Child Rape in Sweden

Down with rape culture. It became a rallying cry for the woke feminist left. Cynicism aside, how could anyone disagree?

And yet, in the Feminist Paradise of Sweden, ruled by a coalition of Social Democrats and Greens—that is, a woke leftist coalition—the government has been condoning child rape. But, only when it is carried out by Muslim migrants. 

The Swedish government and everyone else, it seems, use the term “child marriage,” but, frankly, what would you call it when a nine year old girl is married against her will to a thirty or forty year old man she does not know. Surely, she cannot consent. Surely, she cannot consent to consummate the marriage. 

And yet, in some communities, child marriage is accepted as a way to preserve family honor. Someone should point out that just because think it is honorable to marry a child does not make it honorable. And just because you think that you are preserving family honor by murdering your teenage daughter does not make you any less depraved.

But, the exquisitely multicultural Swedes are trying to find an accommodation. Because we must accept that everyone’s culture is equal, don’t you think?

Politico has the story (via Maggie’s Farm):

A row over how to deal with child marriage among immigrants has inflamed political debate ahead of a general election in Sweden, where migration continues to divide public opinion and the far right is riding high in the polls.

A tug-of-war between the ruling Social Democrat-Green Party coalition and the opposition over the government’s role in managing or eradicating the practice — which predominantly affects young girls, and in some cases boys, from immigrant backgrounds — is emblematic of a broader struggle to find a balance between efforts to integrate a large number of new immigrants and preserve a Swedish way of life.

Sweden does not allow child marriage when it takes place in Sweden, but it has recognized marriages between adults and children if they were performed abroad. Of course, once the child brides are brought to Sweden, they will be raped. The woke feminist Swedes do not seem to care:

Although Sweden in 1973 banned marriages in which one or both parties is underage, it was possible under some circumstances to get special dispensation. The previous center-right government tightened the law in 2014, amid growing awareness of the prevalence of so-called honor-related oppression — including forced marriage — among some immigrant communities.

Still, marriages between underaged partners are recognized — and not annulled — if carried out abroad. The government has come under pressure to close that legal loophole and invalidate all marriages that involve minors. But it declined to vote for a proposal — put forward by parliament’s committee on civil affairs this spring — that would do so, saying it was formulating its own plan to tighten existing laws.

Now, the government is trying to remedy the situation:

The government’s proposal — which it finally put forward in May — would mean Sweden does not recognize marriages carried out abroad where one or both parties were under 18. It would also require spouses who are over 18 when they arrive in Sweden (but married when they were underage) to renew their vows in order to be legally recognized as married. However, critics say it is unclear how authorities would enforce the rule in practice.

A government pamphlet issued by its National Board of Health and Welfare and targeted at adults with underage spouses also drew fierce criticism, including from Cabinet ministers, for treating the issue too lightly and not clearly communicating that child marriage is against both Swedish law and cultural norms.

The opposition Liberal Party— being of the right— has proposed its own measures. It is trying to shut down both child marriage and female genital mutilation—carried out when girls are taken to foreign countries:

In June, three weeks after the government finally presented its proposed legal amendment, the Liberal Party presented its own list of proposed measures to tackle honor-based oppression, which party leader Jan Björklund called “the greatest challenge to equality” in Sweden.

The proposals included travel bans for families suspected of planning to bring their daughters abroad to marry them off or to have them undergo female genital mutilation. Under the Liberals’ proposal, authorities would also be able to confiscate families’ passports and make parents attend meetings with social services. They also proposed tougher punishments for those found guilty of forced marriage, as well as the extradition of foreigners convicted of crimes with honor motives.

It ought to be an easy matter. There should be no debate about whether to countenance child rape. And yet, in feminist Sweden the keepers of multicultural political correctness seem not to be able to address the issue forcefully. After all, they do not want to hurt anyone’s feelings and do not want to to offend anyone's cultural practices, no matter how barbaric and criminal they are.