HELSINKI, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- Finnish Prime Minister Antti Rinne on Sunday expressed concern about the increasing violence against the police in Finland.
Rinne made the comments in the wake of two separate incidents this weekend when police officers had been injured.
Two police officers were injured from gun shots early Sunday in Porvoo, east of Helsinki. Despite a massive police operation, the shooters were not apprehended.
On Sunday afternoon, the police called for possible eyewitness accounts and said the shooters on the run are "dangerous, but that the police are not aware of any immediate danger".
The police told the media on Sunday afternoon that the police were threatened at gunpoint upon arrival at a "routine call" and were demanded to give up their arms. When the police refused, shots were fired towards them.
In the other incident in Jyvaskyla, central Finland, a man born in 1998 shot a police officer in the face with an air gun early on Saturday. The officer was injured but not seriously.
Rinne said the security outfit worn by the police had prevented more serious injuries.
A police officer was killed on duty in 2016, national broadcaster Yle reported.
Rinne said on national radio that "violence against the police reflects a serious change in society". He reminded that the role of the police is to protect all people.
Rinne noted that the government had decided before these incidents to increase the number of police officers.
This is the first increase in 10 years, he added. The increase comes after several years of slight downsizing of the police force on cost grounds.
