UN critical of Sweden's children's rights
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child is criticizing Sweden for the fifth time for failing to properly adopt the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Sweden signed the Convention in 1990 and an additional protocol on child trafficking in 2006. This week in Geneva the Committee examined for the first time how the Swedish Government is protecting children against child trafficking, child pornography and prostitution. Paperless and asylum-seeking children in Sweden were also mentioned in the criticism. According to Christina Heilborn, children’s rights lawyer at UNICEF in Sweden, the Committee does not think that these children have enough protection in Sweden.

Prostitutes from EU may work in Sweden
Prostitutes from the European Union may continue to sell their sexual services the first three months of their stay in Sweden. This following a a decision from the migration court in Göteborg. Purchasing sexual services is against the law in Sweden, but now the police may not interrupt these women—at least not for the first three months of their stay in the country.

Ingvar Wixell dies
Swedish opera singer Ingvar Wixell has passed away. Known for his operatic career and probably most for his time in the Deutsche Oper in West Berlin in the 1960s, Wixell made his debut as Papageno in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” at the Royal Swedish Opera in 1955. His dark baritone voice and his powerful stage presence made him an excellent dramatic interpreter of opera. Wixell’s rendering of Simon Boccanegra (in Verdi’s opera with the same name) and of Don Carlos in “La forza del destino” (also Verdi) were considered among the best at the time. Wixell debuted at New York’s Metropolitan Opera in 1973 in “Rigoletto”. He was born in Luleå, the son of a repairman and his wife, and died in Malmö at the age of 80.

Henning Sjöström dead
Well-known Swedish lawyer Henning Sjöström has passed away. Sjöström was, among many other things, the defense lawyer of Kurt Haijby in the 1950s, when Haijby was accused of blackmailing King Gustaf V after having said the two had a relationship. Many lawyers, including Leif Silbersky, got their training with Sjöström. Henning Sjöström was born in Burträsk on the outskirts of Skellefteå in 1922 and was an elite sportsman. In 1948 he was awarded his candidate of law (the jur.kand). Apart from being a lawyer in the limelight, Sjöström also wrote books, fiction as well as law books. After visiting a convent in Sri Lanka, he became a Buddhist, and in 1967 he wrote the book “Vägen till Buddha” (The path to the Buddha). He was married to Kerstin Sandels-Sjöström. “We had 44 fine years together,” she said. “We had a lot of fun together. Henning was a very, very good man.”

Police called to Ullared
After a shopping cart collision at Gekas in Ullared (an enormous department store), police were called. Two female shoppers and their daughters were at each others’ throats. One shopping cart was used to ram down one of the daughters, while another woman received a kick to her back. One mother-daughter team filed an assault and battery report to the police.