2023-05-102022/23:KU28 · p.10KUConstitution
Implementation, Supervision and Monitoring of Minority Policy
Oversight and follow-up of minority policy
What's at stake: The question concerns whether national minorities should have a clearer body to turn to when their rights are not respected. It affects how well minority-rights legislation is upheld in practice and minorities' ability to have shortcomings addressed.
Case texts and AI reasoning are AI-translated from the Swedish originals; the Swedish text is authoritative.
What the vote decides
Whether the government should come back with proposals for a functioning national oversight responsibility for minority policy, or whether the committee considers ongoing preparatory work to make such a call unnecessary.
Yes Yes — the committee proposal
The committee maintains that municipalities and regions within administrative areas should live up to their commitments and that follow-up of minority protections should continue, but does not want to pre-empt the ongoing preparation of the inquiry on minority-policy follow-up, and therefore rejects the motions.
No No — the reservations
Reservation 16 (V)
The reservation (V) wants the government to come back with proposals for a functioning national oversight responsibility for minority policy, arguing that minorities currently have neither a body to turn to nor legal tools when rights are not upheld — a problem also flagged by the Council of Europe.
Summarised from the committee report. Party labels in the summary come from the report, not from the vote.
What do the votes mean here?
Yes The committee proposal: rejecting the motions (keeping things as they are).
No Backing the counter-proposal: reservation 16 by V.
Abstain The party marks a position of its own that is not one of the two final alternatives.
What each plan points to — and how the party voted
For each party: the vote its own election manifesto and party programme point to in this case, next to how the party actually voted. A plan can only point to Yes or No; a party can also abstain.
| Plan | Vote | Confidence | Evidence | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V | No | No 0/21/0/3 | follows the plan | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| S | No | Yes 94/0/0/13 | departs from the plan | confidence: low | not addressed |
| MP | No | Abstain 0/0/14/4 | departs from the plan | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| C | No | Abstain 0/0/21/3 | departs from the plan | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| L | No | Yes 14/0/0/2 | departs from the plan | confidence: high | not addressed |
| KD | No | Yes 15/0/0/4 | departs from the plan | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| M | No | Yes 60/0/0/8 | departs from the plan | confidence: low | not addressed |
| SD | Yes | Abstain 0/0/63/9 | departs from the plan | confidence: low | not addressed |
Committee proposal
Parliament rejects the motions 2022/23:901 by Christofer Bergenblock et al. (C) motion 37, 2022/23:988 by Michael Rubbestad et al. (SD) motion 2, 2022/23:1214 by Nooshi Dadgostar et al. (V) motion 3 and 2022/23:1474 by Amanda Lind et al. (MP) motions 8, 9 and 11.
Original (Swedish)
Riksdagen avslår motionerna 2022/23:901 av Christofer Bergenblock m.fl. (C) yrkande 37, 2022/23:988 av Michael Rubbestad m.fl. (SD) yrkande 2, 2022/23:1214 av Nooshi Dadgostar m.fl. (V) yrkande 3 och 2022/23:1474 av Amanda Lind m.fl. (MP) yrkandena 8, 9 och 11.
Riksdag decision: Parliament rejected approximately 35 proposals in motions from the ordinary motion period 2022 on minority issues. The reason is, among other things, that work is already underway in the issues the motions raise. The motions concern Jewish life in Sweden, Romani inclusion, the truth commission for the Sámi people, Sámi policy and the Sámet construction, rights for national minorities and indigenous peoples, the status of Älvdalska language, sign language as a minority language, information center on national minorities, evaluation of the consultation law, implementation, supervision and monitoring of minority policy, support to organizations and contact point for dialogue between the Sámet and Parliament.
Counter-proposals
- The counter-proposal wants the investigation's directive to be supplemented to establish administrative areas for Yiddish. (V) — Reservation 16
Plan vs actual vote
Every party, in chamber order: what its own plan pointed to, how it voted, and the reasoning behind both. Highlighted rows are where the two differ — but a vote that follows the plan is a result too, so the reasoning is there for every party.
