Sweden Ending Open-Door Refugee Policy After Terror Attack

https://www.spencerfernando.com/2017/04/10/sweden-ending-open-door-refugee-policy-terror-attack/

PoliticsSpencerFernandoApril 10, 20170

In the wake of a horrific ISIS-inspired terrorist attack that killed 4 and left 15 injured, Sweden is changing course when it comes to refugee policy.

The killer – Rakhmat Akilov – was originally from Uzbekistan. He sought refugee status in Sweden, but was denied. He was told to leave the country, but no enforcement action was taken at the time the order was given. In fact, he was given a full four weeks to leave. When police went to check on him, they found he had given them a fake address, and they could not locate him.

Many refugees entered Sweden in 2015 during a mass migration. The Swedish government instituted an open-door policy, and this is the policy they are now rethinking after the horrible terror attack.

Sweden “Will Never Go Back” to mass migration policy

Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Löfven says he will change Sweden’s liberal approach to immigration. He says the country “will never go back,” to the policies of 2015 when they flung their doors wide open.

Said Löfven, “Sweden will never go back to the [mass migration] we had in autumn 2015, never. Everyone who has been denied a permit should return home. This makes me feel enormously frustrated. If you have been denied a visa you are supposed to leave the country.”

This is a far different tone than Sweden took previously. When US President Donald Trump mentioned unrest in Sweden a few months ago, the country took delight in ridiculing him and stating how safe and open Sweden is.

Nobody in Sweden is saying that anymore.

However, even with a change going forward, Sweden still faces serious problems. The Daily Mail reports that an estimated 3,000 migrants are living illegally in Sweden’s capital city of Stockholm at this very moment. 

Sweden will faces a pressing security challenge. Their intelligence agency – SAPO – has said Akilov had previously come to their attention. How he was able to evade deportation and resurface to commit an act of terror will certainly have to be dealt with in order to restore confidence in Sweden’s intel agency.

A lesson for Canada

The horrible events in Sweden, and their reversal on immigration policy, hold a lesson for Canada. Policies based on virtue-signalling and feel-good gestures are not without risk. No country can welcome everyone, and it is simply a fact that bringing people from dangerous parts of the world can increase the danger to citizens – no matter how welcoming the country may be or how many nice tweets are sent out.

Canada must take action to secure our borders, and make sure that the safety of our citizens is always the number one priority of the government – rather than seeking international “prestige.”

We must not make the same mistakes as Sweden.


Spencer Fernando