Freedom of association

Participants explained that Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) had great freedom over their selforganisation, as long as their structure ensured internal democracy and transparency.

As in other countries, participants felt that the space for civil society was shrinking. Hate speech on social media, which particularly targeted young people, women and persons carrying religious symbols, was of major concern for the participants. Such hate led to a fear of speaking out which, in turn, meant that less people were likely to join CSOs.

Participants pointed out that the criteria for the distribution of public funds were increasingly strict. Criteria linked to democratic governance were demanding, which prompted fear among the participants that the authorities could misuse them to restrict funding to certain CSOs. The authorities explained that the objective of such strict criteria was to prevent public funding of CSOs working against fundamental Swedish values. Participants noted the difficulty for some CSOs to open a bank account, which they considered represented an obstacle to freedom of association. It was explained that some CSOs, mostly smaller organisations working with vulnerable groups, were not always able to obtain the electronic identities issued by Swedish private banks which, in turn, prevented them from opening an account and operating freely.

Participants expressed strong concerns over a possible negative evolution of the Swedish authorities in its approach to issues such as anti-racism, migration and public funding for CSOs. They believed that the fundamentals of freedom of assembly and association were not necessarily under threat in Sweden, rather that the prerequisites protecting such rights could be at stake.