Response to interpellation 2022/23:44 on Iran's place in CSW
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
M argues that Sweden and the EU stand behind Iranian women who demonstrate for their human rights 1 2. M emphasizes that Sweden is working towards a common EU line regarding Iran's exclusion from CSW 3 and that membership can provide opportunities to expose abuses 3. M underlines that Sweden is active on several fronts 4 and views what is happening in Iran very seriously 2. M argues that Sweden has taken a stand against the excessive violence and that the EU has sanctions against Iran 2. C argues that Sweden's voice has begun to fall silent 5 and that the Iranian regime lacks legitimacy 6. C demands concrete steps 7.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Utrikesministern Tobias Billström (M)
Madam Speaker! Alireza Akhondi has asked a series of questions linked to Iran's place in the UN Commission on the Status of Women CSW and the UN's work to uphold human rights in the UN, including the UN's equality work.
Let me first of all say that I share the interpellor's deep concern over the situation for women and girls in Iran and for the violations of human rights.
The Government has strongly condemned the Iranian authorities' violence against peaceful demonstrators. Sweden and other EU countries stand behind and have expressed clear support for the Iranians, not least the women, who are now peacefully demonstrating for their human rights.
Iran was elected to the CSW earlier this year, 2022, as a representative for its regional group, for the period 2023 to 2026. I understand that this stands out. It is at the same time the case that there are no formal criteria for membership.
The election takes place in the UN Economic and Social Council, Ecosoc, which has 54 member states. It is also Ecosoc that can make decisions on membership in CSW. Sweden will be a member of Ecosoc from 2023 to 2025, but it is not now.
The rights perspective is clear in UN Women's and CSW's activities, both as a prerequisite for the broader equality work and as a goal in itself, that is to say, girls' and women's full enjoyment of human rights.
The UN Women mandate includes, among other things, promoting human rights, strengthening political, social and economic empowerment for women and girls, as well as freedom from violence. CSW is responsible for policy development in issues regarding gender equality between women and men and increased power for women.
The UN Human Rights Council is the primary norm-setting body for human rights. It is an important platform for highlighting human rights violations and abuses, as well as protecting and strengthening respect for human rights. The Council can review the situation in individual countries, raise serious thematic human rights challenges, and establish follow-up mechanisms to review and demand accountability. Within the framework of the Human Rights Council, the so-called Universal Periodic Review, UPR, also constitutes an important instrument for reviewing the human rights situation in all countries.
Madam Speaker! Let me conclude by underlining the government's commitment to human rights in Iran. Together with the rest of the EU, Sweden continuously reviews the tools available to address the ongoing developments. This includes, among other things, how we promote women's and girls' full enjoyment of human rights.
Alireza Akhondi (C)
Madam Speaker, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and honored listeners! The Iranian people's uprising against the Islamist regime in Iran is approaching three months. For three months, their pleading eyes have been directed towards the West and towards us in Sweden.
Sweden is a country that has always had a good reputation around the world thanks to its strong voice for human rights and women's rights. But it is also a voice that has begun to fall silent as the conflicts have crept closer to us. It is appalling. It is indeed in times of unrest and complexity that our courage and our determination are truly tested - when the darkness is at its toughest and when the light is not sighted at the end of the tunnel.
Madam Speaker! The Minister chooses not to answer my questions in the interpellation but refers primarily to the fact that Sweden is not currently a member of the CSW. But in just a couple of months, Sweden will take its place in this important commission, so why is the Minister dodging the questions? Why does the Minister choose not to listen to the Swedish Riksdag, which clearly wishes for Sweden to raise its voice and act with concrete steps?
Madam Speaker! Foreign policy is complex and should be handled with care. That is something I and many others with me are well aware of. Every move involves far-reaching consequences in a number of areas.
On one level, I understand the cautious Swedish stance, and of course, I also recognize the importance of acting together with others. Alone is never strong. But this deliberation when it comes to even moving with cautious steps towards reconsidering the stance towards a country that so clearly violates fundamental human rights is neither logical nor particularly good. On the contrary, this deliberation can be detrimental to Swedish interests, to Sweden's reputation, and to Sweden's opportunity to maintain its strong position when it concerns precisely issues regarding human rights and women's rights.
Madam Speaker! Yesterday, reports came from Iran that the authorities are to abolish the so-called morality police and that an investigation is underway regarding the abolition of the mandatory hijab. Many Swedish media outlets reported on this, and between the lines, one could read that the Iranian people had reached their goal. But let me be clear: The revolution that has been initiated in Iran is not about the hijab – it is about the widespread corruption, the social misery in broad social groups, the oppression of minorities, about the fact that there is no freedom or equality, and about the imprisonment and executions of those who think differently.
