Let's Talk About Sweden - ISRAEL TODAY

Let's Talk About Sweden

Monday, October 06, 2014 |  Tsvi Sadan  ISRAEL TODAY

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On the eve of the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), the most sacred day of the Jewish calendar, Sweden's new prime minister, Stefan Loefven, announced in his inauguration speech that Sweden will be the first major European country to recognize the 'State of Palestine.'

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman responded by saying that Loefven had failed to study the issue in-depth and to understand that the obstacle to peace over the last 20 years has been the Palestinian Authority, not Israel. Lieberman demonstrated his displeasure by summoning the Swedish ambassador, a severe diplomatic measure.

It is not surprising that Sweden, which has become the pinnacle of European ignobility, is at the forefront of European anti-Israel policy masquerading as a pursuit for peace.

Ignobility and anti-Israel policy, it would seem, are an inseparable pair. There are several examples of how grotesque Sweden has become in its attempt to implement a liberal worldview that has spiraled out of control.

Rape in Sweden has increased exponentially over the past two decades. Today, Sweden is second only to Lesotho in number of rapes per capita, with 63 reported rapes per 100,000 inhabitants. Efforts to confront the issue have been bizarre, so say the least. While 77 percent of all rapes in Sweden have been attributed to Muslim immigrants, Green Party MP Magda Rasmusson reached the conclusion that since "men account for the largest proportion of crimes and sexual violence...it would be more appropriate to discuss the expulsion of [all] men, rather than immigrants."

Just to be clear, according to this Swedish feminist, the problem of rape in her country can be solved by banishing all men.

Though most Swedes are aware of the problem of Islamization in their own country, they are still convinced that multiculturalism has produced a better society than the old, homogeneous Swedish one. Maybe it is for this reason that the archbishop of Sweden, Antje Jackelén, has chosen as her motto the phrase "God is Greater," which sounds suspiciously like "Allahu akbar," and is probably meant to placate both Muslims and Christians.

Jackelén and Loefven have apparently chosen to put their faith in multiculturalism, which in the current Swedish context means integration with Islam. It is this new Western idealism that is pushing Sweden to take legal measures typically reserved for undemocratic autocracies. In its grand effort to force multiculturalism, Swedish authorities make wide use of buzz words like "racism" as a means to coerce the populace into an Orwellian corral.

This was perhaps the first year in which a Swedish artist, Dan Parker, was jailed for attempting to exercise that most liberal of values: freedom of speech. Parker was sentenced to six months in jail for defamation and inciting hatred against an ethnic group, and eight of his paintings were confiscated by the authorities. His incarceration is seen by many as proof for the gradual loss of freedom in Sweden.

In contrast, in 2004 the Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm had no problem hosting the "Snow White and The Madness of Truth" exhibit by Swedish-Israeli artist Dror Feilers. The exhibit consisted of a pool of blood upon which floated a small white boat carrying a portrait of Hanadi Jaradat, a female Palestinian suicide bomber. Despite the protest of the Israeli ambassador, who was outraged by what he perceived as an attempt to portray a suicide bomber as Snow White, nobody thought to remove the exhibition of a known vehemently anti-Israeli artist.

What do these examples have to do with Sweden's willingness to become the first major European country to recognize the 'State of Palestine'?

These examples demonstrate that Sweden has capitulated to the spirit of political correctness that breeds unmitigated support for the Palestinian cause. Indeed, if the archbishop of Sweden has accepted Islam in one way or another, why should the prime minister lag behind?

Sweden as Europe's multicultural spearhead is running a well-chartered course that is bound to end with it becoming a Muslim state that will hate Israel with the same ferocity exhibited today by Muslims who openly vow to annihilate the Jewish state.

In this light, Prime Minister Stefan Loefven’s announcement, and on the eve of the Day of Atonement of all days, is yet another signal that Sweden has become commitmed to values that are ultimately opposed to Israel's determined efforts to remain a Jewish state.

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