The Snitch Law proposal originated from a 2022 agreement between four right-wing parties in Sweden. This government has the parliamentary support of the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD), who have a strict anti-immigration stance.
The proposal is a strategy by the SD to tighten immigration controls and enforce stricter border regulations. The snitch law aims to involve public sector workers including healthcare professionals, educators and librarians in the identification and reporting of undocumented individuals.
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If enacted, the law would require up to a million public sector workers to report undocumented persons they encounter in their professional roles. This could include situations where individuals seek healthcare, education or other essential services.
The government-appointed committee responsible for drafting the proposal is expected to present its findings by the end of November 2024.
The exact details of how the law would be implemented including possible exemptions for certain professions, are still under consideration.
The Swedish government particularly Migration Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard has defended the proposal, stating that it is crucial for managing legal migration and ensuring the efficient deportation of individuals who have been denied asylum.
According to the government, the law is intended to prevent the formation of a shadow society of undocumented individuals living outside the legal framework.
By involving public sector workers, the government believes it can better enforce immigration laws and uphold decisions made regarding asylum claims.
The Swedish government has appointed a committee to explore how this controversial proposal could be implemented.
This committee is expected to present its findings to the government by the end of November 2024.
If implemented, the snitch law could affect up to a million public sector workers across Sweden. These workers including healthcare professionals, educators and social workers, would be legally obligated to report any interactions with undocumented individuals.
The government has argued that these reporting requirements are essential for supporting legal migration and ensuring that individuals denied asylum are effectively deported.
Many professional associations have voiced their opposition, arguing that the law would force them to violate their ethical obligations.
For instance the Swedish Medical Association (SMA) has been particularly vocal with its chair, Sofia Rydgren Stale, stating that the law contradicts the core principles of medical ethics, which mandate providing care without discrimination.
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Teachers have expressed concerns with two Swedish unions’ professional ethics council warning that the law could create insurmountable ethical dilemmas for educators.
They have even suggested that civil disobedience might be the only viable response if the law is enacted.
The opposition is not limited to healthcare professionals and educators; librarians have also strongly opposed the law with 90% expressing that they would rather lose their jobs than comply with such reporting requirements.
Similar measures have been considered or implemented in other countries such as Finland and Germany.
In the UK, the 2012 hostile environment policies introduced by then-Home Secretary Theresa May sought to limit access to essential services for individuals who could not prove their legal status.
The proposal has faced strong opposition from various public sector workers including doctors, teachers and librarians.
These professionals argue that the law would force them into roles that conflict with their ethical obligations and professional responsibilities.
The Swedish Medical Association has been vocal in its opposition. The association’s president, Sofia Rydgren Stale, stated that doctors are trained to help people, not to monitor and report them.
The association argues that the proposed reporting requirements would undermine the trust between healthcare providers and patients.
Teachers’ unions have also expressed concerns about the proposal. The Professional Ethics Council of two major Swedish teachers’ unions has suggested that the law could force educators into a position where civil disobedience might be the only ethical response.
Opposition to the snitch law has been broad-based with more than 150 Swedish regions, municipalities, trade unions and civil society groups publicly opposing the proposal by December 2023.
Among the most vocal opponents is the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, which has described the proposal as utterly inhumane.
The organization argues that the law would create an environment of fear and mistrust, driving undocumented individuals further underground and making it more difficult for them to access basic services.
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