There is a secret state police (Geheime Staatspolizei in German, or Gestapo for short) based in Finland. Like all dubious ventures, this too begins innocently enough with more or less well-made and limited scope. And then, once you've got your foot in the door, you can slowly move forward.

So far, for example, the establishment of a separate organizational unit is not proposed, but only that people could be recruited into already existing units in secret from the public. But you don't have to have watched thousands of movies and TV series to understand how the plot will progress in the future. And if you still happen to learn something from history, that's always better...

Of the mainstream media, at least Yle has reported on the matter. The government's proposal to amend the Police Administration Act will be available on Finlex's website possibly already tomorrow. As of this writing, the site was last updated yesterday.

It is surely just a coincidence that this news falls on the same day as the announcement of the state budget, which promises an additional child benefit for December and a reduction in the VAT on electricity [and this is peanuts really, compared the inflation and especially the ten fold energy prices compared to the past years].

Bulletin of the Government

The State Council says today 1.9. in its published announcement:

"Certain positions of the "protection police" [this is a literal translation from the original "suojelupoliisi", that in reality is an "intelligence" service, but having a little to do with intelligence nor service to the people, I'll use a term "Secret Police" in the folloging text]  could be filled in the future without public recruitment, if the nature of the task necessarily requires it. A similar procedure could also be followed in the recruitment of certain positions of the central criminal police and local police. The State Council issued on 1.9. the government's proposal to the parliament to amend the law on police administration."

The announcement further states the following:

"The non-public procedure would only apply to those Secret Police positions where there would be a special need to protect the task and the identity of its supervisor from the beginning. Also, the position or official relationship of the central criminal police and the local police, where the duties include information source activity, fake purchase, covert activity or witness protection tasks, could be filled without a public application process, if the nature of the task necessarily requires it.

Carrying out the tasks of the Secret Police can be secured by non-public recruitment

With the civil intelligence legislation that entered into force on June 1, 2019, the Secret Police became more clearly an intelligence and security service. That is why it is reported that there is a need to revise the regulations related to the recruitment of the personnel of the Secret Police.

"The recruitment of civil servants performing certain tasks and the performance of their official duties are made significantly more difficult or completely prevented if the information about the person is public."

Due to changes in tasks and operating environment, according to the state administration, the operational capacity of the Secret Police personnel to perform their tasks must now be secured by "different means", one of which is enabling non-public recruitment. According to the government, the changes ensure the effective and appropriate application of intelligence legislation.

The "changed operating environment" of the police creates a need for protection

The police works in cooperation with other authorities to maintain security [it used to protect the people, but is now turning against them]. Among other things, the "changed operating environment" of the central criminal police and the local police, the internationalization and professionalization of crime have caused, according to the state administration, an essential need to protect the personnel, methods and information recruited for the defined tasks.

There is a public application procedure for filling executive positions

Recruitment without a public application procedure is already possible in some government positions. However, the main rule [so some key persons can be secretly recruited] in filling the positions is a public application procedure, the state administration nevertheless promises. The proposed law is intended to enter into force in early 2023.

Reporter: Janne
Kejo UMV/UVM, 1 September 2022
Sources: State Council, Yleisradio

LINK TO THE ORIGINAL POST IS MV-lehti.net