Regulations on flagging

The programme affirms that nationalism has no place in democratic left-wing politics and that the left is internationalist. A new flag law with possible criminalisation of flag desecration elevates national symbols and restricts freedom of expression, which the programme counts as one of democracy's most important foundations. The plan is silent on flag rules, but its principles speak against the counter-proposal's demands.

• rejected nationalismdecisive»Nationalismen har ingen plats i en demokratisk« (party programme ↗)“Nationalism has no place in a democratic”
• valued freedom of expression»föreningsfriheten, yttrande- och tryckfriheten, offentlighetsprincipen« (party programme ↗)“freedom of association, freedom of expression and the press, the principle of public access to official records”
• internationalism»Vänstern är internationalistisk« (party programme ↗)“The left is internationalist”
• opposition to symbol bans»politiskt motiverade organisationsförbud« (party programme ↗)“politically motivated organisational bans”

The documents say nothing about flag regulations. The nearest principle is the democratic freedom to express opinion and criticize, which argues against criminalizing flag desecration. The programme also wants the head of state to be chosen in democratic order and for cultural life to reflect the diversity in today's Sweden, which provides weak support for new national legislation on symbols. The position is therefore derived from the nearest principles.

• freedom of expressiondecisive»friheten att få uttrycka sin mening, kritisera« (party programme ↗)“the freedom to express one's opinion, criticize”
• democratic head of state»har vi uppfattningen att statschefen ska utses i demokratisk ordning och att« (party programme ↗)“we hold the view that the head of state shall be chosen in democratic order and that”
• cultural diversity»Kulturinstitutionerna och kulturlivet måste spegla den kulturella mångfalden i dagens« (party programme ↗)“Cultural institutions and cultural life must reflect the cultural diversity in today's”

The party programme holds freedom of speech and free opinion formation invaluable and the election manifesto wants to strengthen freedom of speech. Criminalizing flag desecration restricts exactly that expression space, and the plan furthermore sees the pursuit of cultural uniformity as something that historically has led to conflicts and abuses. The counter-proposal's requirement for a flag law with criminal sanctions is therefore rejected.

• freedom of speech is invaluabledecisive»av den egna potentialen. Yttrandefriheten och den« (party programme ↗)“of one's own potential. Freedom of speech and”
• strengthened freedom of speech»förstärka yttrandefriheten och stödja oberoende medier i hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“strengthen freedom of speech and support independent media across the country.”
• cultural uniformity harms»har det lett till motsättningar och övergrepp. Det« (party programme ↗)“has it led to conflicts and abuses. It”
• space for protest actions»kan civil olydnad vara betydelsefullt i demokratin.« (party programme ↗)“can civil disobedience be significant in democracy.”

The plan establishes that freedom of speech, press and expression is self-evident and must be guaranteed, which argues against criminally penalizing flag desecration. It also requires that decisions be made close to those affected, which is close to authorities deciding their own flag protocol rather than everything being regulated in a new central flag law. The plan also prioritizes cleaning up regulations, not adding new ones.

• guaranteed freedom of speechdecisive»För oss är de grundlagsskyddade fri- och rättigheterna, som exempelvis yttrande-, tryck- och meddelarfrihet, självklara och ska garanteras.« (party programme ↗)“For us, the constitutionally protected rights and freedoms, such as freedom of speech, press and expression, are self-evident and must be guaranteed.”
• decisions close to those affected»Decentralisera mera. Människor ska få bestämma mer själva, och politiska beslut ska fattas nära dem som berörs.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Decentralize more. People should be able to decide more themselves, and political decisions should be made close to those affected.”
• fewer unnecessary rules»Vi ska rensa upp bland överflödiga regler och byråkrati.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We should clean up unnecessary rules and bureaucracy.”

