In Sweden, the far right is waging open war on the Swedish Committee for Combating Antisemitism – Technologist

The strategy is now well-honed. Whenever the Sweden Democrats (SD) – the far-right party, an ally of the governmental right – are criticized for their ideology, hateful comments made by their elected representatives and activists, or their anonymous social media accounts, they claim to be the victim of a conspiracy hatched by the left. Since October 16, the Swedish Committee for Combating Antisemitism has been in its sights.

Founded in 1983, this independent, recognized body has long annoyed the Sweden Democrats. By systematically recalling the party’s history, which stems from the neo-Nazi movement, as well as the regular excesses of its leaders, the committee contradicts the official discourse of the SDs, a party that believes it should be cleared of any suspicion of anti-Semitism owing to its unwavering support for Israel.

‘Clear zero tolerance against racism’

Visibly annoyed that the committee’s criticisms were raised again in a televised debate on October 13, party leader Jimmie Åkesson and four of his lieutenants signed an op-ed three days later in the tabloid Aftonbladet. In it, they denounced “serious, ill-supported accusations which appear to be based on misinterpretations and pure inaccuracies.”

Admitting the problematic history of their formation – “there have been individuals with dubious opinions and links to extremist organizations” – they assured that they have been carrying out “systematic and targeted work to get rid of this type of problem for at least 20 years” with “a clear zero tolerance against racism and extremism.”

The very next day, the committee’s president Ulrika Knutson responded in the pages of Aftonbladet. According to Knutson, the party’s attempts to present itself as “a model in the fight against Jew hatred lack credibility.” She accused the SDs of instrumentalizing anti-Semitism: They “strongly oppose it when the issue can be used to attack political opponents and minorities,” but are “much more lenient when it comes to statements within their own ranks,” she said.

Methodically, Knutson has proved her point, going back over the statements made by four of the five signatories to the tribune. Richard Jomshof, president of Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, said in 2015 that Swedish Jews were not a problem “because the Jewish group is so small.” Björn Söder, former vice president of Parliament, doubted in 2014 that Jews could become Swedes and in 2019 took up a conspiracy theory, claiming that Hungarian-born American billionaire George Soros was “the one pulling [the] strings” of the European Union.

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