In a series of online posts, internet users have claimed that Sweden is “seeking to deport immigrants who have acquired Swedish citizenship” for having allegedly failed to “integrate into Western society.”
These posts have been doing the rounds on social media for months, with one shared in December amassing more than 4 million views.
However, the claim is misleading and does not fully align with the Swedish government’s position.
What is Swedish government’s stance on migration?
The Swedish government — composed of a centre-right coalition, propped up by the far-right Swedish Democrats (ECR) — has made cracking down on migration one of its key goals.
Although Sweden has been looking into changing its constitution to allow authorities to remove citizenship from dual nationals, this measure would target individuals who obtain their passports fraudulently or those who commit crimes which are considered a threat to national security.
As it stands, a vote is set to take place on the proposal in Sweden’s parliament next year.
The Swedish government has also backed a plan to introduce a compulsory course on knowledge of Swedish society and culture in citizenship tests.
According to Swedish officials, the test’s aim would be to exclude immigrants who are not integrated into Western society from obtaining citizenship.
Stockholm has also been developing financial repatriation incentives for individuals on a voluntary basis, as Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told Euronews earlier this year.
“If people who have the legal right to stay in Sweden but basically do not integrate, basically do not appreciate the Swedish way of life, at least people would think about returning to their country of origin,” Kristersson said in a May interview.
As part of this plan, Sweden wants to increase the amount of money offered to migrants as a financial incentive to leave the country from €900 to €32,000 from 1 January.
However this does not amount to forced deportations on grounds of not adhering to Western values, as social media users have suggested.
The Nordic nation began revamping its asylum policy in 2015, moving to a much stricter stance on application processing.
This policy shift came after Sweden hosted record numbers of asylum seekers in 2015 — more than 160,000 people — from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
The government’s policies have sparked criticism from migration organisations, who argue that they increase the risk of migrants facing discrimination, of heightening social tensions, as well as making integration more difficult for migrants.
