Minority Languages and Minority Culture

The plan establishes that Sweden has committed to protecting and strengthening Sámi and Tornedalian peoples' rights to identity, language and cultural heritage, but that much remains to be done, and that education about minorities' culture and cultural heritage should be expanded. Making Sápmi visible, Sámi place names and a permanent centre for Tornedalian history are direct applications. The Sámi are also recognized as an indigenous people who have been subjected to the state's wrongdoings.

• strengthened minority rightsdecisive»och stärka samers, tornedalingars, sverigefinnars, romers och judars rättigheter till identitet, språk, kulturarv och religion. Men mycket« (party programme ↗)“and strengthen Sámi, Tornedalian, Sweden-Finn, Romani and Jewish peoples' rights to identity, language, cultural heritage and religion. But much”
• Sámi status as indigenous people»Samer är Sveriges ursprungsbefolkning och har historiskt utsatts av oförrätter av den svenska staten.« (party programme ↗)“The Sámi are Sweden's indigenous people and have historically been subjected to wrongdoings by the Swedish state.”
• expanded minority culture and language»Utbildningen i, på och om de nationella minoritetsspråken samt de nationella minoriteternas kultur och kulturarv bör utvidgas« (party programme ↗)“Education in, on and about national minority languages and national minorities' culture and cultural heritage should be expanded”
• equitable state cultural policy»En statlig kulturpolitik ska garantera en demokratiskt likvärdig fördelning av resurser över landet och alla invånares tillgång till kulturverksamhet.« (party programme ↗)“A state cultural policy shall guarantee a democratically equitable distribution of resources across the country and all residents' access to cultural activities.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The party programme explicitly states that it shall be part of cultural policy to uphold and support national minorities' opportunities to maintain and develop their own language and culture. The counter-proposal's demand for visibility of Sápmi and a permanent centre for Tornedal history and culture is precisely this. The plan also requires that cultural life reflects diversity and that institutions exist throughout the country.

• support for national minoritiesdecisive»I detta ska också ingå att hävda och stödja nationella minoriteters möjligheter att behålla och utveckla det egna språket och kulturen.« (party programme ↗)“This shall also include upholding and supporting national minorities' opportunities to maintain and develop their own language and culture.”
• cultural life shall reflect diversity»Kulturinstitutionerna och kulturlivet måste spegla den kulturella mångfalden i dagens Sverige.« (party programme ↗)“Cultural institutions and cultural life must reflect the cultural diversity in today's Sweden.”
• cultural institutions across the country»Institutioner för det professionella kulturlivet ska därför finnas över hela landet.« (party programme ↗)“Institutions for professional cultural life shall therefore exist throughout the country.”
• living cultural life»Sverige ska ha ett levande, fritt och obundet kulturliv som både stärker samhörigheten och utmanar.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall have a living, free and independent cultural life that both strengthens togetherness and challenges.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The election manifesto commits to strengthening national minorities' and the Sámi people's rights, and the party programme stipulates that minorities' special status with their own culture and language must be respected and strengthened. Increased visibility through Sámi place names and marked national days is a concrete application of this, as is the right to define and practise their own identity and culture. The plan also supports regional and local institutions receiving society's support, which carries the demand for a permanent Tornedalian centre.

• strengthened minority and indigenous 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 shall commit to following the international convention on indigenous peoples' rights (ILO 169).”
• minorities' special status»Deras särskilda ställning, med egen kultur och eget« (party programme ↗)“Their special status, with their own culture and”
• right to own identity and culture»Miljöpartiet vill att människor alltid ska ges rätt« (party programme ↗)“The Greens want people to always be given the right”
• support for regional cultural institutions»regionala och lokala museer bör stödjas av« (party programme ↗)“regional and local museums should be supported by”

The election manifesto explicitly promises to strengthen minority protection and the status of minority languages, and that culture shall be provided throughout the country. The counter-proposal's requirement for visibility of Sápmi and the national minorities as well as a permanent centre for Torne Valley history and culture are applications of precisely these commitments. The plan therefore supports the requirement.