The party programme establishes that Sweden is committed to protecting minorities' rights to identity, language, cultural heritage and religion but that much remains to be done, and makes it a democracy requirement that minorities can pursue their interests.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme establishes that Sweden is committed to protecting minorities' rights to identity, language, cultural heritage and religion but that much remains to be done, and makes it a democracy requirement that minorities can pursue their interests. The plan also wants to strengthen the all-too-weak discrimination legislation, that is, precisely the legal tools the counter-proposal says are missing. A national supervisory responsibility for minority policy is therefore in line with the plan's commitments.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet slår fast att Sverige förbundit sig att skydda minoriteternas rättigheter till identitet, språk, kulturarv och religion men att mycket återstår att göra, och gör det till ett demokratikrav att minoriteter kan ta tillvara sina intressen. Planen vill också stärka den alltför svaga diskrimineringslagstiftningen, det vill säga just de rättsliga verktyg som motförslaget säger saknas. Ett nationellt tillsynsansvar för minoritetspolitiken ligger därför i linje med planens åtaganden.
- minorities' right to influencedecisive»Ett demokratikrav är att alla som tillhör en nationell minoritet ska ha möjlighet« (party programme ↗)“A democracy requirement is that all who belong to a national minority shall have the opportunity”
- protect minorities' rights»rättigheter till identitet, språk, kulturarv och religion« (party programme ↗)“rights to identity, language, cultural heritage and religion”
- stronger legal tools»den alltför svaga diskrimineringslagstiftningen stärkas« (party programme ↗)“the all-too-weak discrimination legislation is strengthened”
- reckoning with forced assimilation»Förtryck av nationella minoriteter och en politik för tvångsassimilering« (party programme ↗)“Oppression of national minorities and a policy of forced assimilation”
The party programme commits to upholding and supporting national minorities' opportunities to retain and develop language and culture, and requires that authorities consider everyone's equality before the law and observe objectivity and impartiality.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme commits to upholding and supporting national minorities' opportunities to retain and develop language and culture, and requires that authorities consider everyone's equality before the law and observe objectivity and impartiality. Everyone shall have equal rights to influence the development of society. A functioning national supervisory responsibility, so that minorities have an authority to turn to when rights are not respected, follows from these principles, but the plan does not address the supervisory organization.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet åtar sig att hävda och stödja nationella minoriteters möjligheter att behålla och utveckla språk och kultur, och kräver att myndigheterna beaktar allas likhet inför lagen och iakttar saklighet och opartiskhet. Alla ska ha lika rätt att påverka samhällets utveckling. Ett fungerande nationellt tillsynsansvar, så att minoriteter har en instans att vända sig till när rättigheter inte efterlevs, följer av dessa principer, men planen behandlar inte tillsynsorganisationen.
- support for national minoritiesdecisive»I detta ska också ingå att hävda och stödja nationella minoriteters möjligheter att« (party programme ↗)“This shall also include upholding and supporting national minorities' opportunities to”
- authorities' equal treatment»beakta allas likhet inför lagen och iaktta saklighet och opartiskhet.« (party programme ↗)“consider everyone's equality before the law and observe objectivity and impartiality.”
- equal right to influence»Alla har lika rätt att påverka samhällets utveckling.« (party programme ↗)“Everyone has equal rights to influence the development of society.”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The election manifesto binds the party to strengthen national minorities' rights, and the party programme says that minorities' special position must be respected and strengthened and that strong legislation and a strong ombudsman are required for rights to be upheld.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The election manifesto binds the party to strengthen national minorities' rights, and the party programme says that minorities' special position must be respected and strengthened and that strong legislation and a strong ombudsman are required for rights to be upheld. The counter-proposal's demand for functioning national supervisory responsibility and legal tools is a direct application of these commitments. The plan does not mention the supervisory form as such, therefore the position is derived.
