16. Peace, justice and strong institutions

The goal is about promoting peaceful, inclusive and just societies where no one is discriminated against on the basis of gender, ethnicity, religion or other beliefs, disability, age, gender identity or expression, or sexual orientation. This objective is achieved, among other things, by combating various forms of discrimination, violence and oppression, and efforts to combat corruption. Promoting and respecting human rights is a prerequisite for achieving the goal, but also for the 2030 Agenda as a whole and for the principle of leaving no one behind (Glokala Sverige, n.d.).

The goal in a local context

For the City of Malmö, this objective includes ensuring that activities are carried out in a legally secure and non-discriminatory manner and that all forms of corruption, bribery and welfare crime are prosecuted. This is important not least so that Malmö residents have confidence in their fellow human beings, in the municipality and its activities and in society at large and its various institutions. For the municipality, preventive measures in several different areas are important in achieving this goal, for example through work against violence in close relationships, work against gang crime, measures to create security and work against corruption, bribery and offences against the welfare system. It is also about enabling Malmö residents to participate in the development of society, a principle that is central to the human rights framework. Enabling participation requires, for example, access to accurate and relevant information.

What it looks like in Malmö

Safety

A peaceful and inclusive society requires safety and freedom from violence. Being unsafe in the local environment can have various consequences, including negatively affecting people's willingness to move around in public spaces or participate in social activities. A majority of Malmö residents feel safe when they are outdoors in the evening and it can also be seen that the proportion of Malmö residents, regardless of gender, who feel unsafe outdoors late at night has decreased over the period 2007-2023; from around 37 to around 29 per cent. Feelings of insecurity are more common among both women and men in Malmö compared with Police Region South and the rest of the country. Women report feeling unsafe outdoors to a greater extent than men, which is a pattern that is also found in Police Region South and the country as a whole. There are also major differences between different geographical areas within Malmö and there is a difference of more than 30 percentage points between the two areas of the city that report the lowest and highest levels of perceived insecurity among adults.

Even among young people in school year 9, a higher proportion of girls are unsafe when they are alone in their own neighbourhood at night, a pattern that has remained stable over time. An interesting difference is that the proportion of unsafe girls increased in each survey between 2012 and 2021 (from around 17 to 25 per cent), while boys experienced a decrease in unsafety during the same period (from around 9 to 8 per cent). The latest available survey in 2024 shows an increase in unsafety among boys (from around 8 to 11 per cent), while the trend is the opposite for girls (from around 25 to 20 per cent).

Over time, insecurity has been more prevalent among young Malmö residents with a non-European background compared to young people born in Sweden. For example, 21 per cent of young people with a non-European background reported feeling unsafe in 2016 compared to 14 per cent of those born in Sweden. In 2024, the corresponding figures were around 20 per cent and 15 per cent respectively. As in the adult population, insecurity among young people differs depending on where they live in the city. In one area of the city, less than one in ten young people report feeling unsafe when walking in their neighbourhood at night, compared to one in four young people in another area.

Exposure to physical violence

Physical violence contributes to an increased sense of insecurity not only for the individual but also for society as a whole. The occurrence of violence also undermines interpersonal trust and confidence in society's ability to protect the individual from violence. In terms of different types of violent crime, such as attempted murder, assault and robbery, the long-term trend for Malmö shows that violent crime has decreased by 20 percentage points over the period 2011-2023. From being slightly lower than Stockholm, but higher than Gothenburg and the country, there was a break in the trend in 2021 and Malmö has since been marginally above Stockholm. Only a very small proportion of the population report having been subjected to physical violence in the past 12 months; in 2023, 1.4 per cent of Malmö residents reported having been subjected to violence. More men than women report having been victims of violence. There is a higher proportion of women and men in Malmö who say they have been subjected to physical violence compared to the country and Police Region South.

Children may be considered to have a special status as being in need of special protection, and over time new legislation has been introduced that has strengthened the child as a rights bearer. One way of monitoring the development of children's exposure to violence in close relationships is to look at the number of child cases (police reports) received by the Police's unit for offences in close relationships (BINR) in Malmö. Children's cases* include both crimes against the child itself and crimes where a child has witnessed violence perpetrated by a close relative against another close relative (so-called child peace crimes). In 2022, 985 offences against children were reported in Malmö linked to intimate partner violence. Of these, crimes against children accounted for around 30 per cent (283). It is important to bear in mind that when it comes to child protection offences, more than one child can be the victim of the same crime, but only one report is made. This means that in reality, more children may be affected than the number of reports made.

