The police are enforcing public order and security with a high profile around May Day, while also monitoring compliance with the restrictions on food and beverage service establishments.
May Day Eve has been quiet so far from the perspective of the police. Very few interventions have been needed. Public places have been quiet. As a rule, citizens have followed the instructions and rules commendably. The police hope that May Day celebrations will continue in a similarly peaceful manner tomorrow.
The National Police Board will issue further bulletins on the May Day festivities at approximately 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. tomorrow, 1 May 2020. This bulletin is based on information compiled from police departments from midnight to 6 p.m. on Thursday 30 April.
Public events and meetings, convening at public places
The overall situation has been very calm in the whole country. No prohibited public events have been discovered in any police department’s area, and no interventions have thus been required.
The situation has been fairly similar with regard to convening at public places. In Helsinki, the police have instructed people outdoors on nine occasions. These cases did not involve youth.
In the area of the Central Finland Police Department in Tampere, only a few dozen people have been spending time in the city’s parks in groups of a few individuals. Pedestrian traffic increased in Jyväskylä in the afternoon, but no gatherings were noted.
One case of convening at public places required intervention in Southeast Finland. A party of more than 10 adults and children was found barbecuing in a park. The party left after being instructed by the police.
Young people have acted quite moderately, and no gatherings of more than 10 young people have been discovered. In Eastern Finland, the pent-up energy of children was released in the form of inappropriate activities in which the police was forced to intervene. Some young people were seen driving around at night in the area of the Häme Police Department.
Public order and security
The police have not had to enforce public order and security to a greater degree than normal. Normal police operations not directly related to the emergency conditions have been conducted. Roughly speaking, there have been fewer emergency calls this May Day Eve than in recent years.
One case of threatening a police officer with the coronavirus was logged in the area of the Central Finland Police Department in connection with a property crime and drunk driving call.
Moving in public, public transport and the restaurant business
Significantly fewer people have been out and about in comparison to recent years. People have mostly been out individually or in small groups, with shopping centres and hypermarkets having been the busiest places.
Traffic has been quiet throughout the country. Road traffic increased somewhat in the areas of the Central Finland and Lapland Police Departments compared to previous May Day Eves. Some typical traffic offences, such as speeding and driving while intoxicated, have occurred.
The police have monitored restaurants everywhere in Finland. No violations of the bans on the restaurant business have been discovered during the monitoring. One tip-off about an illegal establishment was received in the area of the Oulu Police Department.
