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Almedalen Week: At Sweden's One-of-a-Kind Festival, All Political Parties Gather in One Place
Democracy Now! is on the road in the Swedish city of Visby, on the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea, during Almedalen Week — a week-long political festival perhaps unlike any other in the world. More than 25,000 people have gathered to hear political speeches and take part in seminars. Every Swedish political party is represented, from the Social Democrats to the Greens to the Feminist Initiative party, along with hundreds of other political organizations. We get an overview of the political situation in Sweden from Brian Palmer, a social anthropologist at Uppsala University. Palmer says progressive and Green candidates are expected to gain ground in Sweden’s election this September, and notes the country just became the first to send a militant feminist to the European Union. Sweden has a policy to grant asylum to anyone from Syria, and a recent study found attitudes toward immigrants are more positive in Sweden than in any other European country.
TRANSCRIPT
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: We are broadcasting from the Swedish city of Visby on the island of Gotland, located about 60 miles off the southeastern coast of Sweden in the Baltic Sea. We’re in the middle of an event called Almedalen Week. It’s a week-long political festival, perhaps unlike any other in the world. Over 25,000 people are gathering here on Sweden’s largest island to hear political speeches and take part in seminars. Every Swedish political party is represented here, from the Social Democrats to the Greens to the Feminist Initiative party. Hundreds of political organizations are also here for this huge open-air democracy festival.
Well, we begin today’s show looking at Sweden’s place in the world. We begin with Brian Palmer. He teaches at Uppsala University, Sweden’s oldest university, founded in 1477. He’s the co-author of a new book published here in Sweden titled 101 Historical Heroes.
Brian, we welcome you to Democracy Now!
BRIAN PALMER: Thank you, Amy.
AMY GOODMAN: Explain what’s happening here this week.
BRIAN PALMER: You’re right that this is a truly unique festival. Twenty-eight thousand people from all parts of the political spectrum are here to debate the future of this society, to debate international questions. There’s no entrance fee. Anyone can show up. And it’s a festival that other countries are trying to copy in various ways, in Norway, in Denmark, even in South Korea.
AMY GOODMAN: We don’t have anything like it in the United States. We have conventions, you know, Democrat and Republican, maybe Green, but they’re usually warring with each other, though they agree on some fundamental issues.
BRIAN PALMER: Exactly. We don’t have gatherings that bring together people from left and right that are open to everyone in the way that this is.
AMY GOODMAN: The elections will be taking place in September. Can you talk about their significance? Are we going to see a change of party here? And for people outside Sweden who don’t know the political landscape?
BRIAN PALMER: Today we have a right-of-center coalition that we will probably see replaced by a more progressive coalition. In the European Union, the European Parliament elections in May, Sweden was the first country in Europe ever to send a militant feminist party to the European Parliament. And one question is whether that party will come into the national Parliament in September. We also see a very strong Green movement, the Greens as the second-largest party in the European election, which may presage success for them in September.
AMY GOODMAN: There was a rally here against immigrants, for white supremacists. Explain.
BRIAN PALMER: With a very small number of participants, well, several hundred anti-racists protested. And one can say that Sweden, like every European country, has a right-wing populist party with an anti-immigrant focus, but that Sweden also has the strongest anti-racist movements in the world. A recent study in March by the European Commission found that attitudes toward immigrants were more positive in Sweden than in any other European country.
AMY GOODMAN: Sweden is allowing anyone from Syria to come here and get political asylum.
BRIAN PALMER: That’s right. It’s the only industrialized country to take that stance. Even Germany, which has been generous to Syrian immigrants, does not have such a broad welcome. And it was recently that Pope Francis spoke of Sweden’s policy and said that Sweden was doing what every nation in the world ought to be doing, opening its doors to people fleeing war and carnage.
AMY GOODMAN: Now, people talk about Sweden as a social democracy, but it’s also become a laboratory of privatization. Can you explain?
BRIAN PALMER: The current right-of-center government under Fredrik Reinfeldt has pushed privatization in areas like railroads, where competing train companies use the same tracks, making the Swedish word "train chaos" very significant in recent years, as there have been collisions, derailings, massive disruptions in the train system, partly due to that privatization. We’ve also had privatization of—private alternatives in schools that have led to situations where schools have closed in the middle of the school year because the risk capitalists who own them had pulled out their money. What we’re seeing, in other words, is a failed experiment in privatization, in many ways, that has become a central issue for the election in September.
AMY GOODMAN: Brian Palmer, can you explain Sweden’s relationship with NATO?
BRIAN PALMER: Sixty percent of Swedes in polls say that they do not want Sweden to become a member of NATO. Nonetheless, the Swedish military does exercises together with NATO every year in the forests of northern Sweden. Sweden sends troops to NATO operations in Afghanistan and elsewhere. So we are a de facto member of [NATO] against the wishes of most of the population.
AMY GOODMAN: Finally, in your book, 101 [Historical] Heroes, you name some heroes here in Sweden. Can you tell a global audience who they are?
BRIAN PALMER: People like Dag Hammarskjöld, the United Nations secretary-general who dared to stand up to the United States, but also to the Chinese, to the Russians, who was killed in the conflict in the Congo; referencing the Swedish tradition of diplomacy and peacemaking that today makes Sweden the largest supplier of volunteers in the occupied territories of Palestine, where young people go to be nonviolent witnesses and thereby try to lessen the level of violence from Israeli soldiers.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, we’re going to leave it there for now. We have a lot of people to speak to. Thank you very much to our guest, Brian Palmer, social anthropologist. He teaches at Uppsala University in Sweden, author of a book on 101 people who have risked their lives for peace, justice and human rights, which has an English version forthcoming, formerly taught at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
When we come back, we’re going to be speaking to the archbishop of Sweden. She is the first female archbishop of Sweden. Her issue, climate change. Stay with us.
