Decision today: The government will investigate international adoptions to Sweden

ASSIGNMENT REVIEW · On Tuesday, the Riksdag decided that the government should as soon as possible investigate how Swedish authorities and adoption organizations have handled international adoptions to Sweden. The decision comes after several revelations about historical irregularities with adoptions to Sweden from, among others, Chile.

In 2018 , SVT together with Chilean journalists revealed how adopted children from Chile in the 1970s and 80s may have been taken without the consent of mothers. In the spring of 2021, Dagens Nyheter also reviewed adoptions to Sweden - and last week, Assignment Review published the series "The Stolen Children" , about the Chilean adoptions.

Now the Riksdag has decided that the government should as soon as possible investigate the international adoptions to Sweden from the middle of the 20th century until today. The decision comes after a proposal from the Social Affairs Committee and will, among other things, look at how Swedish authorities and adoption organizations have handled the adoptions.

Martina Johansson (C) thinks that Sweden should have appointed an investigation much earlier.

- I think it's a great pity. We have lost three years investigating what Sweden has played a part in this, she says.

S and Mp voted against

Since 2018, a criminal investigation has been underway in Chile on suspected crimes against humanity, linked to the adoptions. In it, there are thousands of cases internationally, where over 600 cases concern adoptions to Sweden.

In the spring of 2021, Minister of Social Affairs Lena Hallengren announced that the government is opening up for a Swedish review.

- At first it was thought that it might take a couple of years, now it is clear that it is almost unmanageable time that this investigation will last and therefore we need to make sure to do our own investigation, she says.

Now the Riksdag has also formally decided that the government will be given this task. But the Social Democrats and the Green Party voted against the Social Affairs Committee's proposal, which also in the committee reserved itself for the proposal.

They believe that since the government is currently working on developing guidelines for an inquiry into international adoptions, the results of that work should be awaited before the Riksdag makes a decision.

- I think it is important not to stress an investigation that only looks at one or the other, but that we actually get a broad overview of how international adoptions are done today and how we can ensure that it is both child rights safe, but also legally certain in the future, says Yasmine Bladelius (S), member of the social committee.

"The Stolen Children", a series in four parts from Assignment Review, is available on SVT Play .

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