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OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHSM #0091 0571657
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O 261657Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5138
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV IMMEDIATE 1303

C O N F I D E N T I A L STOCKHOLM 000091 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/26/2020 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KISL SW
SUBJECT: SWEDISH SOCIAL DEMOCRATS REIN IN MALMO MAYOR'S 
PERCEIVED ANTI-SEMITISM 
 
REF: A. 2009 STOCKHOLM 784 
     ¶B. 2009 STOCKHOLM 787 
     ¶C. 2008 STOCKHOLM 849 
 
Classified By: DCM Robert Silverman, 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary: Following several attacks on the Jewish 
community in the Swedish city Malmo, comments by Mayor Ilmar 
Reepalu, a leading Social Democrat, caused a ruckus in 
national and international media.  Reepalu reportedly blamed 
the anti-Semitic harassment on Malmo's Jews themselves, 
because they did not take a clear stand against Israel's 
incursion into Gaza last winter.  We raised the issue with a 
key advisor to Social Democrat leader Mona Sahlin, and she 
spoke out February 25, telling reporters that Reepalu's 
remarks were "unfortunate" and that she had asked him to open 
a dialogue with Jewish leaders.  Comment: The Social 
Democrats, in a tight race for this September's parliamentary 
elections, do not need to alienate the general Swedish 
electorate by being seen as tarnishing Sweden's image as a 
place of tolerance welcome to all.  Sahlin's public reprimand 
of Reepalu is intended to underline that point to her 
countrymen.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) The Swedish regional paper Skanska Dagbladet ran a 
series of articles on anti-Semitism in January, in which 
Social Democrat Party (SDP) Mayor of Malmo Ilmar Reepalu was 
quoted as saying he opposed all forms of extremism, from 
Zionism to anti-Semitism.  He reportedly also said Malmo's 
Jews bore part of the responsibility for attacks against 
their community because they failed to criticize strongly 
Israeli actions in Gaza last winter.  Reepalu subsequently 
claimed he was deliberately misquoted.  However, in a 
February 21 article in the UK's Sunday Telegraph, Reepalu 
reportedly stated, "There have been no attacks on Jews, and 
if Jews here want to move to Israel, that is of no concern to 
Malmo."  In three recent editorials, national daily Svenska 
Dagbladet strongly criticized Mayor Reepalu for his 
statements. 
 
¶3. (C) DCM hosted a February 24 meeting for Leif Pagrotsky, a 
former Minister under SDP-led governments from 1996-2006 and 
a key advisor to SDP leader Mona Sahlin, to meet with the 
Ambassador.  We suggested that the Social Democrats had a 
Reepalu problem.  Pagrotsky, a leader in Stockholm's Jewish 
community, replied Reepalu is no anti-Semite.  Rather, he is 
a man who faces a very difficult situation running Malmo, 
where fully 50% of the city population of 280,000 is 
comprised of recently-arrived immigrants, half of whom are 
Muslim (Ref B).  Given the difficulties of integration and 
the overall economic slump of the past two years, Reepalu is 
faced with growing numbers of unemployed, restive young 
Muslim males (Note: Refs A and C report unemployment rates of 
more than 60% in the Malmo suburb of Rosengard, where several 
violent incidents occurred in 2009).  Pagrotsky stated that 
Reepalu's comments to the media had to be seen, in part, as 
an effort to keep inter-communal tensions from bubbling over 
even more -- but he also noted the need for a corrective 
public stance. 
 
¶4. (U) The next day, February 25, SDP leader Mona Sahlin 
weighed in.  "There have been many examples of discrimination 
and attacks against Jews, not least in Malmo.  The Jews 
deserve strong support and also one must never mix up the 
debate about anti-Semitism and Zionism," Sahlin told 
journalists.  "There are a number of unfortunate comments 
from Ilmar that came to be interpreted in that way," Sahlin 
commented, adding that she knows the popular SDP politician 
well enough to know that it was not what he meant. "Ilmar is 
no anti-Semite but is someone who fights racism, and he also 
is against the attacks sustained by Jews in Malmo.  I have 
asked him to open a proper dialogue with the Jewish community 
in Malmo in order to work things out," said Sahlin. 
 
¶5. (U) Also on February 25, Reepalu invited two Jewish 
community leaders in Malmo to a meeting.  Afterward, both 
parties said they were pleased with the outcome. "I think 
Reepalu gained a better understanding for the threats and 
harassment we are subjected to," said one Jewish community 
leader.  For his part, Reepalu told newsmen that the 
suggestion he is anti-Semitic "is completely absurd."  He 
indicated further that some sort of ongoing dialogue would 
commence. 
 
 
BARZUN