Medborgarskapskursen

Chapter 7 of 13 in Sverige i fokus

Human rights in Sweden: the Discrimination Act, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and minorities

Shayan Parsai, kursansvarig och kursutvecklare
Written byLinkedIn

Published: · Reading time: about 7 min

Quick answers

What does the Discrimination Act say?
That nobody may be treated worse because of sex, gender identity or gender expression, ethnicity, religion or other belief, disability, sexual orientation or age. The Equality Ombudsman (Diskrimineringsombudsmannen, DO) makes sure the law is followed.
When did the Convention on the Rights of the Child become law in Sweden?
2020. The Convention on the Rights of the Child (barnkonventionen) is the UN convention on children's rights. Authorities, courts, municipalities and regions must follow it.
Who are Sweden's national minorities?
Jews, Roma, Sami, Sweden Finns and Tornedalians. They were recognised in 2000. The Sami are also an indigenous people with their own parliament, the Sami Parliament (Sametinget).
What does gender equality (jämställdhet) mean?
That women and men have the same rights and obligations and equal power over society and their own lives.
What is a hate crime?
A crime against a person because they belong to a certain group. The punishment is more severe if the crime has a hate motive.

The citizenship test (medborgarskapsprovet) is written in Swedish, so learn the Swedish key words in brackets as you read. This page is also available in Swedish: Mänskliga rättigheter.

Chapter 7 of Sverige i fokus is about human rights (mänskliga rättigheter) and how they have shaped Sweden’s laws. The chapter covers special rights for women, children and minorities. It is also about how Sweden works against discrimination (diskriminering) and hate crime (hatbrott).

What are human rights?

Human rights are built on the idea that all people have the same rights. After the Second World War, in 1945, 51 countries created the United Nations (Förenta nationerna, FN). The goal was to prevent new wars and protect every person’s rights.

In 1948 the UN presented the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (FN:s förklaring om de mänskliga rättigheterna). It contains 30 rules called articles (artiklar). It says that all people are born free and equal in worth and rights. Everyone has, for example, the right to express their opinion, to work and have holidays, to go to school and to believe in any religion they want, or none at all. Everyone has the right to seek asylum in another country if their life is in danger. Everyone also has the right to a nationality. Nobody may lose their citizenship without a proper reason under the law.

Sweden’s fundamental law, the Instrument of Government (regeringsformen), says that the public sector (det allmänna), meaning the state, the regions and the municipalities, must work so that everyone can take part in society on equal terms. The public sector must also counter discrimination.

What does the Discrimination Act say?

Discrimination means that some people are treated worse than others. It is a violation of human rights. Sweden has the Discrimination Act (diskrimineringslagen, 2008:567). It forbids companies and organisations from treating people worse because of sex (kön), gender identity or gender expression (könsidentitet eller könsuttryck), ethnicity (etnisk tillhörighet), religion or other belief, disability (funktionsnedsättning), sexual orientation (sexuell läggning) or age.

The Equality Ombudsman (Diskrimineringsombudsmannen, DO) is a state authority. DO makes sure the Discrimination Act is followed and works for everyone’s equal rights and opportunities. Workplaces and schools must themselves work actively against discrimination.

If someone commits a crime against a person because the person belongs to a certain group, it is called a hate crime (hatbrott). The offender then gets a more severe punishment.

What does gender equality mean?

Gender equality (jämställdhet) means that women and men have the same rights and obligations. They should have equal power over society and their own lives. Sweden works on gender equality in several ways:

  • The parties are encouraged to nominate both women and men for elections, so that there are as many women as men in politics.
  • Laws are meant to ensure that women and men get equal pay for equal work. Trade unions and authorities work for fair wages.
  • Schools and authorities must give women and men the same opportunities for education.
  • Parental benefit (föräldrapenning) makes it possible for both women and men to stay home with small children. The state encourages parents to share the leave.

Violence in close relationships and honour-related violence (hedersrelaterat våld) are crimes under Swedish law. Sweden has a consent law (samtyckeslag). Anyone who wants to have sex must make sure the other person is taking part voluntarily. This applies to married couples too. Honour-related violence means that a family or group uses violence, pressure or threats to control how someone in the family lives. It does not only affect women and girls. Boys, men and LGBTQI people (hbtqi-personer) can also be affected. Forcing someone to marry is forbidden. Child marriage, meaning someone under 18 marrying, is also forbidden. The Gender Equality Agency (Jämställdhetsmyndigheten) is responsible for the national work against honour-related violence.

In Sweden it is illegal to buy sex. The person who buys can be punished, but not the person who sells. The law is meant to show that it is not acceptable to exploit someone sexually for payment.

What is the Convention on the Rights of the Child?

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (barnkonventionen) is the UN convention on children’s rights. Since 2020 it is law in Sweden, through the act (2018:1197) on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Authorities, courts, municipalities and regions must follow it. This means, for example:

  • Politicians and authorities must ask children what they think before deciding something that affects children.
  • In a divorce where the parents do not agree, the court must ask the child where it wants to live.
  • Municipalities must consider the best interests of the child when they build housing, playgrounds and schools.
  • Health care and schools must work to ensure that no child is discriminated against.

