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 something 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