The people in Iran do not want sham reforms – they want regime change. Failing to realize this or failing to understand that the protests will not stop only shows the lack of knowledge and understanding of a country that is important for both the world and Sweden.
I have over the past weeks clearly tried to show the Foreign Minister that the large Iranian diaspora in the West, closer to 11 million people, will not accept the lame stance that a number of European countries have exhibited until now. Old knowledge at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the use of direct regime-loyal so-called experts will not go unnoticed.
Utrikesministern Tobias Billström (M)
Madam Speaker! Given the situation in Iran, I have full understanding of the interpellant Alireza Akhondis's position, that is, that the question of an exclusion of Iran from CSW is raised here today.
The proposal for an exclusion of Iran from CSW is currently being discussed among the EU member states, and Sweden's priority in these discussions is to work for a strong and common EU line on this issue. That is how we believe we will achieve the best impact.
As I mentioned in my first post, Sweden is not currently sitting in Ecosoc, and we will therefore not participate in the vote. That is just how it is. But at the same time, it is not certain that an exclusion from various UN bodies is the most effective way to promote the rights of girls and women in Iran. Membership also provides an opportunity for other member states to expose abuses there and hold those responsible for this accountable. There is also, Madam Speaker, a risk that Iran would use an exclusion to further hinder the UN and other international organizations that are currently working for human rights and equality in Iran.
At the same time, I must also say – and I want to be very clear about this here in the chamber – that there can be specific situations where an exclusion can be fully justified. One example of this is the suspension of Russia from the UN Human Rights Council earlier this year, with reference to the country's serious and systematic violations of human rights in Ukraine. Sweden, like all other EU member states, voted yes to a suspension at that time.
The focus of our engagement, also in the UN, will continue to be on how we make the most difference and how we can best support the women and girls in Iran who are now fighting for their rights. One example is that we supported the initiative to hold a special session in the UN Human Rights Council with a focus on accountability for the violence and abuses in Iran and then particularly against women and children. The session took place on November 24. The Human Rights Council was then able to strongly signal against the serious violations of human rights in Iran.
The independent MR mechanism fact-finding mission that has now been established is an important step for accountability regarding the violence and the brutal abuses occurring today in Iran. Sweden, together with the Nordic-Baltic countries, expressed our strong support for this mechanism during the meeting.
Alireza Akhondi (C)
Madam Speaker! During the debates we have had over the past few weeks, there are two statements that are frequently recurring: that Sweden clearly condemns the Iranian violence against the protesters and stands on the side of the Iranian population, and that one wants measures that are effective and that yield results.
In both of these statements, which are repeated time and again by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, I lack at least a sense of depth in what is actually meant. To condemn a regime that brutally imprisons, murders, tortures, and rapes prisoners – I take it for granted that a democratic country like Sweden actually does that. But to settle for that and not even call the ambassador for a conversation or act through some other concrete step – as people in the large Iranian diaspora, 120,000 people, want to see – is for me no logical consequence of the words used in this chamber.
The second part that is repeated is about us taking measures that bite and that make a difference. Where are those measures, Tobias Billström?
Why can the Minister for Foreign Affairs not account for any of these measures so that the people who today, on a working day, have taken time off from work and are sitting here in the gallery, or the people who slavishly follow the web broadcasts via the Riksdag's website, can see that the Minister for Foreign Affairs is actually putting some action behind the words used in the chamber?
I also understand that Sweden does not sit on this council today. But what one can declare openly and clearly is that we, when we are elected into the council in a couple of months, will have this stance – that can be made clear. Sweden did back the fact-finding mission that has recently been appointed. Why then can one not be clear about the next step?
Madam Speaker! After New Year, Sweden will hold the presidency in the EU. It is an opportunity for Sweden not only to take the lead when it comes to concrete issues such as whether we should have minimum wages in Sweden or not. One can also, when it comes to foreign policy, which admittedly is a national matter, dare to shoulder the mission of being a unifying force.
There are currently discussions ongoing in a number of European countries, such as Germany, France and Holland, about what the next step could look like. Now that Sweden has the presidency after New Year, it is super important that Sweden can take on this unifying role. I would like to hear some comments from the Foreign Minister regarding how it will be acted upon during the EU presidency.
