Students Injured During Aggressive Nasujaiset Event at Klobben Beach in Espoo

At a recent event known as “nasujaiset” held at Klobben Beach in Espoo, some second-year students engaged in aggressive behavior towards first-year students, resulting in injuries. The principals of both Espoonlahti and Matinkylä high schools emphasized their lack of authority to intervene in leisure activities and stated that the responsibility lies with the parents.

Nasujaiset is a tradition where older students subject newcomers to various humiliations, but participation should be voluntary. Witnesses reported instances of violence, including older students forcing their younger peers into the sea and instructing them to assume various sexual positions. Photographs and videos captured older students throwing food like eggs and dousing younger students with vinegar, which even led to at least one first-year student needing medical attention for an eye infection caused by the vinegar.

The principal of Espoonlahti high school, Juha Kivioja, noted that only a few first-year students attended the event and questioned whether the actions of the second-year students were targeted. Meanwhile, Matinkylä’s principal, Harri Henttonen, echoed that school discipline cannot extend to activities organized outside school premises, reinforcing parental responsibility for students’ leisure time.

Students present at the event expressed concerns, with some older students attempting to intervene against the bullying behavior. The tradition of nasujaiset, originally held during school hours, has faced scrutiny, leading schools to seek its discontinuation, as authorities discourage any form of forced participation.