Swastika flag confiscated from Kouvola apartment after repeated display
Police in Southeast Finland have confiscated a swastika flag from an apartment balcony in Kouvola after its owner repeatedly displayed it despite orders to remove it. The flag, which was visible from the street, was seized on Friday following a preliminary investigation into potential incitement against a population group.
The case came to police attention on 28 June when they received the first report about the flag, which was hung in a window of an apartment building in the Eskolanmäki district. According to Detective Chief Inspector Nina Hietanen (Yle), the flag was intermittently removed and rehung, prompting police to intervene. After Iltalehti reported on the flag’s reappearance on Thursday, authorities acted to confiscate it the following day.
The resident of the apartment has been interviewed as part of the investigation. Lead investigator Saara Seppälä (Iltalehti) confirmed that the case is being examined under the classification of incitement against a population group, with the flag’s prominent display on the building’s facade influencing the assessment of its severity.
While the swastika flag itself is not illegal in Finland, its public display is restricted. In 2024, the Helsinki Court of Appeal ruled that carrying swastika flags in an Independence Day parade was unlawful, reinforcing legal limits on its use. The symbol is widely associated with Nazi Germany and antisemitism, though in Finland, it has historical ties to the Air Force and the Lotta Svärd organization, predating its Nazi connotations.
The incident follows a similar case in May, when police confiscated a swastika flag flown on a flagpole in front of a detached house in Lappeenranta. Yle reports that the property also featured anti-Russian text on its exterior.
Abdi Cartan, an 18-year-old from Kouvola, first noticed the flag while playing basketball near the apartment building. He described the sight as "a bad thing" and shared a photo with Iltalehti, showing the flag covering a large portion of the balcony window. Cartan was unaware of how long the flag had been displayed.