The parents, or another guardian (vårdnadshavare), are responsible for the child’s upbringing and for the child’s wellbeing. They have the right to support from society, for example from the municipality or health care.

All violence against children is forbidden, both under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and under Swedish law. In 1979 Sweden became the first country in the world to ban hitting children. The ban applies everywhere, at home and in the whole of society. The crime can lead to prison.

Who are Sweden’s national minorities?

Several ethnic groups have lived in Sweden for a very long time. They have their own languages, cultures and identities. In the past they were often discriminated against. In 2000 Sweden recognised five national minorities (nationella minoriteter): Jews (judar), Roma (romer), Sami (samer), Sweden Finns (sverigefinnar) and Tornedalians (tornedalingar). Their minority languages are Yiddish (jiddisch), Romani Chib, Sami (samiska), Finnish (finska) and Meänkieli. The national minorities have the right to use their languages in contact with authorities, in preschool and in elderly care.

The Sami are also a recognised indigenous people (urfolk). The Sami have a long and strong relationship with a large land area called Sápmi. It stretches across Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia. As an indigenous people, the Sami have special rights to land and natural resources. Members of Sami villages (samebyar) have the right to herd reindeer (renskötsel) in special areas. The Sami have their own elected parliament, the Sami Parliament (Sametinget). It represents the Sami in questions of language, culture and identity. The Sami Parliament gives advice and also has certain tasks as a public authority.

What rights do LGBTQI people and people with disabilities have?

Hbtqi is the Swedish umbrella term for homosexual, bisexual, trans, queer and intersex people (in English LGBTQI). Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression is forbidden under the Discrimination Act. The right to live with whoever you want is protected by law, and it is allowed to marry a person of the same sex. Some important years: in 1944 it became legal to be homosexual, in 2003 homosexual couples got the right to adopt, and in 2009 the Church of Sweden (Svenska kyrkan) allowed same-sex weddings in church.

People with disabilities can meet obstacles in society. That is why there are laws that protect them against discrimination and laws meant to give them the chance to take part in society on equal terms.

What the test usually asks about

  • When the UN was founded (1945) and when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights came (1948).
  • Which grounds the Discrimination Act protects and what DO does.
  • What gender equality means and how Sweden works on it.
  • What the consent law and the law on buying sex mean.
  • That the Convention on the Rights of the Child has been law since 2020 and that Sweden banned hitting children in 1979.
  • Who the five national minorities are and what their languages are.
  • That the Sami are an indigenous people with their own parliament, the Sami Parliament.
  • What a hate crime is and that it leads to a more severe punishment.

Practise the chapter

The questions for chapter 7 are on the page questions on chapter 7. They are ten practice questions we wrote based on the chapter, not UHR’s questions. Read the chapter first and then read the explanation for each answer. The practice test covers all chapters.

Difficult words in this chapter

konvention
a convention, an agreement between many countries
artikel
an article, a numbered rule in a law or convention
diskriminering
discrimination, when some people are treated worse than others
etnisk tillhörighet
ethnicity, which people or ethnic group a person belongs to
sexuell läggning
sexual orientation, who a person falls in love with or is attracted to
funktionsnedsättning
disability, when the body or brain works less well in some way, for example not being able to walk or see
samtycke
consent, when a person says yes voluntarily
hedersrelaterat våld
honour-related violence, violence or threats from the family against someone who breaks the family's rules
urfolk
indigenous people, a people who have lived in an area since long before others arrived
vårdnadshavare
guardian, the adult responsible for a child, usually the parents

Frequently asked questions

What is the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights?

A list of 30 articles that the UN presented in 1948. It says that all people are born free and equal in worth and rights.

Is it illegal to hit children in Sweden?

Yes. In 1979 Sweden became the first country in the world to ban hitting children. The ban covers all violence against children, at home and in the whole of society, and can lead to prison.

Can two people of the same sex marry in Sweden?

Yes. The right to live with whoever you want is protected by law, and it is allowed to marry a person of the same sex.

What does the Equality Ombudsman do?

DO is a state authority that makes sure the Discrimination Act is followed and works for everyone's equal rights and opportunities.

Which languages may the national minorities use with the authorities?

Finnish, Yiddish, Meänkieli, Romani Chib and Sami. The right applies in contact with authorities, in preschool and in elderly care.

Is it illegal to buy sex in Sweden?

Yes. The person who buys sex can be punished, but not the person who sells.

The course

The full course, all 13 chapters

99SEK per month

or 499 SEK for a full year

  • Lessons for every chapter of Sverige i fokus
  • Practice questions with explanations and page references
  • A mock test in the same form as the August test
  • Difficult words explained in plain Swedish
Coming soon

Want an email when the course opens? Write to us.

Sources