The police are preparing for an increase in the number of removals from the country

The number of returns of persons not granted asylum is expected to increase in the near future. At present, reception services cater for around 10,000 individuals who have received a negative decision on asylum, and some 7,000 of them have appealed against the decision.

Some of the individuals who have received a decision on return will not agree, or want, to comply voluntarily with the decision. Illegal residence in the country is therefore expected to increase.

Most of the people returned by the police have received a decision on return due to criminal activity. Of the approximately 2,600 people returned by the police last year, more than 500 had received a negative decision on their application for asylum. The share of those having received a negative decision will increase in the returns to be executed by the police.

“It is the duty of the police to ensure that people who have no legal right to reside in Finland do not stay here. In the most extreme cases, this means that we remove people from the country,” said National Police Commissioner Seppo Kolehmainen in a media briefing on returns, arranged by the police in Helsinki on Tuesday, 3 April 2018.

Rapid integration into society or a prompt return

According to National Police Commissioner Kolehmainen, it is vital in terms of internal security that asylum seekers’ applications are processed quickly and followed by either rapid integration into Finnish society or a prompt return.

“This is important for these people personally. Foreign nationals residing in the country illegally, or awaiting removal from the country, are in a vulnerable position.”

In the first instance, individuals with no prerequisites for asylum are always offered a voluntary return. This is the most humane way and the best solution for the returnee.

Obstacles to return taken into account by the police

Mr Kolehmainen emphasised that all obstacles to return are actively taken into account by the police. The process of return can be suspended on justifiable grounds.

“Recently, the police have suspended almost half of the already prepared returns of persons who have received a negative asylum decision. Returns are suspended due to renewed applications, for example.”

On the other hand, the police perform their assigned tasks diligently. The police do not criticise the decisions issued or question the legislation in force, but diligently implement their assigned task of returning people.

“Efficient and well-functioning returns prevent illegal residence in the country and the related risk of social exclusion. Finland is not an attractive country for illegal residence, and social exclusion is still considered a major threat to national security,” says Deputy National Police Commissioner Sanna Heikinheimo of the National Police Board.

Police cannot comment on individual cases

Supervision of foreign nationals and measures undertaken by the police trigger public debate, in which the actions of the authorities may be criticised.

Deputy National Police Commissioner Sanna Heikinheimo points out that, due to legislation, the police have limited opportunities to participate in this debate, because they cannot comment on individual cases.

“In particular, information on individual cases circulating in the social media should be reviewed critically, especially if it is based on second or third-hand information,” said Ms Heikinheimo.

She also pointed out that the quality and functionality of returns are supervised.

“The Non-Discrimination Ombudsman monitors returns and reports on them. They have the right to monitor all stages of returns. The police notifies the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman about returns in advance, so that the Ombudsman can send a supervisor to monitor the performance of the escort patrol, for example.”

Most returns are voluntary or supervised

Last year, the police returned a total of around 2,600 foreign nationals who had received a return decision. More than 2,000 returned under supervision and only one fifth of the persons returned by the police were returned, escorted by a police patrol, to their country of origin.

“However, the number of escorted returnees of those returned by the police will increase, because the police are no longer involved in many voluntary returns,” said Superintendent Mia Poutanen of the National Police Board.

After the legislative amendments in 2015, police operations in relation to returns have more clearly targeted those returned on the basis of criminal activity and people who have received a return decision and do not voluntarily comply with it, or are not entitled to an assisted voluntary return.

“The role of the police in a voluntary return is to guide those who have received a return decision to the voluntary return programme, in the first instance, informing them about the subsidies for voluntary return, among other issues,” said Poutanen.

Last year, the voluntary return system assisted more than 1,400 recipients, who had received a return decision, to travel back to their home country. More than 1,100 voluntary returnees went to Iraq.

Persons posing a risk are prioritised

Of the individual national groups, the police was most often involved in returns to Estonia, totalling over 600 cases last year. Most of the people returned to Finland’s southern neighbour are recurrent offenders, who come to Finland on a regular basis even though they are under prohibition of entry due to previous crimes committed here.

