The UJF premiered, 23 March, a documentary programme on the history of the union to mark the hundredth anniversary of the creation of the journalists union and held a discussion attended virtually by some 350 union members. The programme was made for the union by Gimmeyawallet Productions. The documentary, a 13-minute fast paced overview ofRead More
The Union of Journalists in Finland has appealed to the Finnish government to exert pressure on Belarus to release imprisoned journalists and withdraw criminal charges against journalists. The union is also concerned about cases of persecution, torture and ill-treatment taking place in Belarus. The UJF has sent the appeal to Prime Minister Sanna Marin andRead More
“Everyone in Finland is entitled to be informed and take part in debate. We must adhere to this unerringly over the next hundred years too,” said UJF president Hanne Aho as the union approaches its centenary on 28 March next year. The centenary will start to be celebrated and marked by various events starting inRead More
The autumn session of the UJF Council met in Helsinki 3-4 December, and discussed the work of the union and priorities affecting the media in light of the impact of the covid-19 pandemic. The Council session was held remotely due to the pandemic. UJF president Hanne Aho highlighted the need for quality news media duringRead More
The Council for Mass Media, the self-regulatory media watchdog, has elected UJF president Hanne Aho as the new board chair of its support association. The support association is a registered NGO that administers the CMM’s affairs and selects its chair and members. The election and the appointment of other board members of the support associationRead More
The Rovaniemi Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal by Finnish journalist Johanna Vehkoo in the defamation case brought by far-right local counsellor Junes Lokka. Vehkoo was found guilty in April of defaming Lokka by labelling him a racist and Nazi clown on one of her closed-group Facebook posts. She was given a 14-day income-linkedRead More
The protests that erupted in the US following the killing of George Floyd have spread throughout the country. In some instances rioters have attacked journalists, but the assaults by law enforcement against journalists have been unprecedented. “We’ve never witnessed this before”, said UJF president Hanne Aho. “The Union of Journalists in Finland voices its supportRead More
The UJF has welcomed the draft legislation drawn up by the Ministry of Justice and published 27 May aimed at tackling threats and trolling by making them subject to prosecution. The draft bill results from the goal outlined in the programme of the current government to intervene more forcefully in systematic acts of harassment, threatsRead More
The UJF and Finnmedia, representing employees and employers respectively, have agreed on the best way to support reliable media through the Covid-19 crisis. The two organisations have called on the government to decide urgently on support for media impacted by the corona pandemic. The union and Finnmedia have proposed that support be aimed atRead More
The collective bargaining negotiations are on, affecting practically all UJF members who are in an employment relationship. The negotiations have turned out to be not only difficult but also uncommonly long.