Swedish News

Sweden, Norway help cleaning BP oil spill. Setting money on fire. Prince Daniel gets nothing in case of a divorce. Former Princess-fiancé Jonas Bergström back at home. Victoria and Daniel in Paradise. 

  • Sweden helps cleaning BP spill
    Sweden will assist the United States to clean up the oil spill tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico by sending oil and fire booms, according to the latest report in the daily newspaper, Svenska Dagbladet.
    Although the U.S. government was slow to respond to offers from foreign nations, and declined Sweden's offer to send three special oil cleaning ships at this time, Washington was now reported to have welcomed 22 offers of assistance from 12 countries, among them Norway as well as Sweden, according to a U.S. State Department statement.

  • Setting money on fire
    Gudrun Schyman, leader for the Feministiskt Intitiativ party (FI), burned 100,000 SEK ($13,092.78) in Visby the other morning during the so-called political Almedalen Week. The drastic gesture was FI’s way of demonstrating the wage-gap between men and women in Sweden, the sum is the equivalence of what women in Sweden lose in salary every minute, compared to men.
    “It’s a scandal that this is allowed to continue decade after decade,” said Schyman. She continued: “Burning 100,000 SEK may seem desperate, and it is. It is a desperate reaction on a desperate situation. The money we burnt was given to us by Tomas Mazetti and Per Eriksson, both of whom work at Studio Total, a marketing and advertising collective based in Malmö, and they are as upset as we are over this discrimination.” When FI and Studio Total discussed how they best could use the monetary donation, Tomas and Per suggested they should set the bills on fire to most effectively get the message across.
    “Our first reaction,” Schyman continues, “was that it was a crazy idea. You just don’t do that with money, but it was difficult to see how we could use the money to better illustrate and give attention to the gap in wages. To advertise, like many other parties do, was out of the question. A single half page ad in an evening paper costs more than 100 000 SEK.” Moderate Party press secretary Per Schlingmann was among those who voiced criticism of Schyman’s stunt. “Why did she do it? It seems baffling and irresponsible,” he said. “In a country with serious societal problems where there are people who are badly off this sends a signal to those that one has a different view of the value of money.” Social Democrat party spokesperson Ibrahim Baylan said: “Gudrun Schyman can herself stand for what she does.” Which Schyman does: “When the first feelings of outrage have eased, when the reflection is made over how much money that women miss out in pay, then I think that many will be outraged over the issue,” she responded.

  • Prince Daniel gets nothing
    In case of a royal divorce, newly minted Prince Daniel won’t get much of the royal goods. The only things that the couple will divide, are the furniture and the household utensils from Haga Slott – nothing else. That’s printed in the newlyweds’ recently publicized prenuptials. A similar prenuptial was signed by Carl Gustaf and Silvia when they were married in 1976. These documents protect royal properties in case of a divorce. Daniel and Victoria signed it already on June 7 at Stockholm Palace.

  • Jonas Bergström back at home
    Their life together is forever over, and now, two months after the break-up, Jonas Bergström has finally changed his address. The former fiancé of Princess Madeleine has moved back home to Mom and Dad – the apartment at Hovstallet is now but a memory. The last of his belongings were removed from his and Madeleine’s apartment a couple of weeks ago, and Jonas is currently living with Mom and Dad again in their villa in Djursholm.

  • Victoria and Daniel in Paradise
    Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel are enjoying their time on the island of Bora Bora, surrounded by hibiscus flowers, birds of paradise and mango trees. “It’s been incredibly wonderful to be together like this,” says Victoria. And Daniel adds: “Yes, we needed to land a bit after all those intense days in Stockholm.” Victoria also explains that they have spent time just being together and talking about what they will do in the fall and about their future in general. During their 10 days they’ve cruised French Polynesia’s 118 islands and atolls.