One of the tasks of the so-called Tupa function, set up in the National Bureau of Investigation in 2016, is to identify, among asylum seekers arriving in Finland, those who may pose a threat to the security of the society.

“In practical terms, partly on the basis of soft intelligence data, the Tupa function prepares risk assessments of asylum seekers in Finland. If an individual considered to pose a risk to society receives a decision on removal from the country, the police will seek to prioritise that person's return,” said Poutanen.

Almost everyone is returned on a regular scheduled flight or ship

According to Chief Superintendent Poutanen, returns are arranged using ships, scheduled flights by various airlines, joint return flights by EU Member States, and national charter flights.

“However, almost everyone is returned on regular scheduled flights or by ship. Last year, charter flights were used for only four per cent of returns. Charter flights are used in particularly challenging cases and when several people are returned to the same country simultaneously,” Poutanen said.

All police departments in Finland participate in and organise returns of individuals who have received a decision on return, but the Helsinki Police Department organises charter flights for returnees.

Problems are rare

Problems rarely occur on charter flights. Even on scheduled flights they tend to be rare, individual occurrences.

“The starting point is to arrange even escorted returns in such a manner that fellow passengers rarely notice the police officers on the plane accompanying the returnee,” said Chief Inspector Liisa Lintuluoto of the Helsinki Police Department.

“The police rarely have to resort to the use of force. Last year, force was necessary in some two per cent of the around 550 escorted returns.

According to Lintuluoto, the police are prepared for the possible suspension or delay of the return process.

“Returns may be cancelled or postponed due to last-minute applications or an injunction prohibiting enforcement, or sometimes even strong resistance by the returnee. However, strong resistance has not, so far, completely prevented the return of anyone to their final destination,” said Lintuluoto.

Unique operating environment in Helsinki-Vantaa Airport

The majority of returns are made through Finland's largest and busiest airport, Helsinki-Vantaa. The Eastern Uusimaa Police Department helps to secure the area.

According to Ari Karvonen, Deputy Police Chief of the Eastern Uusimaa Police Department, even the slightest disruption in airport operations may cause significant damage to air and freight traffic, the business and passengers.

There has been public discussion of issues such as demonstrations at the airport.

“The police are responsible for security at all demonstrations, regardless of the matter in question. However, a demonstration at an airport always involves a risk to security.”

He also pointed out that criminal sanctions will follow if attempts are made to endanger individual return flights, or the safety of the airport area.

“The act may constitute malicious damage, defamation, traffic interference or violent resistance to a public official in the performance of his or her duties.”

Causing a disturbance on board a plane is a punishable offence

Matti Tupamäki from the Finnish Transport Safety Agency, Trafi, participated in the police briefing as a specialist in aviation legislation. He emphasised that all air passengers should be aware of the special regulations concerning order on aircraft, which are stricter than those in other modes of public transport. It is internationally agreed that causing a disturbance in any way on board an aircraft is punishable.

Unruly behaviour by air passengers or any failure to comply with the crew's instructions may be interpreted as causing a disturbance on public transport and could turn out to be very expensive if, for example, a flight is delayed or required to make a stopover.

“On international flights, the sanction is not necessarily determined under Finnish law. In Finland, fines are typically imposed for causing a disturbance in air traffic, but in many other countries the sentencing practice is much stricter,” said Matti Tupamäki.

Non-Discrimination Ombudsman supervises removal from the country

The Non-Discrimination Ombudsman has a statutory duty to supervise the enforcement of removal from the country.

“The purpose of supervision is to develop returns in a more humane direction respectful of fundamental and human rights. The supervisor has no right to intervene in individual cases of removal from the country. Instead, we influence the development of operations through reporting,” said Non-Discrimination Ombudsman Kirsi Pimiä .

She says that the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman has the resources to participate in very few return flights.

“After supervision, we provide the police with verbal and written feedback. In recent years, supervisors have paid attention to various issues, including the supervisors’ right to access information, the provision of interpretation, the right to communication, notification of the date of departure, the possibility of returnees to prepare for departure, and the possibility take along luggage.

Due to privacy and confidentiality obligations, the Ombudsman does not disclose information on planned removals from the country, or provide retrospective information on the returns of individuals.