Civic Orientation in English “About Sweden” Is a Civic Orientation Handbook for Newly Arrived
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About Sweden Civic orientation in English “About Sweden” is a civic orientation handbook for newly arrived. The purpose of the book is to provide fundamental information about Sweden to people who have recently arrived in the country, as well as to provide support to municipalities in their civic orientation efforts. An ordinance governing work relating to civic orientation for newly arrived. (2010:1138) has been in force since 1 December 2010. This ordinance states that that goal of civic orientation is for participants to learn about: • human rights and fundamental democratic values, • the other rights and responsibilities of the individual, • how Swedish society is organised, and • practical aspects regarding everyday life. The ordinance also stipulates what civic orientation is to consist of. The ordinance has been used as a basis for the production of this book. “About Sweden” has been translated into eleven languages. All of these translations are available from the county administrative boards’ information portal for newly arrived, www.informationsverige.se The first edition of "About Sweden" was produced by the City of Gothenburg in 2010. The Västra Götaland County Administrative Board and the City of Gothenburg carry out regular revisions of the book together. This year’s edition, which is the seventh since 2010, has been revised by Pia Severinsson from the Västra Götaland County Administrative Board and Jakob Sandahl from the City of Gothenburg. Helene Holmström Talieh Ashjari Department Director, Integration Diversity Director Social Welfare Resource Unit for Social Sustainability Administration County Administrative Board of City of Gothenburg Västra Götaland March 2018 March 2018 Copyright: City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland Graphic design: Maria Nobel, Västra Götaland County Administrative Board Cover photo: Johan Ljungberg Printing: ISBN 978-91-984845-3-3 Photo: Maria Nobel Contents 1. Arriving in Sweden 7 Immigrating to Sweden 8 Integration in Sweden 13 Swedish history – from the Ice Age to the present day 15 Sweden in the 20th century 21 Is there anything typically Swedish? 25 Traditions and festivals in Sweden 29 Festivals observed throughout life 35 Discussion questions for Chapter 1 37 2. Living in Sweden 38 Geography, industry and infrastructure 39 Population 46 Housing 48 The environment, nature and environmental sustainability 57 How does your municipality work? 66 ManagingSafety and your security finances 7274 Discussion questions for Chapter 2 76 © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland About Sweden | 3 3. Supporting Yourself and Developing in Sweden 77 The Swedish labour market 78 Being employed 86 Looking for work 88 Starting your own business 94 Unemployment insurance 96 Paying taxes 97 Population registration 101 Social insurance 103 Living with disability 105 Free time and associations 114 Discussion questions for Chapter 3 120 4. The Individual's Rights and Obligations 122 Equality and human rights 123 Protection against discrimination 126 Family and individual 130 Children's rights 131 Men's violence against women and domestic violence 133 Discussion questions for Chapter 4 138 4 | About Sweden © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland 5. Building a Family and Living with Children in Sweden 139 Different ways to live together 140 Looking after children and young people 143 Childcare 150 Compulsory school 152 Upper-secondary school 154 Schools and democracy 156 Financial support for families 157 Discussion questions for Chapter 5 161 6. Having an Influence in Sweden 162 What is democracy? 163 The development of democracy 165 The emergence of democracy in Sweden 166 The democratic system in Sweden 168 Sweden's four fundamental laws 177 Political ideas and parties 178 The Swedish electoral system 180 Democracy between elections and in everyday life 184 Discussion questions for Chapter 6 186 © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland About Sweden | 5 7. Looking After Your Health in Sweden 187 What is health? 188 Alcohol, drugs and tobacco 193 Healthcare in Sweden 195 Contact with health services 197 Where do you turn? 198 Dental care 205 IfDiscussion you are not questions satisfied for Chapter 7 207208 8. Ageing in Sweden 209 Growing older 210 for the elderly 213 Activities and benefits Pensions 214 Care of the elderly 218 When someone passes away 219 Right of inheritance 221 Discussion questions for Chapter 8 224 All references 225 Index 227 6 | About Sweden © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland Photo: Colourbox 1. Arriving in Sweden Contents Immigrating to Sweden Integration in Sweden Swedish history – from the Ice Age to the present day Sweden in the 20th century Is there anything typically Swedish? Traditions and festivals in Sweden © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland