A 58-year-old man from Värmland is being prosecuted for incitement against an ethnic group after he wrote a post on Aftonbladet’s Facebook page about humiliating rapes and “men from Muslim countries.”
– I do not find that the statement in question is acceptable, says District Prosecutor Sofie Derke to Samnytt.

On January 21 this year, Anders Lindberg, Aftonbladet’s political editor-in-chief, wrote an article entitled: “The hatred against Muslims is a democratic failure.”

The article discusses, among other things, how criticism of women wearing Muslim veils in public communication is an expression of so-called Islamophobia and racism.

Comments Section Shut Down

The article stirred reactions. And on the Facebook page of Aftonbladet’s editorial, many people did not agree at all with the Social Democratic newspaper’s reasoning. Many argue that it is mainly Swedes—not Muslims—who are subjected to hatred in Sweden.

The many oppositional comments eventually led Aftonbladet to completely shut off the commenting function.

“We are being subjected to extensive spam by racists and unfortunately it is not possible for us to moderate the volume of comments,” it now reads on the Facebook page.

“Men from Muslim Countries”

A 58-year-old man from Värmland was one of those who commented on Aftonbladet’s article. His post addressed the newspaper’s political editor-in-chief, where he wondered if he had anything to say about Swedish women being raped “by men from Muslim countries.”

The 58-year-old’s post then caught the attention of Tomas Åberg, a man who previously ran the so-called Näthatsgranskaren (Net Hate Reviewer). Åberg reported the 58-year-old’s post and a further eighteen comments on Aftonbladet’s Facebook page.

Åberg argues that the 58-year-old’s post illegally targets both Muslims as a group and Aftonbladet as a newspaper. The reason is that the newspaper chose to switch off its comment section.

“Due to the very wide reach, the democratic context, and the nature of the offences—where the statements combined appear to be an attempt to intimidate and silence both the writer and Muslims as a group—the removal of the post has caused a real and significant harm to the democratic conversation,” he writes in his complaint.

Denies Crime

At the beginning of March this year, the 58-year-old man was informed that he was suspected of a crime. During police questioning, he responded that he understood the accusation.

– Yes, but I do not agree that I did so, he said, denying the suspicion of any crime:

– I deny the crime.

The 58-year-old points out that he did not write about “Muslims”, but “men from Muslim countries” in his post. He wanted to raise issues of “shabby” values, oppression of women, honor context, and political oppression in those countries.

Issues he believes are important to address and how they manifest in Sweden.

Prosecutor: “Same Thing”

But writing “men from Muslim countries” instead of “Muslims” has no legal significance. That’s according to District Prosecutor Sofie Derke, who on Tuesday this week filed charges against the 58-year-old man.

– I consider it to be the same thing in this context, she says to Samnytt.

– This is about a generalization. “Men from Muslim countries”; I simply consider it to mean Muslims when you write that.

The National Police Agency’s regional IT crime center could not independently secure the 58-year-old’s post. The reason is that Aftonbladet deleted its Facebook post before police technicians could view it.

Instead, the prosecutor relies on Tomas Åberg’s screenshots being authentic. The Net Hate Reviewer profile has also been called as a witness at the trial.

Unacceptable Statement

So is it not important to freely discuss issues relating to immigration and crime? District Prosecutor Sofie Derke says that it is not.

– That is always something to be weighed in when it comes to incitement against an ethnic group. Incitement against an ethnic group is an exception to freedom of speech and freedom of the press. So that is always taken into account when making that assessment, she says.

So this type of statement or utterance should not be tolerated?

– I do not think the statement that was written is acceptable. I consider it to constitute incitement against an ethnic group.

– Of course, the court will ultimately decide. If it deems it to be part of a political debate, then it is allowed. But in my opinion, this was incitement against an ethnic group.