Are heads of government allowed to party? Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin has faced massive criticism after a video was published online of her visibly drunk dancing wildly in an apartment with friends. The video is said to have been made a few weeks ago.
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In the compilation, Marin raps a song, dances through a room and poses for the camera. Many Twitter users reacted outraged to the video.
The 36-year-old is Finland’s youngest head of government to date. Marin had previously been criticized for going to festivals or clubs too often.
Finnish sports talk show host Aleksi Valavuori wrote: “Some say she’s cool…maybe among other teenagers. But a responsible leader for a country in crisis? She is by far the most incompetent Prime Minister we have ever had. She has no idea. Please take your leather jacket and stand back.”
A short time later, the Finnish politician Jiri Keronen published a screenshot of the video, on which white “lines” can be seen in the background. According to reports, calls for cocaine could also be heard in the background of the video.
Valavuori then demanded that Marin and everyone present in the video take a drug test. If she fails to do so, “it is clear that drugs were used at private parties held by the Prime Minister’s circle of friends and that the Prime Minister herself knows about it.”
Other Twitter users, on the other hand, rated the video positively. “Sanna Marin is becoming a symbol of progress and I like it,” writes one person. “If we had always asked these Conservatives for permission, there would be no women prime ministers. I am proud to show this video to my friends and colleagues. The world and ‘acceptable values’ are changing.”
Marin is annoyed by the publication of the video – but takes it calmly
Marin herself commented on the release of the party video on Thursday before a meeting of her party. The Finnish TV station Yle reported that, according to Marin, the videos were made privately a few weeks earlier.
She was also of the opinion that the videos would remain private. “It annoys me that the videos have become public,” Marin said.
Nevertheless, she does not rate her behavior as problematic. “It was an evening with friends, with partying – yes, also boisterous – dancing and singing.” However, she emphasized that she had not taken any drugs. “Personally, I have never used drugs or consumed anything other than alcohol. I danced, sang and partied — totally legal things,” she said.
Their celebrations are also a symbol that “normal people with normal lives” work in government. “I have a family life, I have a work life and I have free time to spend with friends. Pretty much like everyone my age.”