**Sweden to Address historical wrongdoings against Tornedalians, Women and Lantalians**
In a groundbreaking event aiming to shed light on historical abuses and oppressions, the Tornedalsteatern in Pajala, the Lillan stage in Luleå, and the Dramaten in Stockholm will be hosting a dramatic reading of about 40 testimonies. The event, which is scheduled to last for a total of ten hours on Wednesday, will bring to light the state’s oppression of Tornedalings, women, and the lantalant.
Erling Fredriksson, director of Tornedalsteatern, emphasized the importance of people hearing these stories, as opposed to them just being written in a book and ultimately forgotten in a drawer. The event is set to gather numerous prominent figures from the world of culture and sports, including athlete Charlotte Kalla, writer Mona Mörtlund, actor Lo Kauppi, poet David Väyrynen, musician Johan Airijoki, and Gunilla Röör, the director of Norrbottensteatern.
The stories being read at the event will be in both Swedish and Meänkieli, and will be a streamed event via Tornedalsteatern’s website, making it possible for people from outside the region to take part. Erling Fredriksson stressed the importance of this being a national matter and for those outside the county to be exposed to the language.
The event will also feature a symbolic proclamation of Tornedalsteatern as the national stage for Tornedalians, women, and lantalaiset. The reading will highlight the experience of having been robbed of their language, with Meänkieli being banned from schools during the Swedishization process in the 1880s. The testimonies recount children being punished for speaking their language as recently as the late 1950s.
Cultural worker Joakim Isaksson Markström, who grew up in Pajala municipality, expressed his honor in being chosen to read one of the stories in Luleå. Similarly, Sanna Kalla and Rebecka Digervall from the band The Magnettes also emphasized the importance of the event in engaging with their lost culture and language.
The event comes on the heels of a three-year investigation by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Tornedalings, Kväners, and Lantalaiset, which has been submitted to the Minister of Culture Parisa Liljestrand. The commission was initiated by the government at the request of the minority and seeks to address the violations and abuses perpetrated against Tornedalings, Kväner, and Lantalaiset during the assimilation policies of the Swedish state and the Church of Sweden in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The final report of the investigation is eagerly anticipated, and is seen as a crucial step in acknowledging and addressing the historical wrongdoings against these communities. The Riksdag recognized Tornedaling as a national minority and Meänkieli as a national minority language in 1999, and Sweden ratified the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention on the Protection of National Minorities in 2000 to formalize its commitment to protecting the rights of national minorities.
The event is a significant milestone in bringing attention to the plight and experiences of Tornedalians, women, and lantalian, and in fostering a sense of reconciliation and redress.