45th session of the Human Rights Council. Statement delivered by Ambassador Anna Jardfelt.
Madame Vice President,
Promoting and respecting universal human rights is a core value and a central priority for my Government. It is also a cornerstone of our foreign policy.
The Universal Periodic Review is vital for promoting and upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law around the world. We have therefore greatly welcomed the opportunity of this UPR to engage in our human rights work with interested parties.
Ensuring respect for our international human rights obligations is a continuous process. Dialogue, as well as regular and constructive scrutiny, contributes to furthering the values which our society is based on.
The Government's goal is to ensure Sweden's full respect of our international obligations on human rights. This was reaffirmed in our national strategy for human rights, which was adopted in 2016 and forms the basis of our systematic work on human rights.
Sweden is striving for greater transparency on the human rights situation in our country, including through dialogue with civil society organisations. Their views, and at times criticism, are of great importance to the Swedish Government. We have held several rounds of consultation with civil society organisations during this UPR and will continue to do so.
Madame Vice President,
The Swedish Government welcomes the recommendations received during the third UPR of Sweden on 27 January 2020. Sweden received 300 recommendations. They are highly valuable for our continued national development.
The Government's overall approach when considering the recommendations received was to accept recommendations where the Government could foresee measures before the next review, or where measures had already been or were being implemented.
After careful consideration of the recommendations, the Government submitted an addendum to the Report of the UPR Working Group on 1 June this year. A table with all the recommendations and the Government's responses to them was annexed to the addendum. The responses include explanations with regard to all recommendations that were noted.
The Swedish Government accepted 214 recommendations, partially accepted 1 recommendation and noted 85 recommendations.
Madame Vice President,
The recommendations cover a number of different human rights issues. I will provide some comments with regard to the main themes.
37 recommendations concern the establishment of an independent national human rights institution. The Government has accepted 36 of these recommendations and noted 1 recommendation. This is a matter of high priority for the Swedish Government and it is being prepared by the Government Offices. The Government considers that the institute should be assigned to advance the safeguarding of human rights in Sweden. The institute will be established in 2021.
27 recommendations concern measures to combat discrimination and segregation and to promote integration of newly arrived immigrants. The Government has accepted 25 of these recommendations and noted 2 of them.
Legislative protection against discrimination has been strengthened – for instance regarding accessibility for persons with disabilities – and the budget for anti-discrimination measures has been increased. An inquiry has been appointed to analyse whether the current provisions regarding supervision of active measures are appropriate for effective compliance with the law.
In order to decrease and combat socioeconomic segregation the Government has adopted a long-term cross-sectoral strategy. The Government has also established a government agency "Swedish Agency against Segregation" with the task of supporting the implementation of the strategy and to coordinate efforts on all levels.
In cooperation with municipalities, regions, civil society, the private sector and other actors, the agency supports the development of innovative methods in the field and develop knowledge and networks for the exchange of knowledge and experiences. In addition, grants have been allocated to municipalities, regions and civil society organizations to contribute to their work to promote integration and combat and prevent segregation.
61 recommendations concern measures to combat racism and hate crime. The Government has accepted 43 of these recommendations and noted 18 of them.
The comprehensive national plan to combat racism, similar forms of hostility and hate crime, which was adopted by the Government in 2016, serves as a foundation for Sweden's work against all forms and manifestations of racism and hate crime. The plan provides all relevant actors with a common platform and better conditions for working together – so initiatives can be followed up and work developed on a holistic basis.
A range of measures have been implemented and are ongoing. They are being carried out by the Government, and by government agencies on its behalf. For example; major educational initiatives on racism, and training for public sector employees, including school staff, police officers and social workers, carried out by the Living History Forum. And in the near future, the Government intends to take further action to strengthen the national plan.
Measures within the judiciary system and the Swedish Police Authority have also been intensified. For example, a national contact point for hate crime has been established. Dedicated hate crime units have been established in the three metropolitan police regions and additional resources have been allocated in every police region in the country.
Measures and funding to enhance security for civil society and schools have been increased considerably. Moreover, the Swedish Police Authority and the Swedish Security Service are constantly assessing whether there are grounds to increase security and safety, at both national and regional level.
23 recommendations concern measures for gender equality and to prevent men's violence against women. The Government has accepted 21 of these recommendations and noted 2 of them.
Our most important tool for implementing our feminist policy is gender mainstreaming, where gender-responsive budgeting is an essential component.
An important improvement in our gender equality infrastructure was the establishment in January 2018 of the Swedish Gender Equality Agency. Its task is to contribute to the effective implementation of gender equality policy.
In 2016, the Government adopted a ten-year cross-sectoral national strategy for preventing and combating men's violence against women and protecting and supporting women and children subjected to violence. The policy goal and the strategy cover honour-related violence – a collective oppression including harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child, early and forced marriages.
15 recommendations concern measures for the rights of the child. The Government has accepted 10 of these recommendations and noted 5 of them.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child became Swedish law on the first of January this year. This is a milestone in our national work for the rights of the child. Incorporation gives the Convention the status of Swedish law, entailing a clearer obligation on courts and legal practitioners to consider the rights contained in the Convention in deliberations and assessments that are part of decision-making processes in cases and matters concerning children.
24 recommendations concern measures for the rights of indigenous peoples and national minorities. The Government has accepted 19 of these recommendations and noted 5 of them.
In the 2019 Statement of Government Policy, the Prime Minister set out the Government's commitment to strengthening the self-determination and influence of the indigenous Sami people. The Swedish Government intends to continue and step up its work in the area of policy relating to the Sami people. There are several important processes currently under way to this end. For example, the development of a consultation procedure, a Nordic Sami Convention, and preservation and revitalisation of the Sami languages.
The Swedish Government has strengthened legislation to support all our national minorities. One important improvement is the requirement for all municipalities and regions to adopt goals and guidelines for their work on minority policy, of which language and culture should be a key part. A central task for stakeholders working with national minorities is creating conditions that promote the transfer of language and culture from one generation to the next.
Thank you.