Finland: Journalists’ union filed complaint to the Prosecutor General in the case of journalist Ida Erämaa
The preliminary investigation into alleged defamation targeting Finnish journalist Ida Erämaa has been closed after the Chief Prosecutor of Southern Finland found that the journalist was partly responsible for the insults and threats she received. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its affiliate, the Finnish Union of Journalists (UJF), in criticising the decision and the justifications put forward. The UJF filed a complaint with the Office of the Prosecutor General.
In 2023, Ida Erämaa’s column about the right-wing Finns Party (PS) in the tabloid newspaper Iltalehti led to a large-scale online harassment campaign by PS supporters and MPs, whose statements quickly gathered thousands of reactions on social media platforms – including insults as well as threats of physical and sexual violence – and prompted her to file several criminal complaints against individuals.
On 28 March 2025, the prosecutor concluded that the comments should not be dealt with in court, citing the trivial nature of the case, the cost, and limited public interest, adding that the plaintiff had “exceptionally contributed” to the commission of the offence. In his decision, the lead detective stated: “[…] considering the highly stigmatising and, according to some critics, offensive content of the original article written by Erämaa, the exceptionally high contribution of the plaintiff […] would mitigate the punishment.”
On 2 April, the UJF lodged a complaint with the Prosecutor General’s Office, stating that crimes targeting journalists because of their work constitute a threat to freedom of expression and cannot be considered of minor importance, nor a justification for crimes committed against them.
“From the perspective of the rule of law, it is extremely problematic to claim that a journalist’s work would constitute a mitigating factor regarding crimes committed against them,” says Tytti Oras, legal counsel for the UJF.
#Finland: We are very concerned by the decision & the justifications given by the Public Prosecutor of Southern Finland for dropping the case against journalist Ida Erämaa. The decision argues that the journalist contributed to her own harassment. Support for Ida @journalistiliitto.fi
— European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) (@efjeurope.bsky.social) 2025-04-07T10:59:50.585Z
