From Newsgroup: rec.sport.tennis
Meghan Markle today distanced herself from a right-wing politician who
she enjoyed a selfie with during her recent trip to Geneva.
The Duchess of Sussex smiled alongside Wille Rydman, 40, in a picture
shared on Instagram by the Finnish minister with the caption: 'A dinner
with Meghan'.
But social media users have uncovered RydmanrCOs controversial past,
including allegations of racism and sexual harassment, causing a PR
headache for Meghan.
Her spokesman has said it is impossible to vet everyone who asks her for
a selfie, adding: 'To be absolutely clear, the Duchess does not know Mr Rydman, had no prior awareness of him attending the event, and was
unfamiliar with the concerning reports relating to him.'
Wille Rydman, Finland's minister for social affairs and health, once
allegedly joked about being a Nazi and was accused of calling people
from the Middle East 'desert monkeys'.
In a series of text messages to a girlfriend, later leaked to a
newspaper, he also allegedly said Somalian people were spreading 'like
weeds' and reportedly said he'd prefer to ban Muslim women in
headscarves - more than headscarves themselves.
On Sunday, the Duchess of Sussex grinned with him in a warm selfie after
a dinner with ministers and WHO delegates following her 'no child lost
to social media' speech.
They had met inside the UN headquarters in Geneva after she delivered a 10-minute speech and met grieving families who lost their children to
online harm.
A spokesman for the Duchess of Sussex told the Daily Mail that she had 'politely' agreed to his request for a selfie after the meal.
He said: 'Understandably, vetting the background of every person who
asks for a selfie, is not possible'.
The Sussex spokesman went on: 'The Duchess attended a dinner hosted by
the World Health Organisation in Geneva, where more than 25 ministers
and delegates were present ahead of the World Health Assembly.
'As she was leaving the venue, a number of attendees approached her
requesting photographs. As is often the case at public engagements, and
where time permits, the Duchess politely obliges such requests'.
Meghan and Rydman were both in Geneva for the World Health
Organisation's 79th World Health Assembly, held at the UN's headquarters
in Place des Nations.
The Duchess of Sussex said in her 'no child lost to social media' speech outside on Sunday that children's safety online is a 'public health issue'.
Rydman is a controversial politician in Finland.
Finland has been led by a centre-right government since 2023, bringing together the centre-right National Coalition Party and the more
right-wing Finns Party after Sanna Marin's Social Democratic Party lost
power.
Rydman is minister of social affairs and health and a member of Finns, representing a constituency in the capital Helsinki.
Three years ago he was embroiled in a racism scandal after messages he
sent to his former girlfriend in 2016 were published by the Helsingin
Sanomat [HS] newspaper.
Minister Rydman, then a 30-year-old member of the National Coalition
Party, allegedly complained about Muslim women wearing headscarves.
'IrCOd still rather ban people who wear scarves than the scarves', he reportedly said.
He also allegedly described people from the Middle East as 'monkeys' and 'desert monkeys.'
Somalis are 'spreading like weeds', another text reportedly said.
In another message Rydman allegedly said: 'Even if I bred with a pitch
black Nigerian n***o, the child would still have a 26% chance of having
green eyes', according to HS.
His then girlfriend said her future children might have traditional
Hebrew names. 'We Nazis donrCOt really like that kind of stuff,' he
allegedly replied.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said at the time that while the messages had
been private, the language Rydman used was 'inappropriate.'
'I cannot accept such a way of speaking,' he said.
Rydman declined to apologise but said he was committed to equality and non-discrimination.
In June 2022, Rydman was accused by a newspaper of grooming and sexually harassing young women and girls.
He vehemently denied the claims.
Finland's National Bureau of Investigation started a preliminary
investigation but no charges were brought against him due to a lack of evidence.
He later published a book defending himself called 'The Secret That Did
Not Exist'.
https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-15830183/Meghan-Markle-distances-scandal-hit-Finnish-politician-asked-selfie-emerges-faced-claims-sexual-harassment-racism.html
Poor PerSu ass. A reputation in tatters.
--
"And off they went, from here to there,
The bear, the bear, and the maiden fair"
-- Traditional
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