January Blog

Just as we are gearing up for Christmas and looking forward to some peace and quiet during the last days of 2010, two terrorist bombs explode in central Stockholm. As you can read in our "First Page News" (on page 9), a mass casualty incident was luckily averted, albeit narrowly, with the only loss of life being that of the perpetrator.

In 2004 Osama Bin Laden, in a video broadcast on al-Jazeera, explained why Sweden would not be an al-Qaeda target. According to some experts there has not been a change in this state of affairs, and the explosions on Drottninggatan may have been the work of a lone jihadist. We will in all likelihood never get the full story behind the first terrorism attack in the history of Sweden.

What we are left with is a feeling of disbelief, outrage and, above all, insecurity. My daughter works just around the corner from where the explosions went off. If you have been in Stockholm you are sure to have been at this spot. Things like this are just not supposed to happen in the city I grew up in.

This is a brutal reminder that Sweden is now both a participant and a target in the war against terrorism. The country, that prides itself as a fair and generous champion of the third world, has truly lost its innocence.

Domestically Swedes, with their open democracy, have to tackle the issue of how to guard civil liberties while meeting 21st century security threats. This is especially problematic in light of the profound changes in the country’s demographics that have put new strains on the tradition for consensual, enlightened politics. The issue of home-grown terrorism must be tackled head-on without any political correctness. An open debate on issues such as this is vital if Sweden is to remain the open, democratic and secure society we all have such great love and admiration for.

Happy New Year

Anders

PS. Every month in 2011 we will bring you a portrait of a famous Swedish birthday boy or girl. We start with August Strindberg (on page 16) and invite your comments. For those of you who keep all magazines we provide an Index to 2010 (on page 4). Check out everything we covered and let us know if you think we are on the right track. Your feedback is very important to us!