Original (Swedish)
Valmanifestet förbinder partiet att stärka nationella minoriteters rättigheter, och partiprogrammet säger att minoriteternas särställning måste respekteras och stärkas samt att det krävs stark lagstiftning och en stark ombudsman för att rättigheter ska efterlevas. Motförslagets krav på ett fungerande nationellt tillsynsansvar och rättsliga verktyg är en direkt tillämpning av dessa åtaganden. Planen nämner inte tillsynsformen som sådan, varför ställningstagandet är härlett.
- strengthened minority rightsdecisive»stärka nationella minoriteters och urfolket samernas rättigheter och att Sverige ska förbinda sig att följa den internationella konventionen om urfolks rättigheter (ILO 169).« (2022 manifesto ↗)“strengthen national minorities' and the Sámi people's rights and that Sweden should commit to following the international convention on indigenous peoples' rights (ILO 169).”
- minorities' special position»Deras särskilda ställning, med egen kultur och eget språk, måste respekteras och stärkas.« (party programme ↗)“Their special position, with their own culture and own language, must be respected and strengthened.”
- legal tools and oversight»Det krävs också en stark lagstiftning och en stark diskrimineringsombudsman.« (party programme ↗)“Strong legislation and a strong discrimination ombudsman are also required.”
- human rights work even nationally»Sverige ska arbeta för mänskliga rättigheter nationellt och internationellt.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden shall work for human rights nationally and internationally.”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The plan wants to strengthen minority protection and the status of minority languages and requires rights legislation with enforceable rights.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The plan wants to strengthen minority protection and the status of minority languages and requires rights legislation with enforceable rights. That minorities lack a body to turn to and legal tools is precisely the shortfall the plan wants to address, and the plan establishes that everyone in Sweden shall be able to have their case heard. A national supervisory responsibility therefore lies in line with the plan.
Original (Swedish)
Planen vill stärka minoritetsskyddet och minoritetsspråkens ställning och kräver en rättighetslagstiftning med utkrävbara rättigheter. Att minoriteter saknar en instans att vända sig till och rättsliga verktyg är precis den brist planen vill åtgärda, och planen slår fast att alla i Sverige ska kunna få sin sak prövad. Ett nationellt tillsynsansvar ligger därmed i linje med planen.
- strengthened minority protectiondecisive»Vi vill stärka bland annat äganderätten, diskrimineringsförbudet, minoritetsskyddet och minoritetsspråkens ställning« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to strengthen, among other things, the right to property, the ban on discrimination, minority protection and the status of minority languages”
- enforceable rights»Vi vill se en rättighetslagstiftning, ett tydligt samhällskontrakt med utkrävbara rättigheter.« (party programme ↗)“We want to see rights legislation, a clear social contract with enforceable rights.”
- right to have one's case heard»Alla som bor i Sverige ska kunna få sin sak prövad.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Everyone who lives in Sweden shall be able to have their case heard.”
- stronger supervision against discrimination»Vi vill stärka myndigheternas arbete mot diskriminering och höja ersättningen till dem som utsatts« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to strengthen the authorities' work against discrimination and increase compensation for those who have been victims of discrimination”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The party programme requires that the individual's possibilities to assert their rights against authorities increase and that the Parliamentary Ombudsman is given the right to exercise supervision over how authorities live up to Swedish international law commitments.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme requires that the individual's possibilities to assert their rights against authorities increase and that the Parliamentary Ombudsman is given the right to exercise supervision over how authorities live up to Swedish international law commitments. This is precisely the gap the counter-proposal points to: minorities lack an authority and legal tools when rights are not observed. The plan also establishes that minority status shall be maintained and the right to use minority languages with authorities strengthened.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet kräver att den enskildes möjligheter att hävda sina rättigheter mot myndigheterna ökar och att JO ges rätt att utöva tillsyn över hur myndigheter lever upp till svenska konventionsåtaganden. Det är precis den lucka motförslaget pekar på: minoriteterna saknar instans och rättsliga verktyg när rättigheterna inte efterlevs. Planen slår dessutom fast att minoritetsställningen ska upprätthållas och rätten att använda minoritetsspråk hos myndigheter stärkas.