After Breaking Gender Barrier, Sweden's 1st Female Archbishop Leads Church into Climate Change Fight
At the week-long Almedalen political festival in Visby, Sweden, one of the major issues has been climate change and Sweden’s role in addressing the crisis. In May, the bishops of the Church of Sweden issued a joint statement calling climate change "the biggest common challenge ever faced by humanity." Sweden’s new archbishop, Antje Jackelén, is among those calling for scientists, politicians, cultural icons and religious leaders to work in concert to address the issue. Jackelén issued the call after making history as Sweden’s first-ever female archbishop. "As a church, we are part of a global movement," she says. "The question of justice is at the heart of the Christian Church."
TRANSCRIPT
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: We are broadcasting from Visby, Sweden. This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. I’m Amy Goodman. The name Visby comes from the old Norse meaning "place of sacrifices." We’re in the middle of an event called Almedalen Week, a week-long political festival perhaps [unlike] any other in the world.
One of the major issues at this year’s festival has been climate change and Sweden’s role in addressing the crisis. In May, the bishops of the Church of Sweden issued a joint statement, saying, quote, "Climate change is probably the biggest common challenge ever faced by humanity. But popular concern and the seriousness of the reports on climate are not matched by climate and environment being placed high on the political agenda." Sweden’s new archbishop, Antje Jackelén, is among those calling for scientists, politicians, cultural icons and religious leaders to work in concert to address the issue.
Well, for more, we’re joined by Archbishop Antje Jackelén. She made history last month becoming Sweden’s first-ever female archbishop. About 71 percent of Sweden’s population of nine million belong to the Church of Sweden.
Archbishop Antje Jackelén, welcome to Democracy Now! Congratulations on your new position.
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Thank you.
AMY GOODMAN: So, it’s taken a very long time to get a woman in your position as archbishop.
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Eight hundred and fifty years.
AMY GOODMAN: How many?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Eight hundred and fifty years.
AMY GOODMAN: What do you think accounts for you being chosen?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, it’s actually a development. We got female priests in 1960 and female bishops in 1992. So, it’s accelerated towards the end.
AMY GOODMAN: And what does it mean to be a female archbishop? Do you feel a special responsibility?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, in a sense, yes. You know, it’s still working the way that women in leadership positions are expected to perform extremely well. But on the other hand, I feel a huge support, and there’s so much joy in Sweden, in the church and even outside the church, over this development.
AMY GOODMAN: Now, why have you made climate change your number one issue? You’re holding in your hand a bishop’s letter about the climate.
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Yes.
AMY GOODMAN: I’ll ask you—I was on Swedish radio this morning. They said to me, "Why do you think we in Sweden care about climate change? We might be least affected by it." So why are you most concerned about it?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: We are most concerned because, as the church, we are part of a global movement, and we have relationships with people of—Christian people and people of other faiths in other parts of the world who are already affected and ask the questions of justice. And the question of justice is at the heart of the Christian Church. So, it’s a question of climate justice, as well. That’s just one reason why we do this.
The other reason is that it is not just an issue you can solve with technology and science. We need that, of course. It’s not just an issue about economy, although we need a lot of development in the economy. But it is also an issue of what do we believe, what can we hope for, what is the role of the human being in the world. So it’s utterly an existential and religious question, and we should address it as people of faith. And we should ask the question: What really is realistic to hope for?
AMY GOODMAN: You know, I saw something amazing this morning. It was politicians here in Visby questioning heads of business about what kind of regulations they want to see around climate, around conservation. I mean, in the United States, the politicians—businesses pay to lobby politicians. Here, politicians were asking businesses how they want to be regulated.
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Yeah, I mean, a lot of things have happened. And, of course, compared to the United States, Sweden has been ahead and trying to mobilize all the good forces in society to work for this purpose. But what we haven’t done is that we have taken into it the existential and religious questions and drawn from that capital, so to speak.
AMY GOODMAN: What is being done in Sweden? How are you addressing the issue of climate change?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, in this book, we are doing it in a way that we first ask the question: What do we really know? And what are we not really certain about? And how do we go about these uncertainties? And we also ask the question: What did get us into this? So, as a church, we have 2,000 years of history, which allow us to look at the big changes and say, "This is what has contributed to where we are today." And if you know that, your history, then you can also move into the future. We also address the question of existential anxiety and how do you speak to young people and children about this when they are anxious about climate. We also say—
AMY GOODMAN: How do you?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, the first thing to do is actually talk about it. Talk about it. Children who get to talk about this with their parents and other adult persons actually fare better. They are better informed, and they have better measures to handle the anxiety and to mobilize, actually, hope, that allows action to happen.
And then we also address what does it mean for a person of faith to address these questions. And we end up with putting a number of challenges before ourselves, before the society at large, business life, corporate life, before the U.N. climate convention, before global church and religious leaders and so on.
AMY GOODMAN: And what do you say, as a role model, if you see Sweden as a role model, are the most important measures Sweden has already taken around climate change?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, we are thinking about cutting the emissions, of course, and divestment from the fossil fuel industry, and encouraging alternative ways of handling energy, and again and again also addressing the questions of justice and also gender equality, because we know that women are often those who contribute the least of the emissions but often the one who have to carry the heaviest burdens.
AMY GOODMAN: I want to ask you on another issue, the issue of Islamophobia. You have been very outspoken against Islamophobia. You’re a fan of Twitter. And you’re also a target of those who want to—who express hate towards people of the Muslim faith.
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Yes. Well, again, what we can do is try to be as clear as possible and try to give the complexity—I mean, what these people do, they have a black-and-white view of the world—and being very energetic and enthusiastic about saying, "No, there is so much complexity in this. And let us address the complexity of these issues and never compromise the issue of human dignity."
AMY GOODMAN: Finally, what do you say to U.S. politicians? You know, there’s a major debate in the United States whether climate change is induced by human beings. Can you talk about how you address this issue?
