Amnesty International Report 2002 - Sweden

Kingdom of Sweden
Head of state: King Carl XVI Gustaf
Head of government: Goran Persson
Capital: Stockholm
Population: 8.9 million
Official language: Swedish
Death penalty: abolitionist for all crimes
2001 treaty ratifications/signatures: Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Deaths in police custody

Osmo Vallo

The commission of inquiry, established by the government to examine the procedures used to investigate the controversial death in May 1995 in police custody of Osmo Vallo, began its work in January. The commission was due to complete its inquiry in 2002. In January AI delegates briefed members of the commission about AI's concerns. In March the Supreme Court rejected the appeal by Osmo Vallo's mother for a new trial of the officers allegedly involved, stating that there was no new evidence to justify it.

Peter Andersson

In March the Prosecutor General decided to reopen the preliminary investigation into the death of Peter Andersson because the cause of death had not been sufficiently investigated. Peter Andersson died on 3 November 2000 in Örebro after being restrained by four policemen during arrest and subsequently in hospital. At the hospital, he was examined by a doctor and then transferred, lying on his stomach, strapped down on a trolley and handcuffed, from the emergency ward to the psychiatric clinic. It was reported that during this transfer one of the officers knelt on his back. Peter Andersson subsequently became lifeless and attempts to resuscitate him failed.

The shooting of Idris Demir

Idris Demir, a 27-year-old Kurdish asylum-seeker, was shot dead by a policeman in Jönköping on 9 March. Police officers stated that they followed Idris Demir to his apartment to check his driving licence, unaware that he had been ordered to leave Sweden following the rejection of his asylum claim. They alleged that Idris Demir grabbed a knife, held it to his own throat, and threatened to kill himself before running out of the apartment. They claimed that Idris Demir, when confronted by one policeman, attacked the officer with a knife. A second policeman then fired his gun, reportedly in self-defence. However, a friend of Idris Demir who witnessed the killing alleged that Idris Demir did not attack the police, but was shot in the back on his way down the stairs while trying to run away. In May, the Chief Prosecutor in charge of the investigation brought a prosecution against the police officer who shot Idris Demir on two counts: gross assault and causing another person's death. The officer was acquitted by the district court in November.

EU summit in Gothenburg

During the EU summit in Gothenburg between 14 and 16 June police reportedly used excessive force against anti-globalization demonstrators. Some of the demonstrations became violent with resulting injuries to people and significant damage to property. It was reported that 118 people were injured, including 56 police officers.

According to reports, about 500 people were initially detained or arrested by police during the EU summit; charges were subsequently not brought against 388 people. Prosecutions were brought against 46 people, 40 of whom had been tried by the end of the year. Thirty-two people were subsequently convicted of charges relating to the riots; some claimed that they were wrongly convicted on the basis of inadequate evidence. At least one person's conviction was overturned on appeal.

Shootings by police officers

On 15 June the police fired live ammunition at demonstrators, wounding three people. It was alleged that no warning was given before police opened fire. The government informed AI in September that an official committee had been established to consider policing issues in relation to demonstrations, as well as to analyse the police actions in Gothenburg. The committee was expected to report its findings in May 2002. The government also stated that the police force was carrying out an internal review of the police actions in Gothenburg.

The Prosecutor General decided in October to review a decision taken by the Chief Prosecutor to close the preliminary investigation and not to bring any charges against the officers involved in the shootings.

Allegations of ill-treatment

It was reported that police used excessive force, including beatings with batons, against demonstrators who were not involved in violent protest. There were also allegations that police officers kicked or beat people with batons after they had been detained and, in some instances, while they were restrained with their hands tied behind their backs and lying down on the ground. Furthermore, it was reported that people were detained arbitrarily without charge, in some instances for many hours, during police actions at two schools, Hvitfeldska and Schillerska. About 150 complaints were lodged against the police and other authorities, including for ill-treatment or illegal detention.

Refugees

Two Egyptian asylum-seekers, Muhammad Muhammad Suleiman Ibrahim El-Zari and Ahmed Hussein Mustafa Kamil Agiza, were forcibly returned to Egypt in December after their asylum claims had been rejected in an unfair procedure. There was concern that in Egypt they would be at grave risk of torture and unfair trial. In addition, Ahmed Hussein Mustafa Kamil Agiza's wife and five children were denied refugee status in Sweden in an unfair procedure and remained at risk of forcible return.

The government recognized both men as having a well-founded fear of persecution, but excluded them from protection on the basis of their alleged connections to organizations which had been responsible for acts of "terrorism". The decision was based on secret evidence provided by the Swedish Security Police which was not disclosed in full to the men and their legal counsel.

The Swedish government held that the men would not be at risk of serious human rights violations in Egypt, on the basis of written guarantees from the Egyptian authorities.

AI country reports/visits

Report

• Concerns in Europe, January-June 2001: Sweden (AI Index: EUR 01/003/2001)