- supervision of international law commitmentsdecisive»JO ges rätt att utöva tillsyn över hur myndigheter lever upp till svenska åtaganden enligt internationella« (party programme ↗)“The Parliamentary Ombudsman is given the right to exercise supervision over how authorities live up to Swedish commitments under international”
- rights against authorities»Den enskildes möjligheter att hävda sina rättigheter gentemot myndigheterna måste öka.« (party programme ↗)“The individual's possibilities to assert their rights against authorities must increase.”
- maintained minority status»Samernas, sverigefinnarnas, tornedalingarnas, judarnas och romernas ställning som nationella minoriteter« (party programme ↗)“The status of Sámi, Swedish Finns, Tornedalians, Jews and Roma as national minorities”
- minority languages with authorities»Individens möjligheter att använda minoritetsspråk i kontakten med myndigheter« (party programme ↗)“The individual's possibilities to use minority languages in contact with authorities”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The plan requires that individuals must be able to rely on that their legal rights are respected by municipal bodies and that minorities' needs are considered at all levels in the public sector.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The plan requires that individuals must be able to rely on that their legal rights are respected by municipal bodies and that minorities' needs are considered at all levels in the public sector. A functioning national oversight responsibility is a means for precisely this when rights are not respected. The plan at the same time emphasizes strong municipal self-government, which sets limits for how oversight should be designed.
Original (Swedish)
Planen kräver att enskilda ska kunna lita på att deras lagliga rättigheter respekteras av kommunala organ och att minoriteternas behov beaktas på alla nivåer i den offentliga sektorn. Ett fungerande nationellt tillsynsansvar är ett medel för just detta när rättigheter inte efterlevs. Planen betonar samtidigt en stark kommunal självstyrelse, vilket sätter ramar för hur tillsynen bör utformas.
- rights must be respected municipallydecisive»enskilda människorna kunna lita på att deras lagliga rättigheter respekteras av kommunala organ.« (party programme ↗)“individual people can rely on that their legal rights are respected by municipal bodies.”
- minorities' needs at all levels»beaktas i alla delar av landet och på alla nivåer i den« (party programme ↗)“considered in all parts of the country and at all levels in the”
- public support for minorities»Det är en central offentlig uppgift att stödja minoriteters egna insatser för att behålla och vidareutveckla« (party programme ↗)“It is a central public task to support minorities' own efforts to maintain and further develop”
- strong municipal self-government»Den kommunala självstyrelsen ska vara stark« (party programme ↗)“Municipal self-government must be strong”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The plan does not address the oversight of minority policy, but states that the constitution's rights must not stop at fine words but must provide practical and effective protection for individuals in relation to a municipality or authority, and that the majority must never do what it wants against the minority.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan does not address the oversight of minority policy, but states that the constitution's rights must not stop at fine words but must provide practical and effective protection for individuals in relation to a municipality or authority, and that the majority must never do what it wants against the minority. The counter-proposal's requirement is precisely about the individual having an instance to turn to and legal tools when rights are not respected. Derived from these principles, the requirement aligns with the plan, but the conclusion is uncertain since the plan is silent on the organization of minority policy.
Original (Swedish)
Planen behandlar inte minoritetspolitikens tillsyn, men slår fast att grundlagens rättigheter inte får stanna vid vackra ord utan måste ge ett praktiskt och effektivt skydd för enskilda i relation till en kommun eller myndighet, och att majoriteten aldrig får göra vad den vill mot minoriteten. Motförslagets krav handlar just om att den enskilde ska ha en instans att vända sig till och rättsliga verktyg när rättigheter inte efterlevs. Härlett ur dessa principer ligger kravet i linje med planen, men slutsatsen är osäker eftersom planen är tyst om minoritetspolitikens organisation.
