Finland’s ban sparks debate among Chinese
Print Edition
The deportation of a Chinese grandfather from Finland has ignited discussion both there and in China.
He was visiting his daughter on a tourist visa and was paid for babysitting by his Finnish son-in-law only to fall foul of Migri, the Finnish immigration service.
The 62-year-old pensioner was stripped of his passport, escorted out of the country, and banned from the Schengen Area for two years.
A photograph in Finnish daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat on March 5 showed him carrying a grandchild in his arms at the airport and his daughter weeping.
Migri said he had been “trying to circumvent regulations with a made-up job” and “failing to provide qualifications or previous experience in child care,” according to local media report.
Finnish Interior Minister Paivi Rasanen voiced her concerns and said that there was a need to examine the country’s immigration regulations.
She said it was absurd for Migri to ask for child minding qualifications from a grandparent.
The minister’s stance drew thousands of approving comments on Chinese social networking sites but there was also plenty of support for the immigration service’s stance.
A Chinese businessman, surnamed Gao, said he experienced a similar situation more than 10 years ago.
He and his Finnish wife had three children in Finland.
“We wanted to employ my father to take care of my children, but our application was turned down.
“My father was deported and not allowed to enter Finland within two years,” Gao said.
More and more Chinese people living in Finland are making similar requests, but most of them are rejected, Gao said.
He said the authorities aware that it could place a burden on Finland’s welfare system in a society that was facing the problems of an aging population.
Another Chinese immigrant, surnamed Chen, said she had succeeded in getting her mother a residence permit for three years on a working basis.
“Maybe they know I am too busy to take care of my son, or maybe they think I am doing a job which serves Finland a lot,” said Chen, an interpreter.
She said it was good to have someone to help with the family and it was important for a Chinese adult to enjoy contact with their parents.
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