Human rights apply to everyone. Point. Children’s rights apply to everyone. Point. Message from the minister for gender equality Åsa Lindhagen is clear when we start the interview if hedersförtryck. No woman and no child in Sweden will feel that their rights are cropped, ” she says.
” Around one hundred thousand young people live in a more or less pronounced hedersförtryck. It is scary and completely unacceptable. We must do everything we can to get to live their lives in freedom, ” says Åsa Lindhagen.
she is minister for gender equality with responsibility for the work against discrimination and segregation. There are also work against hedersförtryck.
She has not yet had time to become hot in the clothes as a minister, but this issue is something that clearly engages the minister of gender equality. Already as socialborgarråd in Stockholm, sweden, she worked actively with it for several years.
” We took, among other things, the city of Stockholm the first program against violence and was one of the permanent carting the Origin, which is a resource centre against honour-related oppression and violence.
Questions about the right of children she has worked with since 2003. She remembers in particular a case that opened her eyes to what hedersförtryck may mean for girls and young women.
in the board of directors for Save the Children when a co-worker came home from a trip abroad. The employee had been standing in a crowd when a young woman In wide clothes came up to her and at the sounding of the Swedish pleaded: ”Can you help me?”.
the Girl had lived in Sweden and attended high school here. Now, she had become bortlurad from Sweden by her family and married off with a relative. They had taken her passport and she desperately needed help.
this incident has been etched. I have not been able to drop what I was hearing.
the Employee could do nothing from where she stood in the crowd.
– this incident has been etched. I have not been able to drop what I was hearing. I have often wondered how it went for the girl, says Åsa Lindhagen.
Since then, she has heard many testimonies from young women about the limitations and oppression.
– the Latest, the other day there was a girl who told me about how she had been trapped in his growing up, about fear and about how the oppression of women cut her freedom. She had not the power over his life. It touched me strongly, ” says Åsa Lindhagen.
did not want to many politicians, not those on the high-ranking items, recognize that hederskulturerna was strong in many parts of the country. Those who wanted to raise the question was often accused of running rasisternas and islamofobernas cases.
three years ago it attracted attention when miljöpartisten Yasri Khan refused to take women in hand. He later left politics after fierce criticism from a number of colleagues, but some considered that the greens have for too long tolerated that the representatives acted kvinnofientligt.
” I can only speak for my party, and I feel it in the day, there is a strong commitment when it comes to taking distance from all forms of hedersförtryck. The question today is whether it is possible to do more? Yes, of course, is my clear answer.
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today, no one can ignore the fact that women and children are denied their basic human rights, says the minister of gender equality. At the same time, she emphasises that hedersförtryck is something that exists within all religions and, even among those who are not religious.
– We must admit that we have a huge problem with hedersförtryck, and that we face big challenges. Therefore, we need to discuss what needs to be done to break the negative development.
the parliamentary parties have been accused of that for many years have ignored the hedersförtrycket. Åsa Lindhagen think, however, that the awareness of the hedersförtrycket going in the right direction.
She gets upset when she hears about that ”moralpoliser” act in various suburban areas in, for example, Stockholm, Malmö and Gothenburg. They harass women who want to live a free life and maybe not wear a veil.
Åsa Lindhagen. Photo: Elin Åberg
– To stop the hedersförtrycket and honour-related violence is not a ”quick-fix”. It is a time-consuming and patiently work to change norms and attitudes. I am convinced that it is possible.
” Take the law against spanking as an example. The com 1979, and had probably not been of the if we had a referendum on the issue. Today there is no, with few exceptions, think that it should be allowed to beat children. So norms and attitudes can change.
Åsa Lindhagen says that it is by januariöverenskommelsen between the Socialists, the Liberals, the Centre party and the green Party is a broad consensus on the need to combat hederskulturer, hedersförtryck and violence in the name of honour.
– We will improve samhällsinformationen for the new arrivals. Schools must have the knowledge and be crystal clear with no oppression of girls allowed. It should be clear where to turn if you are a victim and need someone to talk with. We also need to increase the opportunities for social services to make efforts when the parents say no. Children’s rights should be at the centre.
She also takes up the draft legislation on crimes with hedersmotiv should get your own brottskod and able to be the basis for straffskärpning and to avoid children being taken out of the country. Even the rules for deportation of persons who are not Swedish citizens in conjunction with ‘honour’ crimes to be tightened up. As well as the law on child marriage.
In the parliament, see Åsa Lindhagen is no major dividing lines between the parties in respect of hedersförtrycket. There is also a tvärpolitiskt network against hedersförtryck with representatives of all parties except the sweden democrats.
” I look forward to a good dialogue on these issues in the future.
in the Inner series on hedersförtryck said Åsa Regnér, deputy director of the united nations agency UN Women, to work against hedersförtryck is one of our time’s most important gender equality issues. She is joined by Åsa Lindhagen.
I recently participated in the UN’s major annual women’s meeting in New York and stressed the fight against all forms of violence against women and children. There are, of course, the violence that is exercised in the name of honour.
All coercion and oppression of children is deplorable, and children who do not want to wear the veil should not need to do it.
As minister for gender equality Åsa Lindhagen is responsible for both discrimination and segregation. The veil has become a hot issue of concern to both discrimination and segregation. The debate is polarized into two camps. The veil has come to symbolize both freedom and oppression.
On the one side are those who want to normalize the veil. They think, therefore, that it is good that that businesses make use of the women in the veil in advertising. They also think that it is obvious that everyone should be able to wear the veil in Swedish workplaces, and that children should be able to wear the veil in school.
On the other hand, there are among other women who themselves had been forced to wear a veil as a child during his formative years in the Middle east, and see the veil as a symbol of the oppression of women and the culture of honor. They are critical towards women wearing the veil in Sweden and definitely don’t want that the children should have to wear the veil. Several advocates a slöjförbud on the children.
aware that the issue is infected and chooses her words carefully when she has to answer the question of how she looks at the use of the veil in Sweden.
She has a great understanding of women, with a background in the Middle east who see the veil as an expression of oppression.
– at the same time, women with the veil to be able to walk in the street without getting abuse hurled after him. We shall neither tolerate the coercion or hate crime. In this way, the question is not difficult, ” she says.
– All coercion and oppression of children is deplorable, and children who do not want to wear the veil should not need to do it.