Utrikesministern Tobias Billström (M)
Madam Speaker! Let me begin with the last observation that Alireza Akhondi made and say that this is a very important issue for Sweden regardless of whether we hold the presidency of the European Union or not. The question was one of the points that I raised during my visit to Berlin a couple of weeks ago when I met my German foreign minister colleague. We discussed the issue in depth because both Sweden and Germany are countries where there are large groups of people with Iranian backgrounds, people who often have dual citizenship.
This has led to the fact that at the Foreign Ministers Council on December 12, we will now have Iran as a special item on the agenda. This is because Sweden, together with other countries, has been proactive in getting Iran as a special item for discussion. It is a sign of how important we consider the issue to be and what weight we place on it that we have pushed for it with other states who also feel this way. This, in turn, is an expression of that human rights and equality are high priorities in our UN policy. Now the question concerned the EU, but we are therefore working on several different arenas with Iran simultaneously.
I also want to refer to the UN Secretary-General's reform agenda, Our Common Agenda, which is a vision and a work plan for the UN where it is established that a rights-based perspective shall permeate the organization's work in order to strengthen accountability, respect for human rights, democracy and the principles of the rule of law.
Already a few years ago, the UN Secretary-General also launched a Call to Action aimed at strengthening the UN's work on human rights at the country level. The UN Human Rights Council is thus the primary norm-setting body for human rights and the important platform we have to highlight human rights violations and abuses.
The interpellation concerns a specific body, CSW. When it comes to equality, however, it is the UN's organization for gender equality and women's empowerment, UN Women, that has the primary responsibility in the UN. UN Women has a three-fold mandate: normative, coordinating, and operational. The activities they carry out are important when taking into account what the interpellator raises, namely CSW, because a rights perspective is also important in CSW's mandate and activities.
Sweden's activity in CSW and our work in being proactive regarding the government's overall gender equality policy goals and priorities therefore means something, and I look forward to us continuing to be able to work actively with these issues. We are, therefore, not falling silent in any way. Regardless of whether it is the EU or the UN we are talking about, we are active.
This interpellation concerns a certain specific body, but I hope that I have here been able to present the government's ambitions in the area of standing up for the rights of women and girls, primarily in Iran because that is what the interpellation is about, but also in a broader sense.
Alireza Akhondi (C)
Madam Speaker! I would like to begin by saying that I am very grateful that the Foreign Minister nevertheless chooses to move cautiously - perhaps a bit slowly for my own and the large Iranian diaspora's taste - in a direction where one somehow re-evaluates the stance towards Iran.
On Saturday is the international day for human rights. It is also the day for the Nobel Banquet. Then we will also see one of the largest gatherings we have seen at Gustav Adolfs torg, with 10,000, 15,000 or 20,000 people of Iranian origin. They will gather there, and they will want to be the voice for the oppressed people in Iran. This concerns minorities, women, the imprisoned, tortured, raped and so on.
The reason I am telling this to the Foreign Minister is that I want to assure him that the issue will not die out. This regime, which for 43 years has committed countless crimes both within and outside the country, no longer has any legitimacy either among the people in Iran or among the large Iranian diaspora.
I understand how the Ministry for Foreign Affairs works. I understand that there are difficulties for the Foreign Minister when it comes to acting quickly, but it is important to remind that the Iranian diaspora abroad will not forget actions or inactions.
Utrikesministern Tobias Billström (M)
Madam Speaker! Thank you to the interpellor Alireza Akhondi for a good interpellation debate and a good opportunity for me to present the government's positions on the issues!
As I have had the opportunity to speak about on several occasions here in the chamber, the government views what is now happening in Iran with very great seriousness. Regarding Alireza Akhondis's remark that it is hoped that the issue will not die out: I also truly hope that it will not! That is why I, on behalf of Sweden, am so insistent that we should have the issue high on the agenda in the European Union.
The Government has strongly condemned the Iranian authorities' violence against Iranian protesters. Sweden and other EU countries stand behind and have expressed clear support for the Iranians, not least the brave women, who are now peacefully protesting for their human rights. We have, as soon as we have had the opportunity, signaled against the excessive violence that the Iranian authorities have used against the protests. The right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly must be fully respected.
The EU has had sanctions against Iran since 2011 due to the human rights violations that have been committed. The list of individuals and entities with sanctions has been expanded several times during the last months in response to the developments in Iran. Sweden has at all times, continuously and consistently, supported the processes. The EU also continuously raises the situation for human rights in bilateral contacts with Iran at various levels.
Common messages from the EU naturally carry much greater weight than what we can have as individual countries. Being able to clearly convey our view in direct talks is an important way to support the Iranian people and contribute with international pressure. We continuously review the tools we have, and we are prepared to take further measures if so required.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.