Response to interpellation 2024/25:472 on meals for children in school during Ramadan
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
L emphasizes that nutritious school meals are crucial for students' concentration and that children should not be forced to practice religious customs against their will 1 2. L argues that the school should engage in a dialogue with parents regarding the importance of school meals 1, address peer pressure 3 and take the discussion on how the children are doing 2. L believes that staff have an absolute obligation to make reports of concern if children are harmed 4 3 and that social services can be contacted 2. SD argues that fasting harms children's health and schooling 5 6. SD believes that the Education Act must defend children's performance capacity against religious traditions 7 and that schools should not adapt to religious norms 8.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Statsrådet Lotta Edholm (L)
Madam Speaker! Rashid Farivar has asked me whether I consider that the phenomenon where children fast during Ramadan, either voluntarily or under compulsion, occurs in Swedish schools and what concrete measures I and the government, in that case, intend to take to counteract the negative effects during Ramadan on children's health during the coming days.
I have previously answered Rashid Farivar on a written question regarding what concrete measures I and the government intend to take to counteract negative effects on children's health during Ramadan.
Initially, I want to state that according to the Education Act, it is a requirement that nutritious school meals be served in primary school and corresponding school forms. A nutritious diet is crucial for children and students to develop and have the energy to concentrate and for learning in school. There are, of course, children and students who for various reasons choose to skip school meals, which can result in them not having the energy to concentrate during the entire school day.
Voluntary fasting during Ramadan can be an expression of the freedom of religion that applies in Sweden. Children's right to freedom of religion follows, among other things, from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which applies as Swedish law and whose values and rights the school shall portray and convey according to the curricula.
I, however, want to be very clear that children and students shall not be forced to practice beliefs or follow religious customs and traditions against their will. All staff in the school system are obliged to report suspicions that children are being harmed to the social welfare committee, regardless of how it manifests.
An important aspect from a health-promoting perspective is the cooperation between school and guardians. The school also needs to be given better conditions to meet each student. In that work, student health services have an important role in providing all children with the right conditions for learning and development. The investigation on an improved student health (U 2024:01) has, among other things, the task of analyzing and proposing how student health services can be strengthened in order to better meet the students' needs.
I look forward to the commission's proposals on how school health services can be strengthened in order to better meet the students' needs.
Rashid Farivar (SD)
Madam Speaker! I would first like to thank Minister for Education Lotta Edholm for the answer I received to my written question just over a year ago, as well as for the answer that has been presented orally here in the chamber this evening. Many thanks!
Ramadan is the Muslim month of fasting, which recurs every year and involves that from dawn to sunset for a month one is not allowed to either drink or eat.
According to many Muslim theologians, fasting becomes obligatory for girls from the age of 9 and for boys from the age of 15. Therefore, in practice, Ramadan means a month characterized by much suffering in the form of hunger and thirst for many Muslim children in Swedish schools.
Given that the Muslim population in Sweden has increased significantly during the last decades as a result of an irresponsible migration policy from both the right and the left, we now see that more and more children and teenagers either choose themselves or are forced by their parents to fast during Ramadan.
There are various research reports pointing out that fasting affects children's health negatively. Children's upbringing and school performance are also negatively affected. Girls are particularly hard hit because fasting becomes mandatory at a significantly earlier age for them.
Through a simple Google search, I managed during the time when the meeting in the chamber was adjourned to find a number of articles about exactly this problem in our schools.
A school in Söderhamn urged children not to fast during Ramadan 2018.
A Gotlandic school urged students not to fast during Ramadan 2024.
"Do not let the children fast during Ramadan," urged a school in Eskilstuna in 2018.
In a letter from Norrtullskolan, guardians were urged not to let their children fast during Ramadan 2018.
”Vingåker considers appeal to parents during Ramadan” 2018.
"Ramadan falls during national tests – students fast in secret" 2023.
A school in Eskilstuna asked students to skip fasting during Ramadan 2019.
A number of students in Norrköping fainted during Ramadan 2018 – among other things, among other things.
I am, once again, grateful for the Minister for Education's answer. It truly pleases me that Lotta Edholm clearly confirms that this problem exists in Swedish schools during Ramadan. I also thank the Minister for the clear stance on the issue.
My question, however, is: What is the government's plan to address the problem while we wait for the urgent investigation on improved student health (U 2024:01)?
Right now, while we debate this issue, there are children in Sweden who – voluntarily or under coercion – are waiting for sunset to be allowed to start eating and drinking after about 12 hours and for the 17th day in a row.
Sara Gille (SD)
Madam Speaker! We face a reality where children in Swedish schools are negatively affected by religious and cultural traditions that limit their opportunities to engage with the teaching.
Children go entire days without eating or drinking despite the fact that they grow, learn, and need energy.
