We are happy to announce that Sweden’s new National Institution for Human Rights will be located in Lund. The institution will start operating by the end of the year. Its main task will be to investigate how well Sweden respects and complies with human rights.
“It is wonderful news”, says Philip Sandberg (L), Mayor of the City of Lund, “and an important message that strengthens Lund as a national and international hub for human rights.”
Over the past year, Lund Municipality, together with representatives from Lund University, Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, the City of Malmö, and Region Skåne, have strongly recommended the Swedish government that the institution ought to be located in Lund.
The reasons for this strong recommendation are, among other things, Lund’s long tradition of work for human rights, the strong grounding and research on human rights issues at Lund University and at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute. Since 2018, Lund is also Sweden’s first so-called human rights city.
Today, the government announced that the institution will be situated in Lund.
“The message is very positive for Lund. The region’s significance and historical connections to human rights and the possibility of linking the institution’s activities to research makes Lund the strongest candidate. The fact that Lund Municipality is Sweden’s first human rights city also weighs heavily”, says Philip Sandberg.
The Raoul Wallenberg Institute, headquartered in Lund, has for the past 30 years contributed to a broader understanding and respect for human rights.
The Raoul Wallenberg Institute is Sweden’s leading institute for interdisciplinary and policy-oriented research as well as education nationally and internationally. The institute operates in eight different countries around the world. The Director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, Morten Kjaerum, is pleased with the news that the Swedish National Human Rights Institution will be located in Lund:
“With the new department in Lund, we will be able to create a unique environment for human rights in Sweden and Europe departing from Lund. We will be able to combine the great knowledge of human rights in Sweden with the Raoul Wallenberg Institute’s and universities’ international network and research. It is gratifying at a time when human rights are under global pressure”, says Morten Kjaerum, Director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute.
For more information, please contact:
Philip Sandberg (L), Mayor of the City of Lund, e-mail philip.sandberg@lund.se, telephone +46 721-940 553
Morten Kjaerum, Director at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, e-mail morten.kjaerum@rwi.lu.se, telephone +46 72- 570 31 68