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Introduction to the Human Rights Strategy Introduction to the Human Rights Strategy Human rights apply to everyone, always and everywhere. They apply in Sweden and in other countries. This ought to be obvious, but we live in a time when the protection of and respect for human rights in the world at large is being weakened and questioned. This makes it particularly important that international human rights conventions and norms are taken very seriously. The Government of Sweden’s goal for its human rights policy has been set ambitiously; namely to guarantee full respect for Sweden’s international commitments on human rights. As part of its work towards this goal, on 13 October 2016 the Government adopted this strategy for its national efforts on human rights. Through this strategy, the Government has established a platform for its continuing efforts towards achieving this goal. The implication of the strategy is that compliance with Sweden’s international commitments on human rights cannot be taken for granted in either the short or long term. Instead, further steps must be taken towards a coherent structure for the promotion and protection of human rights. In this strategy, the Government has formed the assessment that a coherent structure ought to consist of the following parts: • Strong legal and institutional protection for human rights by means of an independent institution for the protection of human rights; • Coordinated and systematic work with human rights within the public services sector; and • Strong support for work with human rights in civil society and in business. This publication is an abridged version and contains the Government of Sweden’s strategy for national work with human rights. The Government’s complete, unabridged strategy also includes a progress report on Sweden’s international commitments on human rights (Part II). This publication is also available in Swedish. It is my hope that these publications will be disseminated widely. For it is together that we can build a strong society with full respect for human rights. Alice Bah Kuhnke Minister for Culture and Democracy Table of contents 1. Preparatory inquiry .......................................................................... 7 2. A policy based on Sweden’s international human rights commitments ....................................................................................... 9 3. The Government’s strategy for national efforts with human rights ..................................................................................... 15 3.1 A coherent structure for promotion and protection .................................. 15 3.2 Further steps towards a coherent structure ................................................. 18 3.3 A strategy rather than an action plan ............................................................ 19 4. Strong legal and institutional protection of human rights ............... 23 4.1 A national human rights institution .............................................................. 23 4.2 Enhanced legal protection through the incorporation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child ....................................................... 33 4.3 Overview of the application in Sweden of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights .............................................................................................. 37 5. Coordinated and systematic work with human rights within the public services sector .................................................................. 39 5.1 The responsibility of government agencies for human rights .................. 39 5.2 Work at the national level .............................................................................. 40 5.2.1 Improved convention implementation reviews .................................. 40 5.2.2 Human rights education for state employees ...................................... 41 5.2.3 Translation of rulings by the European Court of Human Rights .... 43 5.3 Work at the municipal and regional levels ................................................... 43 5.3.1 Agreement with the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions ....................................................................................................... 43 5.3.2 Human rights as an integral part of the county administrative board’s work ...................................................................................................... 47 5.4 Efforts in schools, higher education institutions and adult education .... 49 5.4.1 Overview of access to educational material in schools...................... 49 5.4.2 Overview of how human rights are respected in some higher education programmes leading to a professional qualification .................. 50 5.4.3 Efforts in adult education ...................................................................... 51 6. Strong support for work with human rights in civil society and in business ............................................................................................ 53 6.1 Improved consultation with civil society ..................................................... 53 6.2 The Government’s action plan for business and human rights ............... 54 6.3 State-owned enterprise ................................................................................... 56 7. The Government will monitor and evaluate the strategy ............... 59 1. Preparatory inquiry The Government of Sweden (the Government) has previously presented two human rights action plans. In 2002, the Government presented the official communication “A National Action Plan on Human Rights (Skr. 2001/02:83) to the Riksdag. The Action Plan referred to the period 2002–2004. In 2006, an equivalent action plan for the period 2006–2009 was presented (Skr. 2005/06:95). As part of the implementation of the latter of these two action plans, the Government established the Delegation for Human Rights in Sweden (the Delegation), tasked with inter alia submitting proposals on how support for efforts towards full respect for human rights in Sweden should be framed (Terms of Reference/dir. 2006:27). In October 2010, the Delegation submitted its final report Ny struktur för skydd av mänskliga rättigheter (SOU 2010:70) (New structure for the protection of human rights). This report was subject to a consultation procedure, and a summary of responses is available from the Ministry of Culture (Ku2015/00006/DISK). After the implementation period of the action plan, the Government appointed an evaluator (the Evaluator) to evaluate the action plan, and on the basis of this evaluation to provide recommendations for continued systematic work with human rights at the national level (Terms of Reference/dir. 2009:118). In March 2011, the Evaluator submitted his report entitled Samlat, genomtänkt och uthålligt? En utvärdering av regeringens nationella handlingsplan för mänskliga rättigheter 2006–2009 (SOU 2011:29) (coherent, well-planned and sustainable? An evaluation of the Government’s national plan of action on human rights). The report, which does not contain any proposals but only recommendations for national work with human rights, has not been subject to a consultation procedure. In November 2015, the Ministry of Culture held an open consultation meeting with civil society organisations on the Government’s new strategy for human rights. The minutes from the open consultation meeting and the written comments from the organisations that were subsequently received are available from the Ministry of Culture (Ku2015/02543/DISK). This strategy for working with human rights at the national level deals with parts of the Delegation’s proposals and the Evaluator’s recommendations. Those parts that are not dealt with here may be the subject of further inquiry in another context. Ministry of Culture 7 2. A policy based on Sweden’s international human rights commitments Human rights are a key part of international law. They are fundamental to the maintenance of peace, security and sustainable development in all its dimensions, and constitute a global agreement on the inviolability of human dignity. They represent a promise to future generations that the hard-won lessons from the twentieth century have not been in vain, but that the international community has been able to translate those lessons into a stable international legal structure. The UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 entrenched not only the central role of human rights for the international community, individual countries and individuals, but also the close connection between human rights, democracy, and the rule of law as fundamental for freedom, justice, and peace. After the Second World War, this connection created a new, common foundation for the international community. It was followed by the legally binding International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights, and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Subsequently, within the United Nations, a number of instruments for the protection of particularly vulnerable individuals were developed in areas in which a special need for protection had become apparent. A majority of the world’s states have acceded to these instruments, including Sweden. These instruments include the Conventions on the Rights of the Child, on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, as well as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. In various regional forums around the world, intergovernmental
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