TNAG-2182-FCO40-3119-Hong-Kong-nationality-international-support-1990 — Page 196

JL Buchanan Esq

WED

FCO

Dear Les

街

INCIDENTS INVOLVING IMMIGRANTS

Summary

1.

BRITISH EMBASSY

STOCKHOLM

31 May 1990

нко

RECEIVED A

DESK OFFICER

OLISTRY

12 JUL 1990

340/1

INDEX

PA

REGISTR

Action iskemi

A series of incidents involving immigrants is giving rise to concern. The size of the immigrant population continues to grow and reception arrangements for asylum-seekers are over-

The cost to public 29,000 await work permits. stretched.

There is an under-current of funds is attracting criticism. racism. The background to

own attempts to persuade the boat people. Swedes to accept more

Detail

our

some

over the past for concern. These

Typically

2. A series of incidents involving damage to property and injury to persons at immigrant reception centres few weeks has been giving increasing cause incidents have escalated over the last ten days. they involve fire-raising and take place at night, at reception centres in small communities with little previous contact with foreigners. There has been much damage to property, in some cases to buildings prepared for the reception of immigrants but not yet taken into use. There has been some minor injury to persons. Although the technical inquiry is not yet complete, it is widely suspected that the total destruction a fortnight ago of Stockholm's 17th century Katarina Church may have been fire-raising connected with its role in giving sanctuary earlier The homes of this year to immigrants threatened with expulsion. a couple of immigrant religious leaders have been attacked.

3. The situation is now worrying, particularly as opposition to the admission of so many immigrants into Sweden is not confined only to right-wing extremists, as protest meetings at local centres have shown. The background is the growing size and

One in six of all changing nature of the immigrant population.

One in eight is now Stockholmers is now of non-Swedish origin.

a whole. The largest of foreign origin in the country as

now

persons of

groups already established in Sweden comprise Nordic origin. But the dominating group coming into Sweden now comes from the Middle East. There were 62,000 new arrivals last year: the figure for the first quarter this year was 20,000. The pressure on immigration services was such that the Government was forced, at the end of last year, to tighten up its interpretation of what constitutes refugee status: not unexpectedly, this produced unrest among asylum-seekers already in Sweden. It had little effect in reducing the influx. Given the numbers, 29,000 in reception centres awaiting work

But some have been waiting for years permits is not excessive. rather than months and there are a further 7,000 with permits still in reception centres because the immigration service cannot find local councils prepared to accept them for resettlement. All in all, it is a high figure for Sweden, and they cost money Processing to local authorities as well as central government.

is time-consuming and until processing is complete and the way clear for a work permit, nothing can be done to obtain employment. The populations of the reception centres live on social assistance and an assortment of grants, paid for out of public funds. Critics say they are "being paid to do nothing": a year or two ago, when there was unemployment, they were "taking jobs away from our own youngsters".

There is

-

moreoever Extremists a growing undercurrent of racism in the criticism.

to forment on the right have seen an opportunity in recent years

What is new is the openness trouble among skinheads and the like. with which many more law-abiding citizens are voicing their opposition. There seems to be some resurgence of xenophobia, long buried as not respectable, and it is directed primarily at the refugees of Middle Eastern origin, with their different cultural and religious background. Muslims in Stockholm and Gothenburg, for example, have found seemingly endless obstacles placed in their way when trying to get permission to build mosques. Swedes have long ceased to be serious Christians, but they react sharply to anything else as dangerous supersition. Reports of political killings among, for example, the Kurdish community, and the appearance of terrorists in other immigrant communities in Sweden have added an element of physical fear.

4.

It is no exaggeration to say that there have been incidents every night over the past ten days. Commenting at the weekend, Prime Minister Ingvar Carlsson said that it was clear the attacks were not spontaneous, but the work of groups intent on building up opinion against the refugees. Reports of isolated

the country. incidents had been coming in all spring from all over The escalation was alarming because of the risk of a chain-reaction. He had seen samples of a letter campaign falsely claiming that refugees enjoyed a financially privileged situation. physical attacks on the reception centres were criminal acts Both and firm measures would have to be taken to stop them. Carlsson and Ms Maj-Lis Loow, the Minister for Immigrant Affairs, appealed over t he

weekend

to help counter-act to popular movements

The

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