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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font class="Apple-style-span"><b>Dear Erika Sarivaara, members of the URA-list, and other research colleagues</b></font></div>
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<font><font size="1" style="font-family: Tahoma; "><span style="font-size: 13px; ">Over the last couple of weeks, we have been made familiar with the content of some discussions on Prof. Pekka Sammallahti's Facebook site concerning Dr. Erika Sarivaara and her
PhD thesis </span></font><a href="http://brage.bibsys.no/samall/bitstream/URN:NBN:no-bibsys_brage_30768/1/erikanettiversio18%206.pdf" target="_blank" style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; ">Statuksettomat
saamelaiset </span></font></a><a href="http://brage.bibsys.no/samall/bitstream/URN:NBN:no-bibsys_brage_30768/1/erikanettiversio18%206.pdf" target="_blank" style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; ">Paikantumisia
saamelaisuuden rajoilla</span></font></a><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "> (2012). </span></font><font size="1" style="font-family: Tahoma; "><span style="font-size: 13px; ">In general, Sammallahti's site is none of
our business and way beyond our interest. However, </span></font><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; ">the current discussions of Sarivaara and her work signal such a striking absence of common decency</span></font><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "> that
we find it necessary to point out the following:</span></font><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "></span></font>
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<div><font style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; ">In case anyone forgot: Sarivaara's thesis has been evaluated by a scientific commitee of competent people in her field of research,
and it was accepted. Obviously, Sammallahti and some of his Facebook friends find some aspects of Sarivaara's thesis problematic. That is not problematic at all. What is problematic though, is their totally disrespectful way of making fun of Sarivaara and
her research in a semiofficial forum on the Internet. Even her mental health has been called into question. </span></font><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "></span></font></font><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium; "></span>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">In fact, the comments on Prof. Sammallahti's Facebook site say nothing at all about Erika Sarivaara.
What they do say, is that some people who find themselves in front of the research field they pursue, seem to lack: 1) social media competence, and 2) basic understanding of research ethics.</font></span></font></div>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">In the future, we hope that the important questions that our colleague raises in her thesis will be
discussed in the professional, scientific, and, last but not least, respectful way that Sarivaara, like any other researcher, deserves.</font></span></font></div>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">Thanks.</font></span></font></div>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">With kind regards,</font></span></font></div>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">Elisabeth Scheller</font></span></font></div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">PhD Student in Saami sociolinguistics</font></span></font></div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2"><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif">University of Tromsø</font></span></font></div>
<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" size="2" style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><span style="font-size: 14px; "><font face="Calibri,sans-serif"><a href="mailto:elisabeth.scheller@uit.no">elisabeth.scheller@uit.no</a></font></span></font></div>
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<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; ">Åse Mette Johansen</div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; ">PhD Student in Nordic languages</div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; ">University of Tromsø</div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#000000"><a href="mailto:ase.mette.johansen@uit.no">ase.mette.johansen@uit.no</a></font></div>
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