Response to interpellation 2024/25:114 on threats to democracy and human rights
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
M argues that the government has as its core task to defend Swedish democracy and the principles of the rule of law. M emphasizes that the open society must be defended continuously and that the government places great importance on work within the EU to ensure the principles of the rule of law. 1 M considers Project 2025 to be an American vision document without direct influence over the Swedish legal order 1. 1 M argues that the best defense against anti-democratic forces is to create conditions for open democratic dialogue and free freedom of opinion 1. 2 M emphasizes that the government stands for openness and democracy 2. S considers that the world needs a crisis plan and that Sweden should be leading in the resistance against the trends in Project 2025. S wants Sweden to be leading in the fight for justice, equality, and the right to self-determination. S argues that other countries must not be allowed to dictate the order for women's bodies or the right to love whom one wants. 3 M argues that it is a fundamental task for the government to defend the open Swedish democracy and Swedish values 3. 3 M emphasizes that the government is conducting active work to strengthen democracy and ensure the principles of the rule of law 3.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Kulturministern Parisa Liljestrand (M)
Madam Speaker! Anna Wallentheim has asked me how I and the government intend to respond to Project 2025 and what the questioner describes as global plans to dismantle democratic rights and the principles of the rule of law.
One of the government's core tasks is to defend Swedish democracy and ensure that our society is characterized by openness and respect for fundamental human freedoms and rights.
Protection for fundamental freedoms and rights exists in the Swedish and European legal systems. There is also protection against political steering of the courts' administration of justice and the authorities' exercise of public power.
The open and democratic society cannot be taken for granted and must be defended continuously. The Government therefore attaches great importance to the work within the EU to ensure that the principles of the rule of law are upheld in all member states.
The annual rule of law dialogue between the Commission and the Member States also involves an important scrutiny of such issues as have been identified as particularly important. Likewise, the ongoing work within the EU to monitor the application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights both in the Member States and in the EU's institutions is important. Within my policy area, issues concerning the independence and diversity of the media are in particular focus.
Responsibility for democracy is shared, and those who have insight into the political system and the administration have a special responsibility. I take this very seriously in my role as Minister for Culture, and it characterizes the entire government's work.
Anna Wallentheim (S)
Madam Speaker! When my interpellation was submitted, we still did not know who would win the presidential election in the USA. Now we stand here less than 48 hours after the election result came, and we know that unfortunately it was Trump who won the presidential election. The concern I felt about what could happen now appears most likely to become reality. The electoral victory means that we face a threat to the democratic values that have built our societies.
In the USA, we are now seeing how conservative forces are mobilizing to roll back decades of democratic progress and human rights. In Project 2025, which is a 4,000-page manifesto where conservative think tanks have been driving, extensive and detailed plans are presented to radically change American society.
This is, however, not just an American problem, because this ideology has a global reach. If we are not vigilant, we may soon encounter similar tendencies here in Europe and in Sweden as well.
For those listening: What does Project 2025 actually mean? In short, one can say that one of the primary goals is to concentrate power in the president and to appoint politically controlled courts that can make decisions based on ideological rather than objective and democratic grounds. Independent officials shall therefore be replaced with political loyalists. That which was once a system for the people's freedom shall be transformed into an authoritarian rule.
This is a profound attack where fundamental rights such as equality, freedom, and justice are actually being threatened. These are fundamental rights that Sweden has historically always defended and that we must continue to defend. It is therefore time for countries to realize that this agenda is not just an internal American affair. It is a manifesto with global ambitions. If the USA, with its position of power, moves towards a nationalist and authoritarian order, we risk seeing a domino effect that affects us all.
We in Sweden have a responsibility. We must not be naive and believe that our democratic rights stand strong without struggle. We must demonstrate leadership, we must push for a united European defense of democracy, and we must raise public opinion so that Europe will stand up for fundamental freedoms and rights.
Let me be clear. For me as a social democrat, it is given that Sweden shall be a pioneer country in the fight for democracy. We must put our foot down, we must unite our forces and we must stand firm by what we know is right. We must protect democracy's core values.
The Minister mentions in their response that the government attaches great importance to the work within the EU to ensure that the principles of the rule of law are upheld in all member states. Furthermore, the Minister explains that the work within the EU is incredibly important so that the fundamental rights in both the member states and the EU's institutions shall be upheld.
This is very good. The EU's work with these issues is incredibly important and also crucial. I believe, however, that Sweden should take the lead in this work and ensure that a common crisis plan is developed with concrete measures against the consequences of Project 2025.
