SUMMARY IN ENGLISH
CONTRA # 5 1998
Early proponent of euthanasia was appointed social democratic cabinet
member
This year, 53 years after the end of WWII, some writers are claiming that
Sweden helped Germany through its trade connections and that Sweden partly
was co-responsible for the genocide and euthanaisa of Nazi Germany. If we
look at the euthanasia the claim has certain grounds. A Swedish philosopher
forwarded similar plans already in 1921, when the Parliament discussed the
abolishment of the death penalty (in peace time). The philosopher's name
was Arthur Engberg, he was later editor in chief of the official newspaper
of the Social Democratic Party, and Secretary of Education in the Social
Democratic Cabinet.
The Norweigian Government robbed "an enemy of Norway" until
early 1998 - her only crime was that she married a German citizen in 1923
Helga Gran married Hans Reuter in 1923. All the time until the spring 1998
the Norwegian government took its revenge on this crime, marrying a German.
By marrying a German citizen Helga Reuter turned into an enemy of Norway
17 years later when Germany attacked and occupied Norway. She was punished
by loss of her Norwegian assets. Through the years the Norwegian government
confiscated assets valued at more than 1 million dollars and she was even
refused to get a brooch as inheritance from her sister. Helga Reuter was
many times refused - by the government and even by the King - to get a rehabilitation.
It should be added that her husband Hans spent time in a SS prison at the
end of the war.
The minor parties would have gained 17 seats in the Swedish parliamentary
election
Many thought they had somethin to offer the voters in the past Swedish parliamentary
election. You need a minimum of 1,500 signatures in order to register a
party at the elction authority, and more than 30 parties were registered.
The total of votes of the small parties and the blank votes (often protest
votes) was as many as the smallest party in the Parliament, the greens and
it would have corresponded to 17 seats in the 349 seat Riksdag. Most votes
of the minor parties were conquered by the Party of the Retired, gaining
1.0 per cent of the total vote. Second largest was The New Party, established
by count Ian Wachtmeister, who was leader of the New Democracy Party in
the Riksdag of 1991-1994.
A Speaker supporting the Cambodian Holocaust
At October 6th Ms Birgitta Dahl was reelected as the Speaker of the Swedish
Parliament (Riksdag). Former Contra contributing editor Filip Lundberg contacted
all members of the old Riksdag during the summer, criticising the fact that
Ms Dahl was elected Speaker in 1994. She defended the regime of Pol Pot
in Cambodia and denied the fact that the regime had committed genocide.
Several MPs have responded and forwarded their critical views on Ms Dahl.
Among the respondents was the former Secretary of Justice, Ms Gun Hellsvik
The Heroes of the Cold War: George Orwell
George Orwell (1903-50) is remembered for his novel Nineteen-eighty-four
and the political satire Animal Farm. Both these were attacks on the totalitarian
utopists of the 20th cntury. In spite of the fact that George Orwell (or
Eric Blair, which was his proper name) regarded himself as a socialist,
he was a staunch anti-communist.
The Death of the Mayor
A short story written by Contra publisher Tommy Hansson
