I have written in a previous blog post about how, especially when compared to the Constitution of the United States (which is the highest law of the land), the Finnish constitution is not worth even the paper it's printed on. Not only does the constitution itself provide the government exceptions to its own rules, for the government to do whatever they please, moreover the government and courts can do whatever they want even in those cases where no exceptions are granted, and there are usually no consequences of any kind. That post has examples, and there's also an example (of the government blatantly ignoring the freedom of assembly and association "guaranteed" by the constitution) here.
Well, here's another example:
Section 15 of the Constitution of Finland states (official translation):
Section 15 - Protection of property
The property of everyone is protected.
Provisions on the expropriation of property, for public needs and against full compensation, are laid down by an Act.
This is not even a null statement (of the form "everything is allowed unless prohibited".) It's an outright self-contradictory statement: It first says that everyone's property is protected, and then immediately after it grants the government the right to make laws to expropriate people's property as they wish.
Sure, there's the clause about "full compensation", but that's not really your private property being protected. It may be protected against it being taken without compensation, but it's not protected against being taken against your will, at the whim of the government, for whatever reason they want.
And even that "full compensation" is freely ignored by laws and officials. Here's an example:
Firearm ownership in Finland is not illegal, but the laws and regulations governing it are extraordinarily strict (they used to be less strict about 20 years ago, but then out of nowhere they passed laws restricting them much more than they already were.)
The most practical way for a regular citizen (who does not live in the countryside and engage in hunting) to get a permit for a firearm is to engage in shooting practice as a hobby (shooting practice is allowed only at gun ranges and other similar very limited places). However, you have to be able to prove that you have been practicing shooting at some kind of gun club or gun range for a whopping 2 years, continuously, before you can get a firearm permit. (Before that you are only allowed to use guns owned by a gun club at the shooting range.)
If you can prove that you have been regularly going to the gun range for at least two years, the police might grant you a firearm permit, at their own whim, after interviewing you.
Mind you, this only allows you to purchase, own, and be in possession of guns in general. In addition to that you need a separate permit for each firearm that you own. Each such permit is granted individually, on a need-to-use basis.
After this you need to keep proving at regular intervals (I think it's at 6 month intervals) that you are still continuously practicing shooting at the gun range (and thus you "need" the gun).
If you can't prove it, ie. you stop going to the gun range, the police may rescind your firearm permit for that gun, at their own whim.
And here's where the unconstitutional act will happen: The police can decide that you "don't need" the gun anymore, and they will confiscate it from you, whether you want it or not. They will then proceed to sell the gun at an auction and give you the money... minus handling costs and the costs of selling it at the auction.
Not only are you not getting the full compensation because the costs and expenses are deducted from the sum, as far as I know there is no lower limit for bids for your property at the auction. That means that someone could buy your gun at a tenth of its price, and that's it. That's what you get. Minus the expenses.
And guns are not exactly cheap in Finland. The cheapest firearm that I can find is 600€. The most typical ones cost over 1000€, even 2000€.
And you have no recourse. The police will just confiscate your property, sell it at whatever price someone is willing to bid for it at an auction, and then give you whatever that sum is, minus some amount for the expenses. Quite unlikely to be the "full compensation" guaranteed by the constitution. And there's nothing you can do about it.
"The property of everyone is protected" my ass. It's all just bullshit.
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