My question to the Minister is therefore: Is the government prepared to produce a crisis plan to already now actively work on minimizing the catastrophic consequences of Project 2025?
Kulturministern Parisa Liljestrand (M)
Madam Speaker! Several of the parts of what is called Project 2025 are foreign to the Swedish political debate - thank goodness, one might say. It is a political vision document from the USA that an American think tank has produced ahead of the presidential election. It therefore has no direct influence on either Swedish democracy or our fundamental legal order here in Sweden or within the EU. I think we need to establish that.
Madam Speaker! Swedish democracy is fundamentally strong. We have much to be proud of as a nation. We have extensive voter turnout, a high degree of social trust, an engaged civil society and, not least, well-functioning and legally secure public institutions and vibrant independent media.
At the same time, of course, we must not be naive. We must not turn a blind eye to a global development that entails greater challenges and pressures on the entire society. And it is clear that they have increased, perhaps more than in a long time. We need to take that development seriously. We need to understand that there are actors, both domestic and foreign, who want to undermine free speech and the open society and act against them.
I believe that, and the government believes that, creating the conditions for an open democratic dialogue and free formation of opinion is one of the absolute best defenses against anti-democratic forces and ideas. Another is, naturally, to ensure that there is a resilience within the population by also being able to conduct open democratic discussions while simultaneously being able to identify disinformation and fake news.
Sweden is fundamentally a tolerant society. We must continue to be that. We have a strong freedom of speech, we have strong constitutional laws, and Swedish democracy remains strong as well. But it does not happen by itself. We naturally have a great responsibility – and all of us who act within the service of democracy have a special responsibility – to continue to uphold this in the dialogue both with one another and with all the social actors who collectively need to bear that task.
Anna Wallentheim (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you for the answer, Minister!
I feel that the minister and I share the same view on how important it is that we stand up for human rights and democratic values and that we must not be naive. On the other hand, I wish that the minister and the government could imagine taking on the leadership role to develop such a crisis plan, which I believe must be presented before rather than after.
Madam Speaker! When given the chance, I must, of course, highlight one of the most important democratic issues and one of the things with Project 2025 that worries me most. It concerns the issue of abortion and what Project 2025 would mean for the global struggle for women's right to their own bodies. The views of Republican candidates in the USA on the issue of abortion are problematic.
Among the most central goals in this manifesto are to limit the right to abortion, introduce laws that force women to carry pregnancies to term and deny people access to healthcare. A society where women's bodies and rights are controlled politically is a society moving backwards. We must not, we cannot and we shall never accept that it becomes a norm in the world.
Sweden has always been a strong voice for equality and the individual's right to decide for themselves over their own body. It is now our task to continue that fight for all the world's women. We need a strategy that is clear and powerful. There, Sweden can lead the way by mobilizing both the EU and international actors to protect the rights that generations of women before us have fought for. It is an important democratic issue.
Madam Speaker! We also see that the rights of LGBTQ+ persons are under serious threat from conservative forces. This is also something that is highlighted in Project 2025. There is a desire to centralize power and limit fundamental freedoms, but also to curtail the rights of LGBTQ+ persons. Among other things, policies are planned that are intended to exclude and oppress by maintaining a strict definition of a traditional family structure. In practice, this means a dismantling of the rights that LGBTQ+ persons have fought for for decades. These are rights that should be self-evident in a free and equal society.
That is why it is also worrying that leading politicians for the largest party in the government base, namely the Sverigedemokraterna, have openly supported Trump in the presidential election. It is not possible to support Trump one moment and then deny the politics that the Republicans stand for the next. It does not only make me afraid but also worried that there are currents in our country, but they can also exist among politicians and civil servants who have free access to the Government Offices.
My question to the Minister therefore is: How can we trust that the government will stand up for democratic rights both nationally and internationally if the largest party in the government base were to demand that one should go in a different direction?
Kulturministern Parisa Liljestrand (M)
Madam Speaker! I do not quite know where to begin in this.
I think that the best thing we can do here in Sweden, the best thing this government can do and the best crisis plan - which the member requests that the government should prepare - is to continue to safeguard the open and permissive society that we have in Sweden.
We shall ensure that we have an open climate for dialogue, ensure that trust in our public institutions remains strong, and ensure that people's opportunities to think and feel as they wish, and to dress and be as they wish, remain strong and permissive.
