A Curfew in Rosengård?

I reported last night (and many times previously) on the situation in the Rosengård area of the Swedish city of Malmö. Every night immigrant gangs rampage freely there, setting fires and throwing rocks at police and emergency workers.

Now comes a proposal to implement a youth curfew in the Rosengård district. From a Swedish perspective, this is a radical move, and is bound to face opposition from the Multiculturally-minded Left.

Our Swedish correspondent CB has translated an article on the topic from Svenska Dagbladet:

Demands for a curfew in Rosengård

The situation in the housing area Herrgården, in Rosengård district of Malmö, is now so acute that it requires a curfew for youth at nighttime. That is the view of both M [conservative Moderates] and SD [Sweden Democrats] in Malmö.

Anja Sonesson, opposition councilor for the Moderates, want to see a curfew as a temporary emergency act and as a complement to other, more long-term measures.

“If I want effect tomorrow, then I think a curfew is necessary. I also think it’s necessary to implement a ban on visits by individuals that the police have noted to be moving around in the area and causing misery,” she says.

She talks about a ban on visits as a way to stop “individuals who are drawn to and flock around trouble spots”.

Sonesson believes that the situation at Herrgården — with continuous small fires, fights, and disturbances — demands tough answers from society. She thinks the municipality should consider engaging security companies. In proposing the curfew, she is drawing on a model in which where the Herrgården youth under 18 aren’t allowed to be outside after 9 in the evening.

“This is about giving the police more tools to act,” she says.

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So far Anja Sonesson has not gained any traction for this with the other non-socialist parties in Malmö. But the thoughts of a curfew have also been put forward by the Sweden Democrats [Sverigedemokraterna], through a petition from the party’s councilor Sten Andersson.

“Since none of the measures implemented so far has worked, it’s time to do something so society can resume control. A temporary curfew in times of unrest can be a solution,” says Andersson to TT [national news agency].

A search in TT’s archives shows that suggestions of curfews for youth have previously been put forward in several municipalities, but have been rejected.

In Växjö the petition was put forward by the Left-party in 2006, who wanted to prohibit youth under 15 from being outdoors without the company of grownups after 11 o’clock in the evening. The petition was overwhelmingly rejected by the majority.

In the beginning of the 21st century similar discussions were burning questions in Lidköping and Norrköping, but didn’t receive enough support to be implemented.