland

A Finnish Journalist Who Inhabits His Own Universe…….

Well known (in Finland) journalist, Hannu Reime, sets his sights on Gaza –the history behind it and Palestine in general– managing to write twelve lengthy paragraphs without mentioning the words “terrorism”, “Islamist extremism”, “Arab intransigence”, “culture of death”, “vitriolic incitement against Jews” and “discrimination of Christians by Palestinian Muslims”.

In his article on YLE (Finnish state news agency), Reime bypasses all of the “troublesome” aspects to the Arab conflict with Israel, choosing only to highlight the desperate reality the Palestinians collectively face in Gaza, (due to their “leaderships'” failed policies) as if all this has happened within a vacuum.

Here are a few choice quotes:

Reime:

“Historiallinen Palestiina sai täsmälliset rajat vuonna 1922, kun Jordan-joen idänpuoleinen alue eli Transjordania – nykyisen Jordanian kuningaskunnan edeltäjä – erotettiin Britanniasta riippuvaiseksi emiirikunnaksi ja lännenpuoleisesta alueesta tehtiin brittien suoraan hallitsema Palestiina, johon siionistisen liikkeen organisoima juutalaisten asutustoiminta keskittyi.”

Historical Palestine received exact borders in 1922, when the eastern side of the Jordan-river called Trans-Jordan -which became Jordan– was removed from Britain as a dependent emeriate and the area on the western side becoming under direct British governmental control as Palestine, to which Zionist groups focused organized Jewish settlements.

Reime is talking about the “White Paper”, that according to Sir Alec Kirkbride,

the British representative in the area, Transjordan was intended to serve as a reserve of land for use in the resettlement of Arabs once the National Home for the Jews in Palestine, which [Britain was] pledged to support, became an accomplished fact. There was no intention at that stage of forming the territory east of the River Jordan into an independent Arab.

A rather big omission on Reime’s part I would think. Not even a slight mention that Jews were a majority in Jerusalem at the time, and that Trans-Jordan cum Jordan had a majority (still does) that consider themselves to be the same people who now call themselves “Palestinians”. The Hashmite Husseins being a minority in their own country.

Reime:
Uuden valtion, Israelin, itsenäisyysjulistuksen ja sitä seuranneen sodan jälkeen entinen Palestiina joutui kolmen vallan hallintaan. Lähes neljä viidesosaa siitä kuului nyt Israeliin, kun taas Länsiranta ja Itä-Jerusalem liitettiin Jordaniaan. Egypti miehitti Gazan.

A new state, Israel, declaration of independence and the war that followed, former Palestine came under three different governments. Nearly 4/5 belonged now to Israel, as the West Bank and East Jerusalem was joined to Jordan. Egypt occupied Gaza.

Notice how Reime refuses to mention that the war was completely unnecessary, nothing about Haj Amin al-Husseini’s (the Mufti of Jerusalem) incitement against the Jews –being such an intransigent leader that the Brits threw in the towel– and one of the main catalysts that drove the Arab armies into attacking Israel.

He then goes on to quote an Israeli activist journalist, Amira Hass, who works for the Ha’aretz, and at times, takes even a sharper view of Israel than the Hamas.

Hass/Reime:

Köyhästä, massiivisen työttömyyden vaivaamasta ja Israelin armeijan eristämästä Gazasta ei ole pitkä matka israelilaisiin Välimeren rantakaupunkeihin, joissa elämä on samanlaista kuin Euroopassa. Elämisen taso Tel Avivissa ei eroa siitä, mikä se on Barcelonassa. Gaza muistuttaa suurta ghettoa, jos elämää siellä halutaan verrata juutalaisten historian synkkiin vaiheisiin Euroopassa, tai intiaanireservaattia Pohjois-Amerikassa. Alueelta pääsee ulos, jos luvat ovat kunnossa ja silloinkin vain pitkän jonottamisen jälkeen.

Poverty, troubling massive unemployment and the Israeli army’s cordoned off Gaza is not a long trek to Israel’s Mediterrainien beachfront cities, in which life is the same as in Europe. The standard of living in Tel Aviv is no different than in Barcelona. Gaza reminds of great ghetto, if life there is wanted to be compared to the Jews historical darkest era in Europe, or to Indian reservations in North America. You can leave the area, but only if the permits are in order and then only after long lines.

So Reime now wants to compare Palestinians in Gaza to Jews living in the ghettos of a Nazi Europe, a very regrettable decision. Jews were not blowing themselves up in the midst of Europes’ public places, nor were they stabbing non-Jews as they walked by an alley, or blowing up Chrurches or inciting their youth to commit atrocities due to their gross discrimination and subjugation by Christian Europe. Neither were Jews murdering their own for not living as Jews, or anything else resembling what the Palestinians have done to either themselves or to Israelis over the past 60 yrs.

Hannu Reime is guilty here of “activist journalism” that consistanly plays the “victim card” to an assured ignorant Finnish public, that won’t take him to task for his gross misrepresentations of Israel and the conflict in general. *L* KGS

The Tundra Tabloids extends its gratitude to Vasarahammer for the heads up on the story.

Pikkupoika adds: Well, if you want to spoil your summer, read Hannu’s book Israel/Palestiina – kahden kansan luvattu maa “Oma vakaa käsitykseni on, että loppujen lopuksi ainoa tehokas keino taistella antisemitismiä, rasismia ja muita taantumuksellisia aatteita vastaan on internationalismi, kosmopoliittisuus, kansainvälinen sosialismi ja solidaarisuus.”More of his writings here. “

I’ll translate: “My own solid understandings are, that in the end the only effective way to battle against anti-semitism, racism and other reactionary ideology is internationalism, cosmopolitics, international socialism and solidarity”

Please take note that Reime is highly respected inside the hallowed halls of Finnish state TV/radio …YLE, and that his leftism is a commonly shared traight within that institution. It explains a lot.

4 Responses

  1. Well, if you want to spoil your summer, read Hannu’s book Israel/Palestiina – kahden kansan luvattu maa.

    “Oma vakaa käsitykseni on, että loppujen lopuksi ainoa tehokas keino taistella antisemitismiä, rasismia ja muita taantumuksellisia aatteita vastaan on internationalismi, kosmopoliittisuus, kansainvälinen sosialismi ja solidaarisuus.”

    More of his writings here.

  2. Think about it, Reime and Hämeen-Anttila have a free reign in Finland to spread anything they want, without any fear that they’ll held accountable.

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