• strengthened minority protectiondecisive»Våra grundläggande rättigheter får inte tas för givna. Vi vill stärka bland annat äganderätten, diskrimineringsförbudet, minoritetsskyddet och minoritetsspråkens ställning, och grundlagsskydda rätten till abort och reproduktiv hälsa.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Our fundamental rights must not be taken for granted. We want to strengthen among other things property rights, the prohibition on discrimination, minority protection and the status of minority languages, and constitutionally protect the right to abortion and reproductive health.”
• culture throughout the country»Att tillhandahålla kultur i hela landet är en viktig utgångspunkt för Centerpartiet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Providing culture throughout the country is an important starting point for the Centre Party.”
• cultural institutions throughout the country»Statliga kulturinstitutioner ska sprida sin verksamhet i hela landet.« (party programme ↗)“State cultural institutions should spread their activities throughout the country.”
• counter discrimination»Diskriminering, strukturell rasism och intolerans, i alla dess former, ska motverkas.« (party programme ↗)“Discrimination, structural racism and intolerance, in all its forms, shall be countered.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The plan establishes that the Sámi people's position as indigenous people and the Torne Valley people's position as a national minority shall be maintained, and that the public shall support linguistic, cultural and media provision with a minority-language profile. A permanent centre for Torne Valley history and culture and increased visibility for Sápmi are applications of precisely that commitment. The plan also drives a Nordic Sámi convention.

• national minorities' positiondecisive»minoriteter och samernas ställning som urfolk ska upprätthållas« (party programme ↗)“minorities and the Sámi people's position as indigenous people shall be maintained”
• support for minority-language culture»språk-, kultur- och medieutbud med minoritetsspråksprofil« (party programme ↗)“linguistic, cultural and media provision with a minority-language profile”
• protection of national minorities»Skolor med inriktning mot de lagskyddade nationella minoriteterna ska alltid kunna finnas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Schools focused on the legally protected national minorities shall always be able to exist.”
• Sámi rights and Sámi convention»En nordisk samekonvention ska upprättas.« (party programme ↗)“A Nordic Sámi convention shall be established.”

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 calls it a central public task to support minorities' own efforts to maintain and further develop their culture, and explicitly counts Sámi and Tornedalians among those whose linguistic and ethnic rights shall be recognised. The counter-proposal's requirement for increased visibility for Sápmi and the national minorities and a permanent centre for Tornedalian history and culture is in line with this. The plan also safeguards reindeer herding as part of Sámi culture. Specific measures of the kind the counter-proposal mentions are however not specified, which is why the stance is derived.

• support for minorities' own effortsdecisive»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”
• recognised minority rights»Genom att tillerkänna samer, sverigefinländare,« (party programme ↗)“By recognising Sámi, Swedo-Finns,”
• Sámi culture safeguarded»Rennäringen ska värnas eftersom den är en betydelsefull del av samisk kultur« (party programme ↗)“Reindeer herding shall be safeguarded because it is a significant part of Sámi culture”

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 national minorities' language and culture. The closest commitments are that state spending shall decrease and politics must prioritise and choose not to, and the party programme's line of upholding the individual against collectivism. A permanent state-funded centre and new visibility efforts therefore lie outside the plan's priorities.

• reduced state spendingdecisive»Statens utgifter ska minska – vi ska stoppa slöseriet med skattepengar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“State spending shall decrease – we shall stop wasting tax money”
• prioritise state's core tasks»Politiken har en viktig uppgift att prioritera och välja bort,« (party programme ↗)“Politics has an important task to prioritise and choose not to,”
• individual before collective»kommer alltid hävda individen mot kollektivismen« (party programme ↗)“will always uphold the individual against collectivism”

The party programme explicitly exempts the national minorities, including the Sámi and Torne Valley Finnish, from general assimilation efforts and grants them far-reaching cultural autonomy. The election manifesto states that indigenous peoples' status and cultural values shall be protected. Making visible through place names and holidays as well as a permanent center for Torne Valley history lies within that undertaking, as does the desire to preserve local identities with deep historical roots.

• cultural autonomy for minoritiesdecisive»assimileringssträvanden och ges långtgående kulturell autonomi.« (party programme ↗)“assimilation efforts and are granted far-reaching cultural autonomy.”
• protect indigenous peoples' status»Urfolkens ställning och kulturella värden ska värnas i den utrikespolitiska inriktningen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Indigenous peoples' status and cultural values shall be protected in the foreign policy direction.”
• preserve local identities»Att lokala och regionala identiteter med en djup historisk förankring bevaras även i« (party programme ↗)“That local and regional identities with deep historical roots are preserved also in”

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.