Finland: Three journalists on trial for publishing classified defense secrets

Three journalists who work at Finland’s largest daily newspaper are on trial starting today on charges of leaking classified defense secrets, and prosecutors are seeking at least 18 months in prison, suspended, if convicted.

In an unprecedented case in a country renowned for its freedom of the press, the prosecutor argues that the two Helsingin Sanomat newspaper reporters and their former manager revealed national defense secrets, pand a report published in 2017. This report, entitled “The most hidden part of Finland,” revealed approximately the location and duties of an intelligence-gathering unit of the armed forces. That period parliament was debating whether to expand its powersenabling it to monitor private data on digital networks.

According to the prosecutor, the article contained information the publication of which was illegal.

The newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Caius Niemi, against whom the charges were dropped due to a lack of evidence, said the journalists they didn’t break the law. “We can prove, for each sentence published, that the information it contained could be found online or in books published before our article. Public information cannot be kept secret.” commented.

All three journalists deny their guilt.

Finland has for years been in the top positions in terms of freedom of the press, in the report compiled every year by the international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF). This year it fell to fifth place, partly because of that court case, as reported by RSF’s Finland branch.

Journalists were not present at today’s preparatory court session.

Hanne Aho, the president of the Association of Finnish Journalists, said that this case is unprecedented, since never before have Finnish journalists been accused of utter treason.

Under Finnish law, defendants in criminal trials are only named if convicted.