Sweden takes a right turn

“We are in parliament, we got in … we made history”. At 31, Jimmie Akesson is the leader of the Sweden Democrats, the far-right, nationalist and anti-immigration party that on Sunday secured 20 seats in a parliament that was once a stronghold of liberalists and social democrats.

Officially, Akesson’s party dissociates itself from racism and claims that the declaration of human rights forms a fundamental component of its politics. But during the 2010 election campaign the party had difficulty buying advertising space on national media due to the aggressive and racist nature of their messages. Akesson has said that the growth in the population of Muslims represents the greatest foreign threat to the country and campaigned for a 90 per cent reduction in immigration.

“The fact that we have made it into parliament will force the other parties to relate to us and our policies … they will need to change, not least on immigration, if they don’t want to keep loosing votes to us”, he said on public radio on Monday.

This is exactly what Mariam Sherifay, an activist with the Centre Against Racism in Stockholm and an ex member of parliament, fears the most.

Were you surprised when the Swedish Democrats announced they had won their first seats in parliament last Sunday?

No, not at all. Political extremism is an illness that is spreading across all of Europe. But it is disappointing all the same. It means that Sweden is no longer special , it is no longer the country that speaks out for human rights, setting the example. It is simply another on the long list of countries that has given in to racism. Its a real disaster, no one wants these racists to rule our country.

Sweden has always been the Mecca for European social democrats, but in these general elections its own Social Democratic party failed to win the power back from the centre-right. What happened?

These elections are a turning point for Sweden. For the first time the Social Democrats joined forces with the Green and Communist parties to form a Red-Green opposition alliance, but even so they didn’t win enough votes. I think that Europe’s progressivists need to step back and re-think their core values, we can’t just sit back and accept discourses that say the market will solve all of our problems.

What is the climate like in Sweden right now?

We are a nation in shock. People are frightened, the parliament is in chaos. Votes are still being counted and everyone is hoping that a solution that involves all the major parties will be found.

Do you think the prime minister, who needs three more seats to reach a majority in parliament, will be true to his word and not join forces with the far-right?

I hope so. I don’t think he will, if he did it would be the end of his party. Twenty seats in Parliament doesn’t mean you have the support of the people so I really don’t think he will.

But you will continue to protest?

Yes. The next big protest is scheduled on October 4, although the date may change depending on what happens.

And what do you say to civil society?

That the anti-racism movement has to wake up. Not just in Sweden but everywhere in Europe. We have already seen what is happening with the Roma people in France, in Italy and even Sweden, which has recently started expelling people of Roma ethnicity. The Centre Against Racism here in Sweden has already been in touch with other anti-racism organisations across Europe but the problem is that our governments have cut our budgets. But we have to carry on, whatever the cost.

Find out more about the Swedish national election result here.