*The offences of child cruelty include more than just those that can be categorised as physical violence. The offences listed in the provision are murder, manslaughter, assault, aggravated assault or particularly aggravated assault, kidnapping, unlawful detention, unlawful compulsion, aggravated unlawful compulsion, unlawful threats, aggravated unlawful threats, trespass or molestation, rape, aggravated rape, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, rape of a child, aggravated rape of a child, sexual exploitation of a child, sexual assault of a child, aggravated sexual assault of a child or sexual molestation, criminal damage and criminal damage (Sveriges riksdag, u. å.)

Abusive treatment and hate crime

Another aspect of peaceful and inclusive societies is not being subjected to abusive treatment or discrimination on the basis of, for example, gender, skin colour or sexual orientation. The Equality Ombudsman (DO) has stated that discrimination is a widespread and complex social problem that affects people's living conditions, but that at the same time there is a lack of data that provides a comprehensive description of the prevalence of discrimination (DO 2023). Given this, the survey data shows a positive development in Malmö over the period 2008-2022 in terms of experiences of offensive treatment. Among men, the proportion who stated that they had been subjected to discrimination fell from 30 to 16 per cent and for women from 34 to 24 per cent. Between 2019 and 2022, there is a slight increase among women, while the trend continues to decrease for men. There is a higher proportion of men and women in Malmö who state that they have been subjected to offensive behaviour compared with Skåne and the rest of Sweden. There are also clear differences between different geographical areas in Malmö, between different employment categories and regions of birth and age groups when it comes to experiences of offensive treatment. Gender and ethnicity are common reasons among Malmö residents who say they have been subjected to offensive treatment.

In terms of hate crime, the number of reported cases increased between 2020 and 2022, from 49 to 55 per 100 000 inhabitants. More hate crimes per 100 000 inhabitants were reported in Malmö than in Stockholm, Gothenburg and the country in both 2020 and 2022. While the number of hate crimes decreased in Stockholm and Gothenburg between the two years, they have increased in Malmö. The most common hate crimes in Malmö are xenophobic/racist, followed by Islamophobic and antisemitic hate crimes. Here too, the uncertainty in the statistics should be noted. For example, BRÅ (2023) and the Police Authority's National Operations Department (2022) have pointed out that the statistics do not reflect the incidence, as a large proportion of hate crimes are never reported to the police. It is difficult to know whether the level of victimisation is actually higher in Malmö or whether the propensity to report is higher, but in general this is a type of crime that is rarely reported.

Police visibility

The visibility of the police in public space is important in terms of citizens' perceptions of safety. When asked whether citizens perceive that the police care about the problems that exist in the residential and local environment, the trend is positive during the years 2015-2022; between 49 and 56 per cent of Malmö residents have expressed this opinion. The change is mainly driven by the fact that men are less likely than before to think that the police care about local problems. Over time, men have expressed the view that the police care about local problems to a greater extent than women, but in the 2023 survey this gender difference has disappeared. It can also be noted that there are large differences between different geographical areas in Malmö; there is a difference of almost 30 percentage points between the area that thinks the police care about local problems and the area that shares this opinion to the lowest extent. In comparison with the Police Region South and the country as a whole, there is also a higher proportion in Malmö who believe that the police care about local problems.

Electoral participation

In an inclusive society, it is important that people feel they have the opportunity to influence decisions that affect their lives. One way to get a picture of participation and influence is to study how voter turnout looks over time and differences between different groups. When it comes to turnout in municipal council elections, it has increased since 2002, but decreased in the 2022 election. Malmö has a lower turnout than Stockholm, Gothenburg and the country as a whole, and this pattern has persisted throughout the measurement period. Voter turnout also differs between different groups. Over time, women have had a higher turnout than men. Although turnout declined among both women and men in the 2022 elections, turnout declined more among men than women. Turnout is higher in the 50-64 and 60+ age groups than in other age groups. It is higher among those with post-secondary education than among those with lower education. It is also higher among native-born than foreign-born Malmö residents. When it comes to turnout in the parliamentary elections, the trends are similar to those for the municipal council elections; there is a continuous increase over time and then a decrease in connection with the 2022 elections. Turnout is also lower in Malmö than in Stockholm, Gothenburg and the country as a whole. As was the case for the municipal council elections, turnout was higher among women, people with higher education and among Malmö residents born in Sweden.

