In egalitarian Sweden, richer regions reluctant to share refugee burden
By Simon Johnson and Johan Sennero STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden prides itself on equality, but some parts of the country are more equal than others when it comes to taking in their share of refugees arriving from the Middle East and Africa. Mirroring an international spat over sharing out migrants across Europe, Sweden is planning a quota system to persuade some of its richest regions to take in more refugees, and relieve the burden on some of its poorest. The Stockholm suburb of Danderyd - where villas can cost millions of dollars and unemployment is less than a third of the national average - has only taken in around 60 migrants this year, according to the Migration Agency. Members of Sweden's left-leaning ruling coalition and other parties say areas like Danderyd, where ABBA songwriter Bjorn Ulvaeus owns a small island, can do more. "It is a question of will," said Jan Bjorklund, leader of the opposition Liberal Party. "Some people don't want to take in refugees and they don't want them as neighbors." Other critics say fears of an influx of foreigners hitting house prices and school results are also behind the low take-up. Danderyd Council Chairman Olle Reichenberg says the main obstacle was a lack of housing. Other areas have solved the problem by building temporary accommodation, but Reichenberg said that would only lead to legal challenges in his own community. "When I talk to people in Danderyd I can see there is a concern about an asylum center being built in their neighborhood. Such a decision would be appealed." Prime Minister Stefan Lofven has led calls for a fairer distribution of asylum seekers both around Europe and within his own country. "No country should be able to duck its duty ... It is the same in Sweden. No local authority should be able to shirk its responsibility," Lofven said. "OUR SCHOOLS ARE FULL" Around 80,000 asylum seekers, many escaping war in Syria, are expected to arrive in Sweden this year, drawn by generous asylum policies, high living standards and a comprehensive welfare state. But their uneven distribution places a burden on schools and welfare services in some of Sweden's poorer areas where jobs are often scarce, hampering integration efforts. "Our schools are full ... so we need to set up prefab buildings so that all the children can have lessons," said Lars Rosander, council chairman in Hultsfred. A sleepy town of 13,000 in southern Sweden famous for its rock festival, Hultsfred has more than 1,000 asylum seekers in temporary accommodation. "We are at the limit," Rosander said. Strains have boosted the far-right Sweden Democrats, who want to slash asylum numbers and who poll around 20 percent nationally. In Torsby, where former England soccer manager Sven Goran Eriksson grew up, plans to turn a old country house into an asylum center were scuppered by landowners worried about property prices and attracting the wrong kind of people, public service radio reported. Lomma, a southern sea-side community with 23,000 inhabitants, has taken in about 40 refugees this year and says it can not do more. "We don't have anywhere to put refugees," said Council Chairman Anders Berngarn. To sweeten the medicine of the quota system, the government will double financial aid to 125,000 crowns ($15,000) for each place given to a refugee granted permanent residency in Sweden. Some are also calling for changes to Sweden's system for placing refugees. Refugee housing contracts are tendered out to cost-conscious private firms - an arrangement critics say leaves many refugees ending up in re-fitted hotels and hospitals in rural areas where property is cheap. When the state Migration Agency looks for more permanent accommodation in other areas, individual authorities can block placements by saying they simply have no room. Richer, urban areas where there are jobs, are often the worst culprits. "There is a shortage of housing in most of Sweden's municipalities, but they take in refugees anyway," said Left Party leader Jonas Sjostedt. "If they can find accommodation, so can Danderyd." (Editing by Niklas Pollard and Andrew Heavens)
