Västtrafik has removed a Sweden Democrats election ad from city buses in Skaraborg, western Sweden, after about 20 bus drivers called in sick in protest against the message.
The ad from Sverigedemokraterna, the support party of Sweden’s government, asked in Swedish whether the reader missed Mogadishu, adding that the return migration grant would help them get home. Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia. DR reports the removal, citing Sveriges Radio.
According to Sveriges Radio, around 20 drivers originally from Somalia refused to drive and called in sick instead. Västtrafik, which runs public bus services in the area, then decided to take the campaign down.
Maria Björner Brauer, a unit manager at Västtrafik, told SR Skaraborg that the ad created a risk to the work environment and a risk of vandalism. She said the company has a rule to stop advertising when such a risk exists. Västtrafik has told SVT that political advertisers must be treated equally, calling it a difficult balancing act.
Aftonbladet reports that Västtrafik press chief Mette Ramquist said the company made a misjudgment when it approved the ads. Per Ramquist, the company did not foresee the work environment risk and acted immediately once informed. Aftonbladet also reports that the drivers feared harassment and insults because of the message.
TV4 Nyheterna notes that Västtrafik will examine political advertising in public transport more closely after the incident. The company’s published rules state that, as a publicly owned operator, it cannot censor political messages. The same rules require that advertising follow Swedish law and not become a safety risk.
Sweden Democrats call it censorship
Tobias Andersson, the party’s district chair in Skaraborg and a member of the Riksdag, wrote on X that Somali bus drivers were being allowed to decide what may be communicated in Swedish elections. He described the decision as censorship and election sabotage. Håkan Lösnitz, a regional council member in Västra Götaland, told SVT that Västtrafik’s chief executive should be held accountable.
The grant referred to in the ad was raised on the party’s initiative at the turn of the year, from 10,000 Swedish kronor to a maximum of 350,000 kronor per adult. Aftonbladet reported in January 2024 that the higher rate was intended to stimulate more voluntary returns to migrants’ countries of origin.
DR’s Nordic and Baltic correspondent, Per Bang Thomsen, says the ad is meant to signal the party’s position as the strictest in the immigration debate. He notes the party has proposed converting permanent residence permits already granted into temporary ones. That proposal has drawn heavy criticism from lawyers and experts who see it as conflicting with rule of law principles and international law.
Polls place the party at around one in five Swedish voters, according to DR. The Swedish election is set for September 13.
