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Three arrested during anti-immigration demonstration in Helsinki

Xinhua, January 31, 2016 Adjust font size:

Police detained three persons for disrupting an anti-immigration demonstration held in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, on Saturday, local media reported.

The protest named "Close the Borders" started at 15:30 local time (1330 GMT) in downtown Helsinki. The group of about 150 to 200 protesters marched from Narinkka Square, where they gathered, toward northeast to the Senate Square.

During the demonstration, some counter-demonstrators tried to disrupt the event. Police directed about 20 of them out of the procession, and arrested three who shouted and refused to comply with the police request, according to the Finnish national broadcaster Yle.

Meanwhile, an anti-racist demonstration was held by the "No Racism in My Name" group not far away. The event was a reaction to the anti-immigration protest. Up to 200 people participated in it.

The anti-racist demonstration ran peacefully, said Yle.

According to the Finnish Immigration Service, a total of 32,476 individuals sought asylum in Finland in 2015, and the number was only 3,651 in 2014. Endit