ARCHBISHOP ANTJE JACKELÉN: Well, yes. What we see is things are happening. And we know—well, most people in the United States have insurance on their homes, don’t they? And the risk that your home is burning is actually not very high, and yet you get your insurance. So if you take the same measure of risk around the climate, it’s much higher, and still there are people saying, "Oh, I don’t care." So that’s not very consistent behavior. So, if you’re the less cautious, so do get going on addressing these issues.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, I want to thank you very much for being with us. The archbishop of Sweden, Antje Jackelén, has been with us. She is the first female archbishop of the church. She was elected in 2013 as Sweden’s first female archbishop.
Yes, this is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. We are broadcasting from Almedalen. This is a major open-air democracy festival. In the United States, it would be all the conventions together. We’re going to take a break, and when we come back, we’ll be joined by a young man who has been arrested in Sweden a number of times protesting weapons manufacturers. It might surprise some to know that Sweden is one of the largest arms exporters in the world. We’ll also be speaking with the head of one of the oldest peace organizations in the world. Stay with us.
Despite Peaceful Reputation, Sweden is a Major Weapons Exporter to Human Rights Abusers
While Sweden is known as the birthplace of Alfred Nobel, founder of the Nobel Peace Prize, many do not realize it is also one of the world’s largest arms manufacturers. Sweden is in fact the third largest arms exporter per capita after Israel and Russia. Swedish company, Saab, makes more than 50 percent of the weapons the country exports. While the Swedish government often takes a neutral position in international conflicts and offers assistance through peacekeeping missions and foreign aid, it has continued to send military equipment to regimes accused of human rights abuses, including Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Bahrain and Egypt. We speak with two guests: peace activist Martin Smedjeback, who has served three prison sentences for breaking into weapons factories and hammering on weapons meant for export, and with Anna Ek, president of Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society, the world’s oldest peace organization. Ek says that while Sweden signed the global Arms Trade Treaty earlier this year, it has resisted incorporating anti-corruption provisions into the country’s own laws.
TRANSCRIPT
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. I’m Amy Goodman. We are on the road in Visby, Sweden. Visby is on the island of Gotland, the largest Swedish island. More than 25,000 people have gathered here for a highly unusual week. It’s called an [open-air] democracy festival. Every party is represented here. Each day, one party is sort of in control. Today it’s the Green Party.
But I want to talk about an issue that’s not talked about very much outside of Sweden. While Sweden is the birthplace of Alfred Nobel, founder of the Nobel Peace Prize, many people don’t realize Sweden is also one of the world’s largest arms exporters. Yes, Sweden is actually the world’s third-largest arms exporter per capita after Israel and Russia. While the country often takes neutral positions in international conflicts and offers assistance through peacekeeping missions and foreign aid, it’s continued to send military equipment to regimes accused of human rights abuses. Its clients include Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Bahrain, Egypt.
For more, we’re joined by Martin Smedjeback, who has followed these developments very closely. You might say he’s put his body on the line—peace activist, nonviolence trainer, served three prison sentences for breaking into weapons factories and hammering on weapons meant for export. Earlier this year, he received the Swedish Martin Luther King prize.
Martin Smedjeback, we welcome you to Democracy Now! Can you talk about the actions you’ve participated in?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Yes. We went into weapons factories in Sweden—several, actually—during a couple of years, hammered on weapons, stayed there when the police came. We offered them chocolates. And we got arrested and then [inaudible]—
AMY GOODMAN: You offered the police chocolates?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Sure. We feel you can hate an act—with the weapons export, I really hate it—but still you can treat people with dignity and friendliness.
AMY GOODMAN: And explain the names of the plants that you’ve gone into. Who runs these plants? Who are the weapons manufacturers of Sweden?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: The biggest one by far is Saab. And they own—
AMY GOODMAN: Saab, S-A-A-B.
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Saab, yes.
AMY GOODMAN: What people know as—for their cars.
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Exactly. Now they separate the cars from the military, the manufacturing. But Saab, they have more than 50 percent of all weapons export today in Sweden.
AMY GOODMAN: And what kind of support do you get in Swedish society for doing what you do? Would you say it’s equivalent to the Plowshares activists in the United States?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Well, we have the support against the weapons export. It’s actually a quite strong majority for people who want to stop the weapons export. Now, for civil disobedience actions, it’s not a majority maybe, but when I go around and talk to schools, etc., I feel a lot of support. I do.
AMY GOODMAN: Most people do not think of Sweden in this way. It’s the birthplace, of course, of Alfred Nobel. Talk about who Alfred Nobel was and what this means for the country. Well, the Nobel Peace Prize is given out in Norway, but it started here.
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Well, it’s complex. He invented dynamite, right? But then, I think, in later years, he came to the realization that we have to work for peace in a very concrete way, and he wanted to support that work, even after he was dead.
AMY GOODMAN: And your actions today? Do you still go into plants and hammer on warheads?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Actually, I was at a weapons manufacturing plant just a few weeks ago and got arrested again. So, yeah, we continue, because—
AMY GOODMAN: What plant was that?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: That was in Karlskoga. And they have actually lots of different manufacturers, even BAE Systems, which is one of the biggest in the world.
AMY GOODMAN: What will make you stop?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: Well, I’ll happily stop if they stop selling weapons to people and using them in wars. But then maybe I will go into other issues, like the climate, like you talked about before. We’re actually having a climate campaign on meat taxation, to have real political change. That’s what I’m doing here in Almedalen. That’s what my shirt say.
AMY GOODMAN: What does your shirt say?
MARTIN SMEDJEBACK: "Meat Tax Now," because meat is one of the biggest contributors to the climate crisis we are facing now, actually bigger than all cars and airplanes.
AMY GOODMAN: We’ve been speaking with Martin Smedjeback, peace activist, nonviolence trainer, who has served three prison sentences for breaking into weapons factories and hammering on weapons meant for export. He received the Swedish Martin Luther King prize earlier this year.
