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DEMOCRACY

Egyptians in Sweden: Tunisia was the trigger

Egyptians in Sweden plan to demonstrate in solidarity with protesters in their home country as Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt slammed Egyptian authorities for shutting down internet access.

Egyptians in Sweden: Tunisia was the trigger
Protests in Egypt on Friday

Egyptians in Sweden are planning to gather in Sergels Torg in central Stockholm on Friday evening in support of the protesters taking to the streets back home.

“We put the word out via Facebook to Egyptians in Sweden. We’ve been communicating actively since the protests started in Egypt,” Kholoud Saad, and Egyptian living in Gävle in eastern Sweden, told The Local.

Saad has been living and working in Sweden since July of 2010, but has been following events in her home country carefully. She described the current protests as a “revolution”.

“It’s Muslims, Christians, moderates, liberals…Egyptians of all kinds who are fighting for their freedoms,” she said.

“We’re not going to stop until we established democratic reforms and get a government that represents the people and not their own agenda.”

The Friday night gathering in Stockholm was initiated by Hassam Selim, an Egyptian living in the Swedish capital.

“There is a big revolution sweeping across the Arab world,” he told The Local.

“We want to support them. I’m an Egyptian and it’s my country and we’re all looking for our freedom…it will be great to see 80 million Egyptians regain their humanity.”

In a statement issued on Friday, Bildt said Egypt’s decision to shut down the internet as “almost unprecedented”.

“I have not been able to come up with any previous example of this happening other than in Burma in 2007,” he said.

“Obviously, the future of Egypt cannot be shaped by closing the internet – instead it must be shaped by opening up the political system.”

Bildt’s comments come amid continued demonstrations in the Egyptian capital of Cairo and Alexandria. The protests, which began on Monday, are considered to be the largest anti-government protests since 1977.

The pro-democracy demonstrators are pushing for regime change in the North African country, which has been ruled by President Hosni Mubarak since 1981.

While Saad explained that pro-democracy forces in Egypt have been organising for more than a year, the recent political upheaval in Tunisia played a role in bringing Egyptians to the streets.

“Tunisia was the trigger,” she said.

“We saw what they were doing and said why not try to do it like they did in Tunisia.”

Egyptians are set to head to the polls in September for presidential elections which Bildt said were of “vital importance”, but it remains unclear what effect current events may have on the country’s political future.

Saad said she was looking forward to demonstrating with other Egyptians in Sweden, but admitted it was hard to be away from her home country.

“I’m boiling with anger and want to get on the first plane back so I can be there,” she said, adding that the current regime was “putting Egypt back in the dark ages” by shutting down communications.

Bildt also slammed the government’s decision to close down the internet as “downright dangerous”.

“In the long run, free access to information is better for confidence and stability than restrictions and prohibitions,” said Bildt.

“Measures such as this, that aim at short-term stability, may very well lead to more long-term suppression.”

According to the Swedish foreign ministry, around 250,000 Swedes visit Egypt annually, primarily as tourists.

While the ministry has stopped short of issuing a travel warning for Egypt, it is advising Swedes to follow developments closely and avoid areas where demonstrations are taking place.

Selim estimated that Friday’s demonstration in Stockholm would likely draw about 200 people, but that other demonstrations are being planned for next week.

“Things in Egypt are happening so fast, it’s hard to keep up,” he said.

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PROTESTS

Calls for special police tactics to be available across Sweden

The chairwoman of the Police Association West Region has said that police special tactics, known as Särskild polistaktik or SPT, should be available across Sweden, to use in demonstrations similar to those during the Easter weekend.

Calls for special police tactics to be available across Sweden

SPT, (Särskild polistaktik), is a tactic where the police work with communication rather than physical measures to reduce the risk of conflicts during events like demonstrations.

Tactics include knowledge about how social movements function and how crowds act, as well as understanding how individuals and groups act in a given situation. Police may attempt to engage in collaboration and trust building, which they are specially trained to do.

Katharina von Sydow, chairwoman of the Police Association West Region, told Swedish Radio P4 West that the concept should exist throughout the country.

“We have nothing to defend ourselves within 10 to 15 metres. We need tools to stop this type of violent riot without doing too much damage,” she said.

SPT is used in the West region, the South region and in Stockholm, which doesn’t cover all the places where the Easter weekend riots took place.

In the wake of the riots, police unions and the police’s chief safety representative had a meeting with the National Police Chief, Anders Tornberg, and demanded an evaluation of the police’s work. Katharina von Sydow now hopes that the tactics will be introduced everywhere.

“This concept must exist throughout the country”, she said.

During the Easter weekend around 200 people were involved in riots after a planned demonstration by anti-Muslim Danish politician Rasmus Paludan and his party Stram Kurs (Hard Line), that included the burning of the Muslim holy book, the Koran.

Police revealed on Friday that at least 104 officers were injured in counter-demonstrations that they say were hijacked by criminal gangs intent on targeting the police. 

Forty people were arrested and police are continuing to investigate the violent riots for which they admitted they were unprepared. 

Paludan’s application for another demonstration this weekend was rejected by police.

In Norway on Saturday, police used tear gas against several people during a Koran-burning demonstration after hundreds of counter-demonstrators clashed with police in the town of Sandefjord.

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