Sweden: European Court of Human Rights Endorsement with Some Reservations

In difference to certain other European countries, the European Court for Human Rights (ECtHR) is rarely discussed in critical terms in Swedish media or in contemporary legal and political debate in Sweden. The article identifies examples of sporadic critical appraisals of the ECtHR in case-law and in legal debate. Interestingly, no political parties represented in the Riksdag have expressed scepticism to the ECHR system and the role of the ECtHR as such. Concerning politics on a European level, however, Sweden has engaged in the reform of the ECtHR in various ways. The article discusses the limited criticism of the ECtHR in the light of the development of constitutional protection of fundamental rights, the status of the convention, and aspects of Swedish legal culture.