Now we’re joined by Anna Ek. She is president of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society, the world’s oldest peace organization.
Anna, welcome to Democracy Now!
ANNA EK: Thank you so much.
AMY GOODMAN: Talk about your group.
ANNA EK: Well, as you said, we are actually the world’s oldest peace organization. It’s quite amazing to think that we’ve been—we were founded in 1883, so we celebrate 131 years of peace work, mainly here in Sweden. But we also—we have programs on disarmament, peaceful conflict resolution and on support to democracy movements. So we’re one of Sweden’s biggest peace organizations, but we have quite a broad peace network in Sweden. And we do try to lobby politicians, have contact with the media on, of course, the arms trade because, as we just heard from Martin, Sweden is one of the largest arms exporters in the world. But we also cooperate with peace organizations in Afghanistan, in northern Caucasus, in Myanmar. So we have quite a broad approach to our work. We have about 8,200 individual members here in Sweden, and they are actually increasing, the numbers. So, it’s so fantastic to feel that even though Sweden is such a large arms exporter, there is a large, large percentage of the population that are actually on our side.
AMY GOODMAN: Can you talk about Sweden signing onto the international Arms Trade Treaty?
ANNA EK: Well, yes. That was fantastic. We’ve struggled so many times to have Sweden to sign up on different international disarmament treaties. The thing that happened with the Arms Trade Treaty was that the government doesn’t think that it means anything for Sweden. Having said—
AMY GOODMAN: Why?
ANNA EK: Yeah, because the provisions in the treaty, they think that the Swedish law is even better, so they don’t have to do any corrections in the Swedish system. But the fact is that the Arms Trade Treaty has provisions of anti-corruption, which Sweden has none of in its own legislation. And we know there has been a lot of arms scandals involving corruption in Sweden, of course. The arms industry is one of the most corrupt businesses in the world. The Arms Trade Treaty does cover imports, but Sweden does not have that in its internal law, and they say that they won’t integrate that, either. So, I mean, we try to push the government and the parliamentarians to actually integrate the Arms Trade Treaty into the Swedish export control system.
AMY GOODMAN: Can you talk about where Sweden fits into the international community around pushing issues of peace?
ANNA EK: Let me say it like this. For a lot of years, I think, Swedes themselves and the international community have seen us as some sort of the moral conscience of peace issues of the world, but there is a growing awareness that this is actually not the case. From our fellow campaigners on disarmament issues, for example, we hear that Sweden’s voice in international discussions on disarmament is becoming more and more silent and more and more absent.
AMY GOODMAN: Where does Sweden stand on Iraq? And where do you stand?
ANNA EK: On Iraq? Well, Sweden did an amazingly stupid thing—sorry for my language. When the U.S. decided to invade Iraq, the government condemned the invasion, but at the same time, the arms industry was signing up to new arms deals. It’s typical. It’s like the schoolbook description of how it works in Sweden.
AMY GOODMAN: What do the elections mean in September? And do you think things will change?
ANNA EK: Well, you asked me what I think about Iraq. Well, of course, we were against and are against the invasion. And I think the situation here that is happening now is—it’s heartbreaking, as of course in Syria and so on. But minorities in the region are, and the Muslim majority are really, really paying the price for our arms industry here in Sweden.
And, I mean, for the elections, Amnesty International did an opinion poll here in Sweden just a couple of weeks ago. And it’s so clear: 80 percent of Sweden’s population does not want to arm dictatorships or countries that are not democracies. Around 78 percent does not want to arm countries that are in war. Yet it happens again and again.
AMY GOODMAN: The feminist party, can you talk about the significance of the possibility of it coming into the Swedish Parliament?
ANNA EK: I think they have a—they’ve never been so close of entering the Parliament as today. They have grown in the numbers of members. It has exploded just the last half-year. So I think they have a good chance of entering the Parliament. And they are one of the most progressive and critical voices against, well, defense policy, per se, but also against the arms industry. So, maybe if they get in, we can have a new discussion on how to actually listen to the people in Sweden.
AMY GOODMAN: Anna Ek is the president of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society, the world’s oldest peace organization.
Swedish Lawmaker: "We Need to Solve Our Climate Problem in a Modern Way"
At the Almedalen political festival in Visby, Swedish lawmaker Per Bolund joins us to talk climate change, national politics, Sweden’s response to global National Security Agency surveillance and the government’s standoff with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Elected to to the Swedish Riksdag in 2006, Bolund serves as the Green Party’s spokesperson for finance policy and is a member of the party’s board of directors.
TRANSCRIPT
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: We turn now to Per Bolund. I met him earlier today right by this broadcast. He is the economic spokesperson for the Green Party.
PER BOLUND: This is like a democratic workshop for a whole week in Sweden where every party is here, and also many organizations and companies are here. And we have possibility to discuss all different topics that are on the political table. And this is really, really interesting. And I think one of the problems is there’s too much happening, so it’s really hard to choose where to go and what seminar to attend, actually.
AMY GOODMAN: How did Almedalen start?
PER BOLUND: It actually started in the '70s with Olof Palme, one of the prime ministers from before, who started speaking at a park nearby here. And then other party leaders started to join in the coming years, and then it's been a tradition that all parties who are in Parliament come here. And now we have—each other, we have one day each. And we also have seminars and speak—talk together. So, it’s a very good playing field for actually meeting and discussing in a more not-so-tense way as we do it in Parliament, for example.
AMY GOODMAN: Can you tell us what the latest polls show for the elections that are coming up? And when are those elections?
PER BOLUND: The elections are in mid-September, 14th of September, here in Sweden, so it’s just a couple of months ahead. And it shows very clearly that we’re going to have a shift in power, so the conservative government that is now in place will probably, as it looks today, at least, lose the election. And there’s a great chance that red and green parties, the Green Party together with the Social Democrats, will have a possibility to form the next government.