Corruption and welfare crime

The existence of corruption and welfare crime damages trust in society and its institutions as well as trust between people. If this crime is allowed to spread, it can ultimately lead to a weakening of democracy. There is currently no national definition of welfare crime, but SKR believes that it is ‘when an external actor - a company or private individual - improperly utilises funds from municipalities or regions for their own gain’ (SKR, n.d.). Welfare crime and unauthorised influence can occur in many of the municipality's activities; for example, LSS activities, mediation of rental contracts, financial assistance and construction and development activities.

It is difficult to obtain figures, both nationally and locally, on how widespread the problem of welfare crime and corruption is. It is also difficult to set measurable indicators to follow up the work. In Malmö, work is underway to create structures and procedures to prevent, detect and deal with crime. Since 2020, the work has been based on an action plan developed in collaboration with authorities such as the Swedish Tax Agency, the Police, the Social Insurance Agency and the Swedish Public Employment Service. The action plan is divided into four focus areas:

• Individuals (financial assistance, personal assistance)
• Businesses and associations
• Purchasing and procurement
• Unauthorised influence and internal irregularities

Controls to prevent and detect irregularities are being continuously developed, which has primarily led to a reduction in incorrect payments, but also to an increase in recoveries and police reports. In the area of purchasing and procurement, support in the form of internal networks and improved IT support has begun to be built up. A special follow-up function with the main focus on social conditions in contracts is being built up within the city's central procurement function. Unauthorised influence and internal irregularities are included as focus areas in the action plan based on the insight that the ‘outside’ and ‘inside’ are not infrequently linked when it comes to welfare crimes and other irregularities. This simply means that there is a party on the inside of an organisation that allows itself to be influenced to perform an unauthorised or inappropriate act and a party on the outside that exerts pressure. The people operating on the inside of an organisation are nowadays referred to as enablers.

Indicators

16.1 Reported violent crimes, number per 100,000

16.2 Lack of trust in others, percentage (%)

16.3 Physical violence, percentage (%)

16.4 Hate crimes, number per 100,000 inhabitants

16.5 Offensive treatment, percentage (%)

16.6 Feeling unsafe outdoors alone late at night, adults, percentage (%)

16.7 Feeling unsafe outdoors in the neighborhood in the evening, 9th graders, percentage (%)

16.8 The police care about local problems, percentage (%)

16.9 Vandalism, percentage (%)

16.10 Theft, percentage (%)

16.11 Voter turnout in municipal elections, percentage (%)

16.12 Voter turnout in parliamentary elections, percentage (%)

16.13 Domestic violence, child-related cases, number

Referenser

BRÅ (2023). Polisanmälda hatbrott 2022. Teknisk rapport. Rapport 2023:17. Tillgänglig: https://bra.se/rapporter/arkiv/2023-12-07-polisanmalda-hatbrott-2022

Diskrimineringsombudsmannen (DO) (2023). Förekomst av diskriminering. Årlig rapport från Diskrimineringsombudsmannen. Rapport 2023:3. Tillgänglig: https://www.do.se/kunskap-stod-och-vagledning/publikationer-om-diskriminering/2023/forekomst-av-diskriminering-2023

Glokala Sverige (u.å). Arbetsbok – Agenda 2030. Tillgänglig: https://fn.se/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Arbetsbok_Glokala_Sverige_2021.pdf

Polismyndigheten, Nationella operativa avdelningen (2022). Hatbrott och andra brott som hotar demokratin. Delredovisning 1. Tillgänglig: https://www.levandehistoria.se/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redovisning-Hatbrott-och-andra-brott-som-hotar-demokratin.pdf

SKR (u.å.). Välfärdsbrottslighet är demokratihotande. Tillgänglig: https://skr.se/skr/demokratiledningstyrning/hotmotdemokratiochsamhallssystem/valfardsbrottslighet.377.html

Sveriges riksdag (u.å.). Svensk författningssamling. Tillgänglig: Brottsbalk (1962:700) | Sveriges riksdag