Sweden
Sweden regularly reports hate crime data to ODIHR. Sweden's criminal law contains a general penalty enhancement provision. Sweden includes defamation, hate speech and discrimination crimes in its data. Hate crime data are collected by the National Council for Crime Prevention and are based on information from the police and the prosecution authority. Since 2012, the number of hate crime cases is estimated based on a statistical sample of police reports. Since 2016, hate crime reports are published only every second year. Three different victimization surveys, used to measure unreported hate crime, are conducted regularly at one, two and three-year intervals, respectively.
OFFICIAL DATA
Year | Hate crimes recorded by police | Prosecuted | Sentenced |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | 3150 | 334 | Not available |
2019 | Not available | Not available | Not available |
2018 | 5858 | 218 | - |
2017 | Not available | Not available | Not available |
2016 | 4862 | 257 | Not available |
2015 | 4859 | 255 | Not available |
2014 | 4258 | 279 | Not available |
2013 | 3943 | 161 | Not available |
2012 | 5518 | 344 | Not available |
2011 | 5493 | 347 | Not available |
2010 | 5139 | 440 | Not available |
2009 | 5797 | 450 | Not available |
About 2015 Data
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Figures reported to ODIHR comprised 6,984 estimated hate crime reports. This number included incidents related to defamation, hate speech, and unlawful discrimination. The number displayed represents only hate crimes according to the OSCE definition. The number of prosecuted cases reflects prosecutorial decisions taken in 2014, only submitted in 2016 due to the reporting cycle.
Incidents reported by civil society, international organizations and the Holy See
INTERNATIONAL REPORTS
Racist and xenophobic hate crime
Following its mission to Sweden, the United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent recommended that more resources be allocated to police and prosecution authorities to investigate and prosecute hate crimes against people of African descent. It also recommended the collection and publishing of data on hate crimes against Afro-Swedes as a distinct category, and not as a subcategory of racist hate crimes.
Following its Universal Periodic Review (UPR), the Swedish authorities expressed support for recommendations to strengthen efforts to effectively investigate, prosecute and punish all hate crimes, and to expand training programmes on hate crimes provided for police, prosecutors and judges.
KEY OBSERVATION
ODIHR observes that Sweden has not reported information on sentenced hate crime cases to ODIHR.