At the same time, we must build resilience among citizens and the population regarding disinformation and fake news. It is a task that needs to continue over time. No single crisis plan in the world will solve it; rather, it is an ongoing effort. In that regard, it is just as important that we as political parties take responsibility as it is that all parties who wish to contribute to Sweden continuing to be an open and tolerant society also contribute and take responsibility.
That is why it becomes extra strange for me when the member in the speaker's chair tries to paint the government or my party as something other than something that stands for openness and democracy. The government is very clear on the issue. We will continue to work to ensure that Sweden remains a democratic and open country where we ensure that people's opportunities and rights, but also obligations, are equated. Everyone in the country shall have the same opportunities and rights but also obligations. It should not matter where one comes from, what one wants to do or who one wants to be, but it is where one is headed that matters. That is what we are appointed to safeguard.
I believe that we as political parties need to take great responsibility to not discredit one another. In the conversation we have, we must also ensure that we contribute to a conversational climate that allows trust in politics to increase. We who stand here know that, and likely share the view that the best we can do for democracy is to ensure that trust in politics increases so that more people want to engage politically and see it as a fantastic opportunity in a tolerant and open country like Sweden.
I come from Iran myself and have my roots there. It would never have been possible for me to engage politically there. It would never have been possible for me to be a minister in my home country. But in Sweden it is, and I will always be grateful that I was given the opportunity to live in a country where this is possible. I got to choose.
This is what we must safeguard, and we must do it together. The government has a responsibility, and so do the political parties, the Riksdag, public institutions, and civil society. This work we must do together.
Anna Wallentheim (S)
Madam Speaker! I agree with an incredible amount of what the Minister mentioned regarding the fact that it is a task that we must do together. But therefore, I want to point out once again that it is not strange if one becomes a little afraid when the government, on the one hand, speaks about how important it is to safeguard this and the Minister, in two speeches now, raises how important it is that we stand against disinformation and fake news. On the other hand, we know that the Sverigedemokraterna are a party that has created a troll factory. It is incredibly important that we stand against such forces.
I am afraid that if the largest party in the government support begins to waver regarding democratic freedoms and rights, we may not have the strength to withstand it. If one is inspired by Project 2025 with its far-reaching plans to radically transform our society, it threatens not only democracy but also freedoms and fundamental rights worldwide.
Both the Prime Minister and the Swedish government must push forward on these issues at both the national level and the EU level. That is how I believe we can move forward and stand up for women's right to abortion but also people's right to love whoever they want. I think these are important principles that we must hold fast to.
I believe that the world needs a crisis plan, because I am afraid of the currents in Project 2025 and what they may mean. I truly hope that Sweden can be a leader in this and that we have a brave government that puts the people's best interests before power, even if the Sverigedemokraterna were to demand something else.
It is our duty to be clear in our opposition to this, not only for today's generations but also for those to come. We cannot let other countries dictate the order for women's bodies or that one should not be allowed to love whom they want.
We Social Democrats will continue to stand up and be the driving force so that Sweden shall be a leader in the fight for justice, equality, and the right to self-determination. We must never lose faith in the future that we want to create. We Social Democrats will never stop fighting for that reality.
Kulturministern Parisa Liljestrand (M)
Madam Speaker! To defend open Swedish democracy and Swedish values is a fundamental task for the government. I hear that the member also believes that our political parties share that view.
Thus, we stand up for the European and the Swedish legal order, which is based on the principles of the rule of law. It is a task that needs to be carried out both nationally and internationally. Therefore, the government also carries out active work within a number of policy areas to strengthen democracy.
Among other things, in the national security strategy, this is reported through priorities for an open and cohesive Sweden. As Minister for Culture, I am particularly responsible for the independence of the media and that there is journalism in all parts of the country. This is also a way to ensure democracy and the opportunity for everyone to access information on equal terms.
I can only underline that the work the government does within the framework of the EU also concerns ensuring the principles of the rule of law throughout the union in order to be able to apply and monitor how the EU Charter and human rights are applied in both the member states and the institutions.
In conclusion, I want to emphasize once again that we have a collective responsibility for our democracy and for maintaining the high level of trust, which I have touched upon earlier. I believe that it is absolutely crucial for a strong democracy. As political representatives in government and parliament, we naturally have a special responsibility, but more social actors than that need to be part of the work moving forward. I am aware of and share the member's principles that a democracy cannot be taken for granted but must be defended tirelessly in all contexts.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.