- effective rights protection against authoritiesdecisive»Vi måste se till att det inte bara är vackra ord, utan att grundlagen också ger ett praktiskt och effektivt skydd för enskilda människor i relation till exempelvis en kommun eller en statlig myndighet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We must ensure that it is not just fine words, but that the constitution also provides practical and effective protection for individuals in relation to, for example, a municipality or a state authority.”
- minority protection in the rule of law»Majoriteten får aldrig göra vad den vill mot minoriteten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The majority must never do what it wants against the minority.”
- legal tools for individuals»Stärka domstolarnas oberoende och skyddet för medborgarnas fri- och rättigheter« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen the independence of the courts and the protection of citizens' freedoms and rights”
- responsibility for public decisions»Skärpa tjänstemannaansvaret« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sharpen official responsibility”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The plan does not address supervision of minority policy.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The plan does not address supervision of minority policy. The closest commitments are to consolidate agencies, streamline public operations and keep bureaucracy to a minimum, which argues against building up a new national supervisory responsibility. Giving minorities far-reaching cultural autonomy pulls in the opposite direction, but is not sufficient to support a requirement for new legal tools.
Original (Swedish)
Planen behandlar inte tillsyn av minoritetspolitiken. Närmast liggande åtaganden är att slå samman myndigheter, renodla offentlig verksamhet och hålla byråkratin till ett minimum, vilket talar mot att bygga upp ett nytt nationellt tillsynsansvar. Att minoriteter ges långtgående kulturell autonomi drar i motsatt riktning, men räcker inte för att bära ett krav på nya rättsliga verktyg.
- fewer and streamlined agenciesdecisive»Sverigedemokraterna vill också slå samman myndigheter och renodla offentliga verksamheter där det är möjligt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats also wish to consolidate agencies and streamline public operations where possible.”
- minimum of bureaucracy»Centralt för partiet är att respekt för skattebetalarnas pengar och strävan efter ett minimum av byråkrati« (party programme ↗)“Central to the party is respect for taxpayers' money and the pursuit of a minimum of bureaucracy”
- cultural autonomy for minorities»ska de som grupper undantas från allmänna assimileringssträvanden och ges långtgående« (party programme ↗)“they as groups should be exempted from general assimilation efforts and given far-reaching”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
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Sources and documents
- The committee report on riksdagen.se (2022/23:KU28)
- Committee report full text (HA01KU28)
- Per-MP voting data (API)
- Case status (API)
Documents under consideration
- Motion 2022/23:1214 — Åtgärder för de nationella minoriteterna och minoritetsspråken av Nooshi Dadgostar m.fl. (V)
- Motion 2022/23:1326 — Teckenspråk av Carita Boulwén (SD)
- Motion 2022/23:1474 — Politik för de nationella minoriteterna av Amanda Lind m.fl. (MP)
- Motion 2022/23:181 — Stärk demokratin och de mänskliga rättigheterna av Märta Stenevi m.fl. (MP)
- Motion 2022/23:1881 — Konstitutionella frågor av Malin Björk m.fl. (C)
- Motion 2022/23:2098 — Politik för det samiska folket av Amanda Lind m.fl. (MP)
- Motion 2022/23:418 — Skydda och bevara älvdalskan av Staffan Eklöf (SD)
- Motion 2022/23:624 — Erkännande av älvdalska som språk av Mathias Bengtsson och Gudrun Brunegård (båda KD)
- Motion 2022/23:81 — Bevara och levandegör språket älvdalska av Robert Stenkvist och Anders Alftberg (båda SD)
- Motion 2022/23:901 — En äldreomsorg med trygghet och valfrihet i hela landet av Christofer Bergenblock m.fl. (C)
- Motion 2022/23:988 — Nationella minoriteter i Sverige av Michael Rubbestad m.fl. (SD)
Source: The Swedish Parliament