Fasting during Ramadan has received increasing attention in the media. We have received testimonies about children suffering from fatigue and concentration difficulties and, in the worst cases, fainting during the school day due to a lack of nutrition and fluids.
According to some interpretations of Islam, girls should begin fasting as early as age 9 and boys at 15. This means that in Swedish schools, we have children in primary and middle school who are expected to abstain from food and drink during entire school days – something that is directly harmful to their health and schooling. We know that girls are particularly affected by this tradition, which reinforces already existing inequalities.
Regardless of whether the fast is voluntary or forced, it has documented negative consequences. Still, a clear national strategy is lacking to ensure that students in Sweden receive a safe and equal schooling where their health is always prioritized over religious norms.
The Education Act is clear: education shall be based on a scientific foundation, and all students shall be given the prerequisites to acquire the teaching. How does that reconcile with the fact that some children are expected to starve themselves through the school day? We see that some schools even advise parents against letting their children fast, while others turn a completely blind eye to this problem. This uneven handling is unacceptable. All children in Sweden have the right to go to school under the same conditions. No student should have to choose between education and their health.
Madam Speaker! Schools and principals need a clearer responsibility to prevent students from ending up in a situation where their schooling and well-being are compromised. Clear guidance from the government is required on how schools should handle these issues. This is not actually about freedom of religion. It is about children's rights – the right to a safe and healthy schooling. Every child in Sweden should be able to learn on equal terms, without risking their health or feeling a religious or cultural pressure that limits their development.
We must be able to dare to admit that many children can be subject to pressure from their surroundings. They may not dare to speak out themselves. In some families, the religious and social expectation is very strong. Therefore, we must dare to discuss whether a report of concern should be a tool to ensure that children are not forced into a situation that affects their health negatively. Raising this question must not be controversial. When children's well-being and rights are threatened, we must act and not turn a blind eye out of fear for the consequences of the debate. A car does not function without fuel. Why then should children function and be able to perform without food and drink?
Madam Speaker! I would like to ask the Minister if she considers it a problem that children are starving in school and what the Minister intends to do about the matter.
Statsrådet Lotta Edholm (L)
Madam Speaker! I shall try to clarify a difference here. If it is the case that a child is forced to fast and arrives hungry at school, and teachers and other staff experience that the child is actually suffering from fasting in the way that the interpellator and Sara Gille speak of, then in my world it is completely obvious that one should enter into a dialogue with the parents. If the child is suffering, one also has an obligation to report it to social services.
From the perspective of social services and legislation, it is of no interest why a child risks being harmed, or is harmed. That one might be starving can naturally be such a reason, but just as Rashid Farivar said, we know today that many children and young people do this voluntarily. Then it becomes more difficult. It is then that the schools the interpellator cites actually try to make an effort and point this out. They go out in articles, and they conduct a dialogue with parents about that they must take their parental responsibility and tell their children to eat the school meals.
I think that schools in many places in Sweden – I am not saying everywhere – take this responsibility and try to conduct a dialogue with both their students and their parents about the importance of actually eating the school meals so that one can perform well in school. I think it is incredibly important that the Education Act is followed. Naturally, students who want to fast should also be able to have the opportunity to do so, as long as it does not come at the expense of their health and their ability to perform in school. There is, therefore, legislation regarding this that looks out for the children's best interests. That legislation should, of course, be used.
I think it is important to have this type of debate both here in the chamber of the Riksdag and in schools, in municipalities and in independent schools regarding where the boundaries lie. One should speak to children and young people about how fasting can affect their opportunities to do well in school. The school and its staff naturally also have a great responsibility to ensure that reports of concern are made if one believes that a child is actually being harmed. I would say that that legislation takes precedence over all other legislation. One has an absolute obligation in the school world to make reports of concern if one believes that a child is at risk of being harmed, or is being harmed.
Rashid Farivar (SD)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister for Education Lotta Edholm, for the answer!
The Minister for Education raises a very important point, namely daring to engage in the debate. This applies not only in the chamber of the Riksdag but also at the municipal and regional levels throughout Sweden. It is important to dare to raise the issues in schools, because it is very important for school staff and principals to have the tools they need to dare to speak about the issues. I can only mention that I posted this question on social media when I sent it to the Minister for Education. My family and I have been death threatened just because I wanted to ask a question. There are many people in our society who cannot even tolerate criticism. They cannot tolerate a question, and this is a real problem in our society.
In a perfect world where all children are free to choose and have freedom of expression and freedom of religion, and where teachers and educators dare to report suspicions when children are harmed in school, the government's answer would have been completely sufficient. However, we all know that we do not live in a perfect world. Unfortunately, this is confirmed time and again through revelations in Swedish media. They show how Islam and Islamism want to fundamentally change our society and way of life. Freedom of religion does not only mean the right to practice one's religion freely. It should also ensure that people – especially children – have the right to freedom from harmful and anti-human religions and ideologies.
