Sweden’s new Prime Minister, Social Democrat Magdalena Andersson, who previously served as finance minister, has a formidable task ahead of her: Dealing with the ever-growing gang violence and shootings in Swedish cities. Her predecessor, Stefan Löfven, notably failed even to contain the exponential growth in shootings during his seven-year tenure. Sweden’s parliament narrowly elected Andersson as Löfven’s successor in November, after Löfven announced his resignation in August.
“Sweden is a fantastic country, but we are facing a number of serious problems,” Andersson said. “I plan to lift every stone to break segregation and push back the violent crime which is plaguing Sweden…”
Sweden is facing much more than a “serious problem”. For years, Sweden has been breaking new criminal records, while refusing to talk openly about the link between migration and gang violence. This reticence may result from a combination of political correctness and Sweden’s fear of failing its own declared ambition of being the world’s “humanitarian superpower”. Already in 2019, leader of the opposition party Moderaterna, Ulf Kristersson, called the situation, “extreme for a country that is not at war”.
