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| Questions Nag in Sweden 30 Years After Leader’s Assassination | Questions Nag in Sweden 30 Years After Leader’s Assassination |
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| GOTEBORG, Sweden — Three decades after Prime Minister Olof Palme was gunned down on a Stockholm street, his unsolved killing continues to reverberate through Swedish politics and society. | GOTEBORG, Sweden — Three decades after Prime Minister Olof Palme was gunned down on a Stockholm street, his unsolved killing continues to reverberate through Swedish politics and society. |
| In the prelude to the 30th anniversary of the shooting on Sunday, news organizations are recounting a range of theories about the identity and possible motivation of the killer, including that the crime had been committed by an unemployed Swede with a grudge, or by an American acting on orders from the Pinochet government in Chile. One tabloid published a list of items this week to help younger readers understand the leader “who put Sweden on the world map.” | In the prelude to the 30th anniversary of the shooting on Sunday, news organizations are recounting a range of theories about the identity and possible motivation of the killer, including that the crime had been committed by an unemployed Swede with a grudge, or by an American acting on orders from the Pinochet government in Chile. One tabloid published a list of items this week to help younger readers understand the leader “who put Sweden on the world map.” |
| The continued fascination with Mr. Palme stems in part from the mysteries surrounding his death — he was shot as he and his wife, Lisbet, walked home without bodyguards from a movie on a Friday night — and in part from his legacy as the embodiment of left-leaning values that once seemed to define his country: commitment to a robust welfare state at home and a foreign policy driven by moral considerations. | The continued fascination with Mr. Palme stems in part from the mysteries surrounding his death — he was shot as he and his wife, Lisbet, walked home without bodyguards from a movie on a Friday night — and in part from his legacy as the embodiment of left-leaning values that once seemed to define his country: commitment to a robust welfare state at home and a foreign policy driven by moral considerations. |
| To those who remember him, Mr. Palme represents an image of Sweden that is now, to say the least, in flux, especially in the rise of a far-right party and in a growing sense that the country can no longer afford to be as welcoming to refugees as it has been. Yet he retains relevance to Sweden in other ways, not least in its diplomacy efforts in the Middle East and in the pressures of dealing with Russian aggression. | To those who remember him, Mr. Palme represents an image of Sweden that is now, to say the least, in flux, especially in the rise of a far-right party and in a growing sense that the country can no longer afford to be as welcoming to refugees as it has been. Yet he retains relevance to Sweden in other ways, not least in its diplomacy efforts in the Middle East and in the pressures of dealing with Russian aggression. |
| “Our idea of Sweden back then was of a bucolic, tranquil haven, where leaders lived like the ordinary people,” said Jonas Hinnfors, professor of politics at the University of Goteborg. “Yet suddenly, there lies the prime minister in his own blood, and the legal system fails to find the killer. Our self-image was shattered.” | |
| He continued, “But his death also came at a time of broader transition and more or less marked the end of the old Sweden he epitomized.” | He continued, “But his death also came at a time of broader transition and more or less marked the end of the old Sweden he epitomized.” |
| As leader of the Social Democratic Party, Mr. Palme backed labor unions over business. He was a critic of the Vietnam War, of apartheid and of repressive governments in Eastern Europe and Latin America. He was an early supporter of gender equality, backed what became one of the highest tax rates among industrialized countries, and supported both nuclear disarmament and the use of nuclear power as a way to diminish dependence on fossil fuels. | As leader of the Social Democratic Party, Mr. Palme backed labor unions over business. He was a critic of the Vietnam War, of apartheid and of repressive governments in Eastern Europe and Latin America. He was an early supporter of gender equality, backed what became one of the highest tax rates among industrialized countries, and supported both nuclear disarmament and the use of nuclear power as a way to diminish dependence on fossil fuels. |
| He was often characterized as steering a “third way” between communism and capitalism, but he drew criticism for being anti-business and too soft on Moscow. | He was often characterized as steering a “third way” between communism and capitalism, but he drew criticism for being anti-business and too soft on Moscow. |
| Late on the evening of Feb. 28, 1986, Mr. Palme was walking through central Stockholm when he was shot in the back at point-blank range. He was 59. A second shot aimed at his wife only grazed her. | Late on the evening of Feb. 28, 1986, Mr. Palme was walking through central Stockholm when he was shot in the back at point-blank range. He was 59. A second shot aimed at his wife only grazed her. |
| After almost three years of bungled investigations into the murder, the police arrested Christer Pettersson, an unemployed man with a history of drug and alcohol abuse and a violent criminal record, and charged him with the killing. Mr. Pettersson was jailed for life, but he challenged the verdict, and conflicting evidence led to the conviction’s being overturned in 1989. | After almost three years of bungled investigations into the murder, the police arrested Christer Pettersson, an unemployed man with a history of drug and alcohol abuse and a violent criminal record, and charged him with the killing. Mr. Pettersson was jailed for life, but he challenged the verdict, and conflicting evidence led to the conviction’s being overturned in 1989. |
| Mr. Palme’s family members have said they remain convinced that Mr. Pettersson was the killer. And Ulf Dahlsten, a senior civil servant in Mr. Palme’s last administration, revealed on Monday that he had received information 20 years ago that Mr. Pettersson had approached members of Mr. Palme’s staff to learn about the prime minister’s habits and movement. Mr. Dahlsten said he had stayed silent about the information out of respect for his informer’s privacy. | Mr. Palme’s family members have said they remain convinced that Mr. Pettersson was the killer. And Ulf Dahlsten, a senior civil servant in Mr. Palme’s last administration, revealed on Monday that he had received information 20 years ago that Mr. Pettersson had approached members of Mr. Palme’s staff to learn about the prime minister’s habits and movement. Mr. Dahlsten said he had stayed silent about the information out of respect for his informer’s privacy. |