About Sweden | 7 Immigrating to Sweden About 10 million people live in Sweden today. Of these about 3.5 million live in and around the country’s three biggest cities: Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö. Approximately 17 per cent of the Swedish population (or about 1.7 million people) was born abroad. Many people immigrated to Sweden over the course of the 20th century. In most of the years since the Second World War, Sweden has had a positive net migration rate, which means that more people have immigrated than have emigrated. In the 1950s and 60s, Sweden needed labour. People from countries close to Sweden moved here to work. Many people also moved here from Italy, Greece, Yugoslavia and Turkey. In the 1980s, people from South America, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey and Eritrea applied for asylum in Sweden. Later on came people from Somalia and eastern Europe. In 1999, the European Council decided that the European Union (EU) would draw up a common asylum and immigration policy. This policy is known as the Schengen Agreement. Sweden signed the Schengen Agreement in 2001. Under the agreement, anyone who is in one of the signatory countries legally is to be allowed to travel freely to other signatory countries, without having to show their passport when they cross borders. The Schengen Agreement led to more people seeking asylum at the beginning of the 21st century. Photo: Fanny Hansson, City of Gothenburg 8 | About Sweden © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland In Sweden, immigration is regulated on the basis of the Aliens Act, which contains rules on asylum, residence permits and In 2016, just familyover 163,000 reunification. persons immigrated to Sweden. Of these, 56 per cent were men and 44 per cent women. The total included about 15,000 Swedes returning to Sweden, but the biggest group of immigrants was from Syria. You can read more about the numbers on www.scb.se About 1.7 million people living in Sweden in 2016 were born in other countries. The table below shows immigration most common countries of birth. figures for 2017 from Statistics Sweden, arranged by the Source: Statistics Sweden Seeking asylum The UN Refugee Convention is a set of international rules for how the UN's member countries are to treat refugees. According to the convention, a refugee is someone who risks persecution because of their race, nationality, sexual orientation, religious or political ideas, gender or membership of a particular social group. The rule is that a person who is a refugee has to be granted asylum, regardless of which country it is they seek asylum in. Refugee Convention may have the right to a residence permit asEven a person someone in need who ofis notprotection. classified Under as a refugeethe Swedish under Aliens the UN Act, residence permits may be granted to persons eligible for subsidiary protection (as defined in the EU’s common rules). © City of Gothenburg and the County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland About Sweden | 9 The EU has common rules governing how countries are to determine whether a person is a refugee. As part of the asylum process, countries have to take into account various factors in the person's background and situation, what is considered persecution, what the situation is like in the person's country of origin, etc. If you have to apply for asylum in Sweden, you need to contact the Swedish Migration Agency. The Swedish Migration Agency is the central government agency responsible for examining asylum applications from people who want to visit, live in or apply for protection in Sweden or become a Swedish citizen. According to the Dublin Regulation, your asylum application fromhas to all be asylum investigated seekers in overthe first the ageEuropean of 14 in country order to you check reach. The Swedish Migration Agency takes finger prints Changesthat Sweden to is asylumthe first country. legislation The Swedish Riksdag has introduced a temporary law that limits the possibilities of asylum seekers and their families to obtain residence permits in Sweden. The new law came into force on 20 July 2016 and is intended to remain in force for three years. The law may also affect people who applied for asylum before 20 July 2016. You can read more about these changes on the Swedish Migration Agency’s website: www.migrationsverket.se Temporary residence permits The new law means that asylum seekers entitled to protection will receive a temporary residence permit in Sweden. Applicants who are deemed to be refugees will receive a residence permit valid for three years, and those deemed eligible for subsidiary protection will receive a residence permit valid for 13 months. If a person who has received a temporary residence permit is still entitled to protection when the residence permit expires, s/he may be granted an extension. A permanent residence permit may be issued if the person is able to support him/herself.