I’m not going to vote in the EU parliamentary elections on June 13 because I cannot. I found out too late I am supposed to first tell Swedish authorities which Belgian commune I am registered in so that Sweden can warn Belgium in case I am tempted to vote twice. (Isn’t this why we have an EU bureaucracy? To take care of such things?) It hadn’t occured to me that I might want to vote twice, but now that I think about it, it would have made for a good blog post. Of course, I had no idea I am registered in a Belgian commune, nor which commune that might be. That’s because I’m a bad Belgian. Why do people have to belong to nation-states again? Can’t I just be vaguely mid-Atlantic?
 
A concise summary of Sweden’s political parties can be found here.
 
Cheat sheet:
S: ruling social democrat Socialdemokratiska arbetarpartiet
M: conservative Moderata samlingspartiet
FP: liberal Folkpartiet liberalerna
KD: Christian democrat Kristdemokraterna
C: ruralist Centerpartiet
V: left of left Vänsterpartiet
MP: green Miljöpartiet de grönaI’m fascinated by the election posters that are currently knotted to posts and railings around central Stockholm. I’m sure that political parties have surmised this election will not involve much homework on the part of the electorate, and hence that their poster slogans will have to bear the brunt of voter scrutiny. As a result, some of these posters have transcended their traditional branding role and are declaiming specific policy positions. But how have the parties gone about distilling their entire party platform into a couple of pithy sentences? I took my camera on a jog around Stockholm and snapped all the posters. I’ve broken down the parties’ efforts by topic:

Terrorism:

FP: We can only combat terrorism together.

The liberal Folkpartiet (FP) are the only party mentioning terrorism, perhaps the biggest single new issue since the last EU parliamentary elections. That said, cooperation as a means of combating terrorism isn’t exactly a counterintuitive stroke of genius — who could possibly disagree with that statement?

Energy:

FP: Emissions in Europe do not respect borders. Combat the greenhouse effect and continue with nuclear energy.

Last I checked, nuclear fallout is nothing if not an emission. The Danes tend to point that out when discussing the nuclear reactors in Southern Sweden. While Folkpartiet has been in favor of building new reactors to replace aging ones, I think this policy is best pursued at a national level, not a European one, where it stands no chance. And I happen to think it is a bad policy in an age of terrorism.

Trafficking of women:

FP: Human trafficking of women from eastern Europe can only be stopped with more EU cooperation.

S: Stop the trafficking of women

Somebody please tell Folkpartiet that most of Eastern Europe is now in the EU. Unlike the Social democrats’ (S) slogan, however, Folkpartiet actually offers a proposal: EU cooperation.

Why is it this issue that is on campaign posters, instead of an injustice committed in our name that is causing far more suffering — the Common Agricultural Policy? This skewed prioritizing happened because well-intentioned feminists made the fight against the trafficking of women their rallying cry, and now they have to be pandered to. Clever feminists like myself meanwhile realize that CAP is ruining the lives of far more women — it’s just that the victims are farther away. Clearly, both injustices should be addressed, but let’s not pretend that human trafficking of women is the biggest crime against women that EU policy can remedy.

Crime:

FP: Organized crime knows no borders. Create a “European FBI”.

M: “For security against crime and drugs”

M: Right: A better grip on criminals. Wrong: Going soft on violence and drugs.

Ah, the crime and drug issue — always a crowd pleaser. The conservative Moderaterna (M) typically “own” the law and order plank, but it’s Folkpartiet once again that proposes a specific policy. (And what’s with that third poster? I feel like I’m in kindergarten.) As a rule, I am always suspicious of parties running on law and order platforms. It suggests a lack of new ideas. In any case, Sweden’s murder rate (1 per 100,000 inhabitants per year) is already extremely low compared to other European countries and especially compared to its suicide rate (16 per 100,000 inhabitants per year). In comparison to the US (murder: 6/100k/yr, suicide: 14/100k/yr), Sweden has clearly tackled crime, but is lagging on the suicide front. Would it be too much to ask to put the following slogan up: “16 out of 17 violent deaths in Sweden are suicide, not murder. More money for mental health facilities.”? I suppose neither the recently mugged nor suicide victims would vote for that.

Welfare:

S: Welfare is not merchandise/something you bargain over

S: Safe/secure jobs for everyone

For everyone? Like in the USSR? Brilliant! But first, let’s tackle the mysterious epidemic that causes Swedes who already have secure jobs to take long paid sick leave in far larger numbers than in other countries. Then, let’s lower structural unemployment by making it easier to fire people. With the economy in better shape, perhaps we could then afford all this welfare, in part because we’d need less of it. Would the Social democrats have a problem with that?

Globalization:

S: People are more important than the market

M: “A free and open Europe”

MP: The world is greater than the EU. Not the other way round.

MP: Why is it easier for drugs to get into the EU than political refugees?

I don’t understand the Social democrats’ poster. Aren’t markets just people, consumers and producers, making choices? The Modernaterna at least seem to get that. The Greens (MP) make some very good points, though the second poster is perhaps a bit hard to fathom: Are they against drugs coming into Europe, in favor political refugees coming to Europe, or both? Although they don’t make specific policy proposals, Swedes know the Greens favor leaving the EU.

Blatant votemongering:

M: The EU secures the peace

M: You decide what is right for Sweden

M: “Stop the bureaucracy”

The Moderaterna try to cover all bases with this trio. The first is aimed at the older generation, the second at patriots, and the third at everybody else. Just don’t place the anti-bureaucracy poster too close to the anti-crime posters, lest the electorate start wondering how the Moderaterna plan to solve more crimes with less bureaucracy.

Suggestions welcome:

C: An EU with equal conditions for all citizens.

C: Slim, sharp and democratic.

Despite my best efforts, I have no idea what these rural Centerpartiet (C) slogans mean. The first slogan, interpreted blandly, is impossible to disagree with, and aren’t EU citizens already equal before EU law? Perhaps rural areas, where Centerpartiet is strong, will interpret this along city/country lines, and see it as code for supporting farmers against pressures from city folks like myself. As for “Slim, sharp and democratic”: Slim is a meaningful word in the context of the EU, but sharp and democratic? Is anyone in favor of a a dull-witted undemocratic Europe?

I jogged all over Stockholm to snap these posters, but despite my best efforts was unable to find offerings by the Christian democrats or the left-of-left Vänsterpartiet. I suspect they are sitting out this election.

Update 2004-06-02: I found two more posters. They’re pretty self-explanatory.

FP: More bridges – fewer cows. Abolish agricultural subsidies.

V: Stop the EU state. No power to Brussels.