| “It is time that we in Sweden accept that the killer was from inside Sweden,” Mr. Dahlsten wrote in the newspaper Dagens Nyheter. “It was not a foreign power. Not a security service, not South Africa, not Iraq, not Iran, not Israel. And not Kurds or Croats. Not someone else we can conveniently blame.” He referred to countries and groups that have, at various times, been linked to the killing. | “It is time that we in Sweden accept that the killer was from inside Sweden,” Mr. Dahlsten wrote in the newspaper Dagens Nyheter. “It was not a foreign power. Not a security service, not South Africa, not Iraq, not Iran, not Israel. And not Kurds or Croats. Not someone else we can conveniently blame.” He referred to countries and groups that have, at various times, been linked to the killing. |
| But this month, a survey for the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet of 50 experts closely associated with the Palme case found that only a minority felt certain of Mr. Pettersson’s guilt. | But this month, a survey for the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet of 50 experts closely associated with the Palme case found that only a minority felt certain of Mr. Pettersson’s guilt. |
| “People love conspiracies because there are good reasons to be suspicious,” Joakim Palme, Mr. Palme’s eldest son and a professor of politics at Uppsala University in the east of the country, said in a telephone interview. “My father had enemies who were prepared to act.” | “People love conspiracies because there are good reasons to be suspicious,” Joakim Palme, Mr. Palme’s eldest son and a professor of politics at Uppsala University in the east of the country, said in a telephone interview. “My father had enemies who were prepared to act.” |
| Joakim Palme pointed to a confession by an American citizen that he had received orders from inside the Pinochet government in the 1970s to kill the prime minister. Only this week, a witness at the cinema that the prime minister attended the night he was killed claimed to have seen a man resembling a known American agent working for the Chilean secret services under Gen. Augusto Pinochet. | Joakim Palme pointed to a confession by an American citizen that he had received orders from inside the Pinochet government in the 1970s to kill the prime minister. Only this week, a witness at the cinema that the prime minister attended the night he was killed claimed to have seen a man resembling a known American agent working for the Chilean secret services under Gen. Augusto Pinochet. |
| Olof Palme’s transformation from the son of an elite military family to the workers’ friend, his idealistic solidarity with the third world and his insistence on speaking out about injustice regardless of the diplomatic consequences seemed to leave some Swedes hoping that the investigation would show that he had been martyred for his politics, rather than killed by a thug. | Olof Palme’s transformation from the son of an elite military family to the workers’ friend, his idealistic solidarity with the third world and his insistence on speaking out about injustice regardless of the diplomatic consequences seemed to leave some Swedes hoping that the investigation would show that he had been martyred for his politics, rather than killed by a thug. |
| The police followed leads that had nothing to do with Mr. Palme’s politics to deflect the investigation from potentially embarrassing matters, said Gunnar Wall, the author of three books on the investigation into Mr. Palme’s death. | The police followed leads that had nothing to do with Mr. Palme’s politics to deflect the investigation from potentially embarrassing matters, said Gunnar Wall, the author of three books on the investigation into Mr. Palme’s death. |
| “It was understood at a very early stage that this case could be very sensitive, and with negative effects for the government and the authorities,” Mr. Wall added. | “It was understood at a very early stage that this case could be very sensitive, and with negative effects for the government and the authorities,” Mr. Wall added. |
| Mr. Palme was killed during a period of Cold War fears fueled by frequent reports of Soviet submarines in Swedish waters, and as he faced accusations that he was too soft on Moscow. | Mr. Palme was killed during a period of Cold War fears fueled by frequent reports of Soviet submarines in Swedish waters, and as he faced accusations that he was too soft on Moscow. |
| Russia continues to exert an influence on Swedish policies. Two years ago, a suspected sighting of a mysterious submarine near Stockholm led to a frenzy of indignation at purported Russian militarism. After Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, Sweden increased military spending and moved closer to ending its position as a neutral state. | Russia continues to exert an influence on Swedish policies. Two years ago, a suspected sighting of a mysterious submarine near Stockholm led to a frenzy of indignation at purported Russian militarism. After Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, Sweden increased military spending and moved closer to ending its position as a neutral state. |
| Fear of Russia is just one aspect of an increasingly shrill political climate in Sweden that is reminiscent of the polarization of Mr. Palme’s era. The rise of the far-right Sweden Democrats has stoked a fierce debate over the limits to the welcome that should be shown to newly arriving refugees. | Fear of Russia is just one aspect of an increasingly shrill political climate in Sweden that is reminiscent of the polarization of Mr. Palme’s era. The rise of the far-right Sweden Democrats has stoked a fierce debate over the limits to the welcome that should be shown to newly arriving refugees. |
| There are also echoes of Mr. Palme’s approach to foreign policy in the stances taken by the current foreign minister, Margot Wallstrom, a Social Democrat. Her criticism of “medieval” punishments in Saudi Arabia and of Israeli violence against Palestinians have led to diplomatic breaches — and have prompted Ms. Wallstrom to be compared to Mr. Palme. | There are also echoes of Mr. Palme’s approach to foreign policy in the stances taken by the current foreign minister, Margot Wallstrom, a Social Democrat. Her criticism of “medieval” punishments in Saudi Arabia and of Israeli violence against Palestinians have led to diplomatic breaches — and have prompted Ms. Wallstrom to be compared to Mr. Palme. |
| “He was driven by values, fearless, and a master of rhetoric,” Ms. Wallstrom said in an email. “This continues to inspire us today.” | “He was driven by values, fearless, and a master of rhetoric,” Ms. Wallstrom said in an email. “This continues to inspire us today.” |