AMY GOODMAN: And what does that mean, a green-red alliance?
PER BOLUND: Well, we’re the Green Party, of course. And in the latest polls, we have around 13 percent of the voters, so that’s a great increase for us, which is of course very positive from our standpoint. And then there’s the Social Democrats, who are around 25 to 30 percent in different polls. And then there’s also the Left Party and a new party, actually, who perhaps will come into the Parliament, who is a feminist party, the Feminist Initiative. So, there’s a possibility that there will be nine parties actually in Parliament after the election this fall.
AMY GOODMAN: And what is the main platform of the Green Party?
PER BOLUND: Well, the main platform for our party is, of course, that the environment is the basis for our whole society and for our economy. And right now we’re talking about an environment that is being destroyed rapidly, both with the climate issue, of course, climate destruction, but also with biodiversity, which is decreasing rapidly. So we are actually undermining the—what is actually serving our society and giving us the basis for existence. And that, of course, is not a sustainable way to walk into the future. So we have to solve our climate and environmental problems, and we believe that we can do that in a modernizing way so that we also get more businesses, more economic development and more jobs.
AMY GOODMAN: What do you think of the role of the United States when it comes to the issue of climate change?
PER BOLUND: Well, I think I’m—to say positively, I think it’s very good that President Obama has actually started to tackle the climate issue. But previously, I’m sorry to say that the United States has been a destructive force in the climate issue, which is very unfortunate, because I think that the United States would also be able to benefit from a modernization of the energy system and the transportation system to work towards renewable energy and energy efficiency. So, I’m very positive that President Obama at least has taken the initiative now, and I think that is promising, so that we also can get an international deal in Paris in 2015, to have an international regulation that makes it able for us to save the climate.
AMY GOODMAN: I just saw this very unusual scene here. You were standing in front of a coffee truck with, oh, scores of people watching, and you were questioning business people about what kind of regulations they prefer. I mean, to see a scene like that in the United States, politicians questioning business people, asking if they would like to be more regulated, what would help—we wouldn’t see that. Explain what was happening.
PER BOLUND: Well, it was actually a fun way to try to turn the table around. Normally, of course, it’s the business asking us questions, and also the media asking us questions. So now we had a chance to ask questions back, to ask them what would they like to see, and what do they see as the problems, but also the possibilities of a modernization and reduction of climate emissions and, of course, an increase in efficiency. So it was very interesting. And I felt there was—they were very understanding, and they had high knowledge about our environmental issues, which is very positive, from our standpoint, of course.
AMY GOODMAN: What are you proudest of in terms of the Green Party’s accomplishments around the issue of climate?
PER BOLUND: Well, my pride is that Sweden is actually ahead in taking the lead internationally, and that is of course due to the Green Party. We have been cooperating in government position, and we’ve increased the environmental taxes, and that has improved our economy and has also made it possible for us to take the lead to actually decrease our emissions at the same time as our economy is growing.
AMY GOODMAN: How do you grow the economy and regulate it more around the issue of climate?
PER BOLUND: Well, if we make it that you actually have to pay the costs that you are imposing on the climate and on the environment, you actually get a modern economy. That is, you take in all the indirect effects of your production, for example. And that, of course, makes the economy more effective, and it makes it also profitable for companies to develop the new technologies, to develop the efficient technologies that all of the world will ask for. And so, that makes it also possible to increase our exports. So, more and more people here in Sweden are starting to see that modernizing the economy and decreasing resource use and increasing efficiency is the recipe for a modern, effective economy.
AMY GOODMAN: Per Bolund, it might surprise many to know that, though Sweden to the rest of the world is known as the place where the Nobel Peace Prize comes out of—it’s awarded in Oslo, but of course—that Sweden is one of the major weapons exporters in the world, number two, I believe. Can you talk about—can you talk about that?
PER BOLUND: Yeah, well, of course. That’s a problem that, in the Green Party, we would like to tackle. We’d like to redirect the industry so that it doesn’t produce weapons, but actually increase production, for example, of environmental technology instead. So, the knowledge that we have in the weapons manufacturing industries could be used for peaceful and environmentally friendly products instead. And that is, of course, the Green Party policy. So, we’re very critical about the size of the weapons industry, but also about the countries that we export to. We export, unfortunately, to countries that are not very democratic and actually oppresses their population. And to us, that’s totally unacceptable. So we have to change the system around, and we think we can do that by having regulation and by having a tax system that actually makes it more profitable to invest in what is sustainable.
AMY GOODMAN: Two last questions. The United States and much of the rest of the world—for example, we were just in Germany—has been rocked by the NSA scandal, National Security Agency spying on people in the U.S. and around the world. What about here in Sweden? What are your thoughts on that?
PER BOLUND: Well, of course, we are very upset about that, and both about the American system but also about the Swedish authorities that has also been involved in not very open projects about finding information about us Swedes and about other people in the world. And we think that a modern society has to be based on trust and that we actually are able to be private and have our integrity also on the Internet. And that is, of course, much harder when you have this kind of system that actually uses information in an illegitimate way, in my opinion.
AMY GOODMAN: Edward Snowden, do you think he’s a hero?
PER BOLUND: I think it’s very good that he actually exposed the system, which is very important, because, I mean, there’s been a lot of talk and a lot of—well, not very based discussion, but now we have more information to go on, and I think that’s very good for the future discussions.
AMY GOODMAN: And the person that facilitated his making it to Russia and getting political asylum was Julian Assange of WikiLeaks. Your thoughts on Julian Assange?
PER BOLUND: Well, I think that WikiLeaks, which he founded, is a very good organization. I mean, we, of course, have had some problem. Julian Assange has been indicted here in Sweden because of some of his activities that he had here. So that’s a—
AMY GOODMAN: Well, not indicted, but there are allegations that have been brought.
