A Swedish music festival specifically focussing on themes like “the fight against racism”, multiculturalism, and combating sexual harassment has been rocked by multiple reports of sexual assault and rape.
Taking place last week and over the weekend, the ‘Peace & Love’ festival in Borlange, Sweden, describes itself as a “tribute to the millions of people around the world who struggle for a better society”, and welcomed approximately 30,000 young people to enjoy both music and political events. Yet despite the vegetarian festival launching an anti-sex crime initiative this year, police are now investigating sexual abuse at the festival by what are reported to have been “foreign men”.
Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN) reports police have received “dozens of complaints of sexual offences”, including a rape, attempted rape, and sexual molestations. According to reports the rape victim was under the age of 18 and was attacked while in the audience of a concert at the festival. She was taken to hospital following her ordeal.
DN and other Swedish newspapers chose not to reveal the identities of the three known suspects who were arrested at the festival on Saturday, but later released, because they were under-age; but FriaTider (Free Times) reported the remarks of police spokesman Stefan Dangardt who identified them as “foreign men”.
When asked for more details on the attackers the police officer told FriaTider that he could not view the arrest file because it had been “access-protected” on police computers.
Presumably aware of the migrant sex crimes wave that has been sweeping Swedish festivals for years, and barely spoken about until now, the Peace & Love festival proudly proclaimed their “U Can’t Touch This!” initiative for this year’s event. Writing of “taking a tough stand against sexual harassment during the festival”, the organisers said they had entered into collaboration with a local “anti-discrimination” legal centre and women’s shelter, who were providing “officers” for the event.
The dedicated anti-sexual assault page explained the motivation behind the apparently failed initiative, remarking that the festival “takes its responsibility to clearly show it takes human rights seriously”, and that “no one has the right to… offend anyone, whether there is a sexual basis or not”.
Reports of mass sex assaults at Swedish music festivals are becoming a near-weekly occurrence during the height of summer. Breitbart London reported last week on the Bravalla Festival in Norrkoping, at which five rapes and 40 assaults took place, in which the attackers were also identified as foreigners. The week before Breitbart London reported more attacks at the Putte i Parken festival in Karlstad which saw 35 complaints to police by young women after sexual attacks by “foreign young men”.
Follow Oliver Lane on Twitter: Follow @Oliver_Lane or e-mail to: olane@breitbart.com
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