I do not want to deviate from the issue at hand, but the fact that we allow veils on small girls in our preschools and primary schools in Sweden is a clear sign of how Islamism is sneaking into our society. It is also a proof of how slowly our work progresses when it comes to helping those children who are deprived of their childhood because of their parents' backward mindset.
We in the Sweden Democrats consider that the Education Act must clearly and powerfully defend children's opportunities to acquire the teaching. Religious and cultural traditions that impair their freedom and their concentration and performance ability shall be prevented. Both school owners and principals must be given a clearer responsibility to help these children, and it should be considered to expand the regulations regarding reports of concern to also include these situations. What I mean with this interpellation is quite simply that we must dare to have the debate. As the Minister mentioned very well and eloquently, it does not only apply in this chamber, but we must dare to have the debate in our municipalities and in our regions. The staff and the principals who are in our schools shall dare to address this problem.
Sara Gille (SD)
Madam Speaker! That children in Swedish schools are negatively affected by fasting during Ramadan is a well-known fact. Yet, this question is often met with silence or with attempts to relativize the problem. Despite this, clear guidelines are also lacking on how the schools should be able to act. Protecting children should always be more important than upholding religious traditions. No nine-year-old should have to starve themselves through the school day, and no student should have to feel the pressure to fast out of fear of the surroundings' reactions.
It is the school's responsibility to ensure that every student receives the best possible conditions to learn and develop. It is important that we speak plainly about the social pressure that some students live under. For an adult, fasting can be a choice, but for a child, it can be something completely different. It can be an unspoken norm that the child simply does not dare to break, an expectation from the family, or an imposed requirement. We cannot expect or demand that students perform in school without food and drink, regardless of whether it happens of their own free will or not.
Shall we accept that children's health deteriorates due to religious and cultural expectations? Shall we allow a nine-year-old to starve through the school day because it is tradition?
Statsrådet Lotta Edholm (L)
Madam Speaker! The school and the school's staff have a responsibility to see when children are at risk of harm or are being harmed. The responsibility to report such instances to the social services is very extensive.
It is, however, naturally also the case that parents have a responsibility. I belong to those who think that parental responsibility in Sweden is sometimes not far-reaching enough and that we do not place sufficient demands on parents when it comes to having discussions with children about what is right and proper and what is wrong. It is about ensuring that the children get to school and that they eat breakfast. It is also about asking how it is going in school, helping with homework, and so on. All of this is important.
I agree that it is a major problem if children do not eat and if it actually affects their schooling. There is legislation that provides support to counter this, but this is not only a matter for the school but also a parental responsibility.
I know there are examples where parents with a Muslim background do not think their children should fast, but see that it can have consequences for school results. There can be a kind of peer pressure; it has become somewhat trendy to fast in some groups. The school must somehow address this. It also naturally depends on how old the children are – can they manage to take this responsibility themselves, or should one tell the children that it is actually not reasonable?
Rashid Farivar (SD)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister for Education Lotta Edholm, for the answer!
It is absolutely important with parental responsibility, but what do you do when the parents become perpetrators and force children to do things they do not want to do? When I was a child, I was forced by my mother to fast, even though I did not want to do it. It is a good question.
There must be a balance between the school's and the parents' responsibility. We must dare to talk about the problems. School staff and principals must dare to take this problem seriously.
Another thing I thought I should mention is that this problem also affects the everyday lives of other children. An example comes from my ten-year-old daughter's school. Her teacher, or educators, advise the students against eating food, fruit, or anything at all during lessons – if they are hungry – out of respect for the children who are fasting. We should not adapt our society or our schools. Our children do not need to adapt to other people's religious norms. It is very important.
I thank the Minister for Education for her presence in the chamber of the Riksdag and for the answer.
Statsrådet Lotta Edholm (L)
Madam Speaker! This discussion is incredibly important. A child should, of course, not be forced not to eat during the school day. I would say that it violates the child's rights.
At the same time, we know that there are children who want to do this. It may be because they are very strongly influenced from home and want to do what the parents expect of them. It may be because they are exposed to peer pressure. It can also be that they want to do this of their own free will.
The consequences will be somewhat different depending on the basis for the position, but no child shall be forced not to eat food.
The school has the task of taking this discussion and seeing how these children are doing in the school's world, for example, if they are negatively affected when it comes to school assignments or if they negatively affect other children. In that case, there is an opportunity to have the discussion with the parents. When it is really bad and one sees that children are suffering, there is an opportunity to make a report to the social services.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.