PER BOLUND: Yeah, exactly. There are allegations. So I think that it would be very good if the law system could have its space and actually work that out. But I think that the WikiLeaks is an important tool to use for democracy worldwide.
AMY GOODMAN: On that issue of Julian Assange, he said he’s willing to be questioned by Swedish authorities. He’s concerned, if he was extradited to Sweden, he might then be extradited to the United States and be charged around the issue of the leaks. What are your thoughts on that? Do you think the Swedish authorities should question him at the embassy where he’s holed up in London?
PER BOLUND: I think that that’s a question that is for the legal system to answer, not for the political system, actually. So I think I’ll pass on that one.
AMY GOODMAN: That’s Per Bolund. He was elected to the Swedish Parliament in 2006, representing the Green Party. He serves as the Green Party spokesperson for finance policy and is a member of the party’s board of directors. Today is Green Day at Almedalen here in Sweden. This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report.
After 2 Years of Confinement, Will Sweden Resolve Assange's Case? Swedish Foreign Minister Won't Say
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt refuses to address questions from Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman about the case of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is wanted for questioning in Sweden on allegations of sexual offenses. Assange's attorneys recently asked the Swedish government to withdraw a warrant that has kept him confined in Ecuador’s London Embassy for two years. Assange has voiced fears he would ultimately be sent for prosecution in the United States if he were to return to Sweden. Assange’s attorneys say the warrant should be lifted because it cannot be enforced while Assange is in the embassy and Swedish prosecutors refuse to question him in London. Although Assange faces a warrant for questioning, he has not been formally charged. Fifty-nine international organizations have submitted reports to the United Nations challenging Sweden’s treatment of Assange. Speaking at the Almedalen political festival in Visby, Bildt refuses to address the case directly, calling it an issue for the Swedish judicial system, not its political one. We get reaction to Bildt’s comments from Assange legal adviser Jen Robinson, who also discusses the parallels between Assange and National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden. "We are now seeing a trend of whistleblowers, publishers, journalists having to seek asylum and refuge in countries around the world because of their concern about prosecution in the United States," Robinson says.
TRANSCRIPT
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: I stayed on that line of questioning when I met the Swedish foreign minister today, Carl Bildt.
AMY GOODMAN: What are your thoughts about Almedalen?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: Well, it’s a very unique thing. It’s been going on for years, and it’s getting bigger and bigger. But it’s quite fun. It’s quite fun.
AMY GOODMAN: Could I ask you—we’re looking at the case of Julian Assange, and 59 legal and human rights groups have made a submission to the U.N. Human Rights Council challenging the pre-charge detention, which makes it a foreign policy issue. As foreign minister, what are your thoughts on this?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: None, because it’s a question for the legal authorities and not a question for me.
AMY GOODMAN: But because it’s in the U.N. Human Rights commission—
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: Well, that doesn’t make—
AMY GOODMAN: —the Council.
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: That doesn’t make any difference whatever, because it’s still a legal issue within the legal system. And as you have in the U.S., I guess, you have the separation between the executive and judicial branch. And the executive—that’s sort of the nature of democracy or constitutional democracy. If you’re a representative of the executive branch, you have no say—and shouldn’t have any say—in what the judicial branch is doing. And that applies here, as well.
AMY GOODMAN: Will it weigh into the Universal Periodic Review that Sweden is up for now before the U.N. Human Rights Council?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: I haven’t a clue. I would doubt that very, very much, I have to say.
AMY GOODMAN: Could I ask why they—Sweden doesn’t just question him at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where he is?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: You would have to ask the legal and judicial system on that, of course.
AMY GOODMAN: Then, last question is: Is this an issue that’s being raised to you more and more as you travel as foreign minister?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: No, I think I haven’t heard it for a long time. I think you are the first one to bring it up with me for probably a year or something like that.
AMY GOODMAN: Are you concerned about it? Is it a concern in Sweden, considering he’s been dealing with this for four years?
FOREIGN MINISTER CARL BILDT: Go around here and judge yourself. I think the answer is, was no.
AMY GOODMAN: Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt. I met him today here at this open-air democracy festival, where the politicians, the prime ministers, the foreign ministers, representatives in the Parliament walk by everyday people as they discuss issues of democracy.
Right now, we’re ending the show with Jen Robinson. She is the legal adviser to the WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, who has just passed the two years holed up in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London. He was granted political asylum in Ecuador.
Jen Robinson, you just heard the foreign minister of Sweden saying that this is not an issue for a foreign minister, a foreign affairs minister, because this is just in the judiciary in Sweden. Talk about what’s happened to Julian Assange.
JENNIFER ROBINSON: Julian, it’s been almost four years now since these allegations first surfaced. And we filed an appeal last week before the Swedish courts to challenge the arrest warrant, because we say it’s disproportionate. It’s been four years that he’s been waiting for the purposes of being questioned on these allegations, and it’s available to the Swedish prosecutor to be able to go to London and to question him there in London.
AMY GOODMAN: Just step back for a moment. Explain why he is being—Britain has agreed to his extradition. What was he charged with here in Sweden?
JENNIFER ROBINSON: Julian is facing a number of sexual offense allegations. He hasn’t been charged yet. The case before the British courts was purely on the applicability and the validity of the European arrest warrant. It didn’t consider the underlying evidence in the case. We have filed an appeal here in Sweden to challenge the detention, because we say that it is possible for them to question him through other means. He doesn’t need to be in custody to be questioned. And Sweden has done this in a number of other cases. We’ve also applied for—
AMY GOODMAN: You mean that they could go to the Ecuadorean Embassy in London and question him. I mean, this issue of him not having even been, in the U.S. term, indicted might surprise many.
