In Sweden, the far-right are using free speech laws to attack Muslims

Late last month, Swedish prosecutors charged two residents of Iraqi origin for "agitation against an ethnic and national group" after they publicly burned the Quran in 2023.

Salwan Momika and Salwan Najem stand accused of desecrating the Quran, including burning it, while making derogatory remarks about Muslims at least four separate times, including outside a mosque in Stockholm.

The burnings resulted in a major global outcry and tainted the image of Sweden, a country known for promoting peaceful coexistence and religious tolerance.

Senior Prosecutor Anna Hankkio said the men must be charged after making statements and taking actions, many caught on video, in which "they treated the Quran in a manner intended to express contempt for Muslims because of their faith."

Deciding to prosecute these men is an important step, but does not address the real problem in Sweden, which is that Islamophobia is deeply entrenched in the country's political system, fabric and society.

Enshrining anti-Muslim sentiment

Sweden is a country where Islamophobia stems from the very top. Take leaders such as Sweden Democrat leader Jimme Akesson, who sparked a furore at his far-right party's congress last year when he urged the country to "stop turning a blind eye to Islamism."

He continued, "Start fighting, with all your might. Stop apologising. Are you on the side of Islamists, terrorists, and anti-democrats? Or are you on the side of democracy? On the side of the West? On the right side of history? You can't do both, there is no grey area in between, you can't be neutral in this. You must choose."

Though some of his racist comments have sparked condemnation from Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, no action has been taken against Akesson, and he remains part of the ruling coalition governing Sweden.

Akesson's SDP party has also previously called for the destruction of mosques and banning of Islamic symbols in the country. And they aren't alone.

Just this week, Deputy Prime Minister Ebba Busch, who hails from the Christian Democrats, a separate party, said at a political event that "Muslims who do not integrate in Sweden must leave." She also affirmed that the burning of religious scriptures is legal while calling for the deportation of Muslims.

It is hence clear that Islamophobia is prevalent across Sweden's political spectrum with zero accountability for those who make inflammatory, derogatory and racist remarks.

Lenient laws

The country's freedom of speech laws have also institutionalised, enabled and promoted Islamophobia. Chapter two of Article 21 of the Swedish constitution states that there will be no restrictions on freedom of expression regardless of religious, political, cultural or other opinions.

These laws are being taken advantage of to target the country's minority Muslim population. Many in the community already face widespread discrimination in society, including at work. This includes Muslim women being fired for wearing the hijab and an increase in hate crimes against Muslims this year.

Thus, Sweden's freedom of speech laws are essentially granting immunity to far-right bigots like Monika, who feel free to offend Muslims and fuel anti-Muslim bias and prejudice in Swedish society.

Rather than stand up for this vulnerable group however, PM Kristersson has chosen to defend his country's lack of restrictions on freedom of expression on subjects such as religion. He condemned last year's Quran burnings, but maintained that they were nevertheless legal.

This clearly shows that Sweden's ruling government is indifferent at best to acts that offend its Muslim population - and complicit at worst.

Notably, Muslims account for only about 7 percent of Sweden's population. However, contrary to the perception promoted by the Swedish far-right that this group is trying to take over the country, their numbers are not growing.

Even the judicial system is largely apathetic towards Muslims. In the aftermath of the 2023 Quran burnings for example, Swedish courts initially ruled that the law enforcement authorities cannot stop the burnings of holy books as the act is protected by the constitution's so-called freedom of speech laws.

However, faced with increased pressure from the international community and violent protests against its diplomatic missions in places such as Baghdad, Swedish prosecutors eventually decided to prosecute them.

Changing these laws would also require a vote in parliament, which is unlikely. The ruling coalition relies on parties such as the Sweden Democrats for its survival, who would scuttle such a vote or any attempts to cater to Muslim sentiments.

Cover for the far-right

While Sweden doesn't do enough to protect its Muslim minority, its laws go quite far in helping far-right demagogues who push the envelope on freedom of speech. Consider the case of Danish-Swedish lawyer, Rasmus Paludan, head of the Stram Kurs party.

Stram Kurs, which is a fringe party in Sweden, espouses white supremacist, anti-immigrant and anti-Islam views. Paludan was also responsible for the 2022 riots in Sweden in which he planned to burn the Quran.

He has previously been convicted over racism against black South Africans and posting anti- Islam videos on his party’s social media channels He was also convicted of making derogatory statements against a Somali woman in 2021. But in both cases, his punishment was light to non-existent.

Paludan was allowed by Swedish authorities to carry on with his Quran burning acts in 2022 and 2023, though he was eventually charged in absentia for burning the Quran. His Stram Kurs party has also not been banned in Sweden or Denmark.

In essence, the problem is that far-right bigotry stems from the very top in Sweden, which provides a conducive environment for figures such as Paludan to offend Muslims. Meanwhile, members of the ruling coalition including Jimmie Akesson have openly called for a blanket ban on Muslim immigrants building new mosques and for existing mosques to be destroyed.

Yet such statements have not been met with action from the PM beyond condemnation. This clearly suggests that Islamophobia is normalised in Swedish politics.

The "otherisation" of Muslims in Sweden is visible in all walks of life, and prosecuting the perpetrators of the Quran burning will not address the larger problem.

Clearly, Sweden cannot address its own hypocrisy by putting bigots and blasphemers on trial. While important, the government itself is guilty of promoting a culture of impunity for Islamophobia and tolerating the demonisation of Muslims as part of mainstream political discourse.

The problem is within.