Liberté de presse: la Suède a fermé un site en 2006

L'histoire: Un tabloïd suédois accuse Tsahal de vols d’organes et exige une enquête internationale

La position officielle du gouvernement suédois: le respect absolu de la liberté de la presse :

"L'ambassadrice de Suède en Israël, Elisabet Borsiin Bonnier, est accusée par son pays de violer la liberté d'expression. Suite à la publication d'un article [par Donald Boström] cette semaine dans le quotidien scandinave Aftonbladet, qui accusait Israël d'enlever des enfants palestiniens pour leur voler leurs organes, Bonnier a ouvertement critiqué la publication, qu'elle qualifie de "choquante et révoltante".

L'ambassadrice a notamment essuyé les critiques acerbes de l'opposition parlementaire suédoise, qui regrette son intervention. Selon le porte-parole du parti écologique, Per Gahrton, l'ambassadrice doit "se voir rappeler les rudiments de la liberté d'expression"." (JPost)
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Qu'en est-il du respect des "rudiments de la liberté d'expression" en Suède en d'autres circonstances ? Soucieuse de ne pas subir les foudres des musulmans radicaux, le gouvernement suédois s'est empressé de faire fermer un site pour avoir publié une caricature du prophète Mahomet.

BBC: Sweden shuts website over cartoon (10/02/2006) Extraits:

"The Swedish government has moved to shut down the website of a far-right political party's newspaper over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

The site's host, Levonline, pulled the plug on the website of the Swedish Democrats' SD-Kuriren newspaper after consulting with the government.

It is believed to be the first time a Western government has intervened to block a publication in the growing row.

Kuriren editor Richard Jomshof said the government was breaking the law.

"We have to do something about it. This is illegal. They can't do this just because we are a small magazine," he told the BBC News website [...]

He had asked readers to send in their own Muhammad cartoons, but he denies intending to offend Muslims.

His website briefly posted a picture showing Muhammad from the rear, looking into a mirror, with his eyes blacked out - an image he said was about self-censorship.

"It was directed at the Swedish government and Swedish magazines," Jomshof said.

"They are cowards for not standing by the Danish people and Jyllands-Posten [Danish newspaper which first published controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad last year]." [...]

Swedish Foreign Minister Laila Freivalds described Kuriren's move as "a provocation" by "a small group of extremists".

"I will defend freedom of the press no matter what the circumstances, but I strongly condemn the provocation by SD-Kuriren. It displays a complete lack of respect," she said in a statement.

Levonline CEO Turkel Nyberg told the BBC News website his company had pulled the plug on the site after discussions with the foreign ministry and the security police.

"It seemed like it could be a bad for us and for others to have the site up. The problem was the content, which was these Muhammad pictures," he said.

He said he had been told by the government that Arab media were carrying reports about SD-Kuriren's call for cartoons about Muhammad.

Sweden - which opposed the war in Iraq and is a leading donor to the Middle East [un des plus grands fournisseurs d'aide aux Palestininiens] - has largely avoided becoming the target of Muslim anger over the cartoons."

- L’"aftonbladette" comme Boström, recette pour criminaliser, à l’ancienne, les Israéliens, M. Macina
- Remember When Sweden Moved to Shut Down a Website That Showed the Muhammad Cartoons? (Solomonia)
- Swedish Editor Is No Raoul Wallenberg, James Tobin
- Swedish Blood Libel Scandal Festers On, Ben Cohen
- The Swedish Press Exposes the Invasion of the Jewish Body-snatchers, J.J. Goldberg