JENNIFER ROBINSON: It’s been almost four years, and he hasn’t yet been charged. The Swedish prosecuting authority says that they need to question him one more time before they can make a decision about whether to charge him or not. And we’ve been offering his testimony since 2010. The Ecuadorean ambassador has offered him to be questioned with no restrictions from within the Ecuadorean Embassy. And we say that this is a reasonable and proportional measure for the Swedish prosecutor to take. If it is possible for her to be able to resolve this case, then she ought to take the means that are available to her to do so.
AMY GOODMAN: What about here, the appeal that was just introduced this week by the Swedish lawyers for Julian Assange?
JENNIFER ROBINSON: Julian’s Swedish counsel have filed an appeal against the arrest warrant based upon the disproportionate exercise of discretion of the prosecutor and the fact that they could actually question him in the embassy. They’ve also applied for the evidence in the case, because we believe that evidence exists which fundamentally undermines the prosecutor’s case and would show grounds to drop the case. So we’re waiting to get access to that evidence. That appeal should be heard any time in the next week. But I think while this is certainly a legal issue and an issue for the Swedish prosecutor, undoubtedly this has political ramifications for Sweden, for the U.K. and for the United States, so I do think that it is an issue for Mr. Bildt to give comment on.
AMY GOODMAN: You just spoke here around the issue of the Internet. You were also speaking about Edward Snowden. Do you see comparisons between Snowden, who’s gotten political asylum in Russia, and Julian Assange, who’s now gotten political asylum in Ecuador, yet wanted here in Sweden?
JENNIFER ROBINSON: Of course there are similarities. We’re seeing now a trend of whistleblowers, publishers, journalists having to seek asylum and seek refuge in countries around the world because of their concern about prosecution in the United States. Julian is inside the Ecuadorean Embassy because of his concern of prosecution for his publications associated with WikiLeaks. Edward Snowden is in asylum in Russia for releasing that information. So, yes, the cases are similar. And this is our main concern. We would like to resolve the Swedish case. It is not about the Swedish case for Julian being in the Ecuadorean Embassy; it is a matter about the United States’ potential prosecution.
AMY GOODMAN: Why the United States? Let’s end there.
JENNIFER ROBINSON: There’s an ongoing grand jury and criminal investigation into WikiLeaks.
AMY GOODMAN: How do you know this?
JENNIFER ROBINSON: We know this because it came out in court filings just last month, filed by EPIC, a Freedom of Information case. We know that there’s an ongoing grand jury. And the Department of Justice continues to say that this is open. Unless and until the U.S. gives an assurance that Julian will not be prosecuted, he will remain inside the Ecuadorean Embassy. And that is, and has always been, our main concern.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, Jen Robinson, I want to thank you for being with us. Jen Robinson is the legal adviser for Julian Assange. She’s here at Almedalen, the political week, an open-air democracy festival in Sweden.
That does it for our show. I want to thank all the people who made this broadcast possible, the folks here in Sweden. Happy birthday in New York to Naqi Cruz.
Democracy Now! has two job openings, for an administrative director, as well as a Linux systems administrator. And we have fall internships. Visit democracynow.org/jobs for more information.
I’ll be speaking here in Visby on Thursday at 3:30 at the Church of Sweden. Go to our website for that information, as well.
I want to thank our local crew here: Gunnar Hoass and Lars Thörnqvist and to Kajsa Övergaard. Special thanks to John Hamilton and Denis Moynihan and Mike Burke.
Headlines:
•Israel Threatens Hamas Following Funeral for Slain Settlers
Israel is threatening new attacks on the Occupied Territories following the killing of three teenage settlers. Thousands of Israelis attended the victims’ funeral on Tuesday, one day after their bodies were found near the West Bank town of Hebron. Speaking after the service, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon vowed to exact revenge on Hamas.
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon: "The operation against Hamas has not ended. It will continue. We will continue to act against Hamas, to strike its people. At every opportunity and every place, the organization will pay a heavy price for its actions."
Israel has blamed Hamas for the teens’ murders without providing evidence. Hamas has denied involvement. On Tuesday, a little-known group called "Supporters of the Islamic State" claimed responsibility and threatened to attack the Palestinian Authority.
•Clashes Erupt After Apparent Revenge Killing of Palestinian Teen
The Israelis’ funeral came as Palestinians held a funeral for a teenager killed in an Israeli raid on the town of Jenin. Another Palestinian teen was killed Tuesday near Jerusalem in an apparent revenge attack by Israeli settlers. Clashes erupted in East Jerusalem earlier today, with Israeli forces firing rubber-coated bullets on Palestinians, injuring up to 30 people. Nearly 50 Israelis were also detained on Tuesday at right-wing protests, with demonstrators chanting "death to the Arabs."
•Amnesty to Israel: "Justice Will Not Be Served by Collective Punishment"
The Israeli government, meanwhile, has revived the practice of punitive home demolitions, razing the homes of two suspects. This follows a massive raid on the West Bank and airstrikes on Gaza that have killed around 12 Palestinians over the past two weeks. In a statement, Amnesty International urged Israel to halt its crackdown, saying: "Justice will not be served by Israel seeking revenge by imposing collective punishment, or committing other violations of Palestinians’ rights." Next week will mark the 10th anniversary of the International Court of Justice advisory ruling that said Israel’s separation wall and settlements in the occupied West Bank are illegal.
•Iraqi Lawmakers Reach Impasse on New Gov’t in Opening Day of Talks
Iraqi lawmakers have broken off talks to form a new government on the opening day of negotiations. Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds are all pushing different candidates for the key posts of prime minister, speaker of the parliament and president. This comes as new violence in Iraq has killed dozens, including 25 today in clashes between Shiites and police in the city of Karbala.
•U.N.: Iraq Suffers Deadliest Month Since 2007
On Tuesday, the United Nations confirmed June was Iraq’s deadliest month since 2007, with more than 2,400 killed. A spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office spoke in Geneva.
