Amnesty International Report 2014/15 - Sweden

Kingdom of Sweden
Head of state: King Carl XVI Gustaf
Head of government: Stefan Löfven (replaced Fredrik Reinfeldt in October)

An Egyptian national, who had been subjected to rendition from Sweden to Egypt in 2001, and subsequently tortured, was granted permission to return to Sweden. Investigations into an illegal Swedish police database of Romani people were ongoing. A governmental commission began to review shortcomings in rape investigations and prosecutions.

Torture and other ill-treatment

In November, the UN Committee against Torture recommended that Sweden adopt a definition of torture into its Criminal Code which was consistent with the UN Convention against Torture.^[1] The Committee also called on Sweden to refrain from using diplomatic assurances as a means of returning a person to another country where the person would face a risk of torture.

In April, Egyptian national Mohammed al-Zari was granted a residence permit in Sweden. He was detained with Ahmed Agiza in Sweden in December 2001 and subjected to rendition from Sweden to Egypt on a CIA-leased plane. Both men were subsequently tortured and otherwise ill-treated while being held in Egypt. In 2008, the Chancellor of Justice awarded both men financial compensation for the human rights violations they suffered. Mohammed al-Zari was released from prison in October 2003 without having been charged with any crime. The award of a residence permit partially fulfilled his right to redress for the human rights violations he suffered. However, an effective, independent investigation into these violations remained outstanding.

Discrimination

In September 2013, the CERD Committee expressed concern about racially motivated hate speech against visible minorities, and called on Sweden to effectively investigate, prosecute and punish all hate crimes. The Committee also raised concerns about racist and extremist organizations continuing to function in Sweden.

On the same day that the CERD Committee raised concerns about discrimination against Roma, a Swedish newspaper revealed that the Skåne police department was operating an illegal database, named Travellers or Nomads (Kringresande), containing details of about 4,000 Romani people, for no apparent reason other than their ethnicity.^[2] Local and national authorities apologized publicly following the revelations. The matter was subsequently investigated by Sweden's Commission on Security and Integrity Protection (Säkerhets – och integritetsskyddsnämnden) and the National Police-related Crimes Unit (Riksenheten för polismål), as well as internally by the National Police Board (Rikspolisstyrelsen), the latter of which found no illegality. The matter was under investigation by the Justice Ombudsman, whose findings were expected in November.

Violence against women and girls

In August, following an initiative by the parliamentary Committee on Justice, the government announced that it would set up a commission to examine how rape investigations are dealt with by the police and justice system. The aim was to analyze high rates of attrition in investigating and prosecuting reported rapes, and to recommend improvements to the legal process in rape cases. The commission is expected to review the penal provisions on the offence of rape and to consider a requirement for genuine consent.

1. Sweden: Submission to the United Nations Committee against Torture: 53rd Session (EUR 42/001/2014) www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR42/001/2014/en

2. Sweden: Skåne police database violates human rights of Romanis (EUR 42/001/2013) www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR42/001/2013/en