The plan's guiding principle is freedom of thought and the right to freely express one's opinion and express oneself artistically, and it establishes that an open society needs expressions that provoke and challenge. Making it criminal to desecrate the flag and regulating which flags may be displayed pulls in the opposite direction from this freedom of expression commitment. The plan says nothing about flag regulations otherwise, which is why the position is inferred from freedom of expression.

• right to express opinionsdecisive»Varje människa har rätt att fritt och öppet uttrycka sin åsikt,« (party programme ↗)“Every person has the right to freely and openly express their opinion,”
• freedom of thought as a basic principle»Det liberala samhället förutsätter tankefrihet.« (party programme ↗)“The liberal society presupposes freedom of thought.”
• provocation must be tolerated»Ett öppet samhälle behöver litteratur, konst och andra kulturella uttryck som provocerar och utmanar.« (party programme ↗)“An open society needs literature, art and other cultural expressions that provoke and challenge.”
• strong freedom of expression regulation»Tryck- och yttrandefrihetslagstiftningen har en unik och stark reglering« (party programme ↗)“Press and freedom of expression legislation has a unique and strong regulation”

The plan does not address flag regulations. The closest principle is subsidiarity: what a community can handle in an appropriate way should also get to handle, which speaks against collecting authorities' flag regulation in a central law. Criminalizing flag desecration is moreover in tension with the plan's strong protection of freedom of expression. The plan's stewardship of the national cultural heritage points in the opposite direction.

• the subsidiarity principledecisive»Det en gemenskap på ett ändamålsenligt sätt kan« (party programme ↗)“What a community can handle in an appropriate way”
• strong freedom of expression»Ett starkt skydd för yttrande- och meddelarfriheten« (party programme ↗)“Strong protection for freedom of expression and communication”
• steward the cultural heritage»ta tillvara det värdefulla kulturella arv« (party programme ↗)“preserve the valuable cultural heritage”
• national symbols in law»det svenska språket, vars ställning som majoritetsspråk bör vara grundlagsskyddat.« (party programme ↗)“the Swedish language, whose position as a majority language should be protected by constitutional law.”

flags: planen saknar ställningstagande om flaggning

The plan establishes that freedom of expression applies even to opinions that provoke and disturb, which argues against making flag burning a criminal offense. It also wants decisions to be made at the lowest effective level, which leaves flag issues to the authorities themselves rather than to a comprehensive flag law. The plan's appreciation of the nation-state's continuity pulls in the other direction, but does not support the requirement.

• freedom of expression for the provocativedecisive»Yttrandefriheten gäller även för åsikter som provocerar och« (party programme ↗)“Freedom of expression applies even to opinions that provoke and”
• decisions at the lowest effective level»Det politiska systemet ska bygga på att beslut fattas på lägsta« (party programme ↗)“The political system shall be based on decisions being made at the lowest”
• nation-state valued»Den svenska demokratin och vår rättsstat vilar på nationalstaten.« (party programme ↗)“Swedish democracy and our rule of law rest on the nation-state.”

The plan wants to create cohesion around Swedish culture and national identity and explicitly wants to guard, preserve and show Swedish culture, with common pride and respect for the cultural heritage. A unified flag law that regulates the flag's appearance, flag days and government agencies' flagging, and which considers penalties for flag desecration, is a direct expression of this commitment.

• national identitydecisive»Skapa sammanhållning kring den svenska kulturen och den nationella identiteten« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Create cohesion around Swedish culture and national identity”
• guard Swedish culture»Sverigedemokraterna vill värna, vårda och visa svensk kultur.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats want to guard, preserve and show Swedish culture.”
• respect for cultural heritage»Sammanhållningen och tilliten i samhället ska återupprättas, med en gemensam stolthet och respekt för det kulturella arvet, sociala koder, svensk demokrati och det sekulariserade samhället som har sina rötter i en kristen idégrund.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Cohesion and trust in society shall be restored, with common pride and respect for the cultural heritage, social codes, Swedish democracy and the secularised society which has its roots in a Christian ideological foundation.”