Ravina Shamdasani: "In June, a total of at least 1,531 civilians were killed. The last time such a high number of civilians was killed in Iraq was in 2007, in a single month. An additional 886 members of the Iraqi security forces were killed. Another 1,763 civilians were injured in June. We are consistently receiving reports of civilians being targeted, kidnapped, harassed and killed by ISIL forces, and of indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas. We have also received reports that ISIL forces have been going door to door in Mosul, trying to forcibly recruit young men to fight against ISF."
•Suicide Bombing Kills 8 in Kabul
At least eight people have been killed and 13 wounded in a suicide attack in the Afghan capital of Kabul. The attack targeted a bus carrying Afghan military personnel.
•Right-Wing Activists Block Migrant Buses in California
Right-wing activists have blocked a caravan of buses carrying undocumented immigrants to a detention center in California. The migrants had been flown in to San Diego from an overcrowded detention center in Texas. But anti-immigrant activists stood in the buses’ path as they tried to bring the migrants to the Southern California Border Patrol station in Murrieta.
Cynthia Daum: "To me, Obama uses them as pawns for votes, and I do not agree with that. I do not. I feel that he is using — he is doing this on purpose. He wants to flood our country with illegal immigrants, not just Hispanics. He’s also letting Muslims come across the border. They are finding Qur’ans on the ground. He’s not closing our borders for a reason, and those borders need to be closed."
The buses were rerouted to a different federal facility. In a show of solidarity with the detained migrants, the Mexican-American singer Lupillo Rivera took part in a counter-rally against the anti-immigrant protest.
Lupillo Rivera: "Closing the borders is bad, because the Latinos are not the only illegal people. The Chinese, the Americans, the Africans, the Canadians, the Europeans, there are all sorts of illegal people. There aren’t any legal people here in the United States; we are all illegal. The only legal people are the Native Americans, because this is their country, and foreigners came here to steal it from them."
•Kerry Meets with Central American Leaders on Migrant Crisis
The Obama administration has asked Congress for fast-track authority and additional funding to speed up the deportation of children fleeing violence and poverty in Central America. On Tuesday, Secretary of State John Kerry met with leaders from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, the home countries for most of the children that have tried to enter the United States. Speaking in Panama, Kerry said the United States will help tackle the causes of the immigration crisis, but renewed vows to continue the deportations.
Secretary of State John Kerry: "There are rules of law, and there is a process. And there is false information that is being spread about benefits that might be available to these young people who are looking for that better life. And so we need to work together to communicate to our people, to try to apply the law, and most importantly, to work with each of these countries to address the fundamental, underlying causes of this particular challenge."
•Appeals Court Allows Lawsuit over Border Agent Killing of Mexican Teen
A U.S. appeals court has ruled in favor of the family of a Mexican 15-year-old shot dead by a U.S. Border Patrol agent. According to the family’s complaint, Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca was playing with his friends on the Mexican side of the border when an agent detained one of the friends, causing Hernandez to retreat beneath a bridge. The agent, Jesus Mesa, then fired across the border into Mexico, hitting Hernandez in the face and killing him. The Obama administration argued that the U.S. Constitution did not protect Hernandez, because the teen was outside the United States. But in what was reportedly the first ruling of its kind, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed, allowing the family to move forward with their lawsuit against the agent. The ruling could impact at least some of the six other cases where U.S. agents have killed Mexican citizens by shooting across the border.
•Kentucky Same-Sex Marriage Ban Struck Down
Kentucky has become the latest state to see its same-sex marriage ban ruled illegal. On Tuesday, a federal judge ordered Kentucky to adopt marriage equality and recognize same-sex marriages performed out of state. The ruling has been put on hold pending appeals.
•Obama Urges Congress to Rescue Highway Trust Fund
President Obama is urging Congress to take action on a budget crisis facing the Highway Trust Fund, which is used to finance transportation and infrastructure projects nationwide. The fund is expected to go broke by the end of the summer, threatening thousands of projects and more than 700,000 jobs. Obama urged lawmakers to make infrastructure a priority and criticized Republicans for threatening to sue him over his use of executive action.
President Obama: "It’s not crazy. It’s not socialism. It’s not the imperial presidency. No laws are broken. We’re just building roads and bridges like we’ve been doing for the last, I don’t know, 50, 100 years. Middle-class families can’t wait for Republicans in Congress to do stuff. So sue me! As long as they’re doing nothing, I’m not going to apologize for trying to do something."
•"Cannibal Cop" Freed after Conviction Overturned
A New York City police officer imprisoned for plotting to kidnap and cannibalize women has had his conviction overturned. Gilberto Valle became known as the "cannibal cop" after it emerged he had openly fantasized about eating women in online posts and had searched for recipes for cooking human flesh and for making homemade chloroform to subdue victims. But on Tuesday, a district judge ruled Valle’s posts amounted to "fantasy role play," not an actual crime. Valle made a brief statement outside the courtroom.
Gilberto Valle: "I’d like to make a very, very brief statement. I want to take this opportunity to apologize to everyone who has been hurt, shocked and offended by my infantile actions."
The judge in the case upheld a lesser charge of improperly accessing a police database to find potential victims, but it carries a term shorter than the 18 months Valle spent behind bars.
•6 Los Angeles Sheriff’s Officers Convicted of Obstructing Probe into Abuse
Six Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department officials have reportedly been found guilty of obstructing a federal probe into the abuse of prisoners and other misconduct at county jails. More than a dozen officers were indicted last year following a multi-year investigation into the systemic abuse of prisoners. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 15 years.
•Massive Pro-Democracy Rally Held in Hong Kong
Tens of thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands, rallied in Hong Kong on Tuesday in a call for democracy free from Chinese control. Pro-democracy activists have been organizing for local elections, prompting China to declare it has ultimate authority over the city-state. More than 500 people were arrested. It was Hong Kong’s largest protest in a decade.
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