Reception of refugees in Swedish municipalities: evidences from comparative case studies

Abstract

By focusing on the Swedish municipality level, we provide an intensive examination of how several Swedish municipalities design their local refugee policy, according to which they either accept or do not accept refugees. This can vary because of either instrumental or symbolic reasons. Combining this local perspective with actor-oriented theory, we derive from rationalistic premises concerning how political leaders and bureaucrats act to maximize their interests. By selecting municipalities that share important characteristics except their attitude towards the reception of refugees, we can, through analysing interviews and documents, show how a pragmatic view and internal constraints often shape local decision-making in terms of shaping refugee policy. Rationalistic perspectives do not prevail completely, though implying that other factors influence decision-making in this area.

Keywords:

• refugees
• migration policy
• local politics
• rational choice

Acknowledgement

An earlier draft of this article was presented at the XXI NorKom Conference, Oslo, November 22-24 2012. We are grateful to the participants for valuable comments, as well as comments from anonymous reviewers.

Notes

1. By this we mean refugees which have received a residence permit. They are mainly quota refugees or former asylum seekers who have been granted a residence permit and turns to the government for help with housing. However, this group can settle in other municipalities after admission, as can asylum seekers. This situation has placed a particularly heavy burden on some municipalities, especially in metropolitan areas, that have received many immigrants through their subsequent location (Åslund, 2005). Our main focus, though, is on the variation in the agreed reception of refugees, since this is determined by the municipalities.

2. Common to all the individuals in this wide category is that they have obtained a residence permit. In other words, this group of people represents a legal form of migration and those who presumably intend to stay in permanently in Sweden (King, 2002). We thereby exclude the wide category of asylum seekers in this inquiry.

3. Italics from the original quote.

4. For information about this data see Lidén and Nyhlén (2012).

5. Personal interview with S. Wallsten, head of the development department, municipality of Ånge (2012).

6. Personal interview with S-O. Danielsson, local councillor, municipality of Ånge (2012).

7. Personal interview with M-B. Westin, public official, municipality of Ånge (2012).

8. Since 2010, the municipality has also received unaccompanied minors, and when individuals in this group come of age and receive a residence permit, they are included in the total sum of a reception of 45 refugees annually.

9. Personal interview with J. Persson, deputy local councillor, municipality of Bräcke (2012).

10. Personal interview with E. Antman, head of international office, municipality of Bräcke (2012).

11. Personal interview with J. Persson, deputy local councillor, municipality of Bräcke (2012).

12. Personal interview with J. Perez, public official, municipality of Bräcke (2012).

13. Personal interview with M. Skoog, head of municipality department, municipality of Dorotea (2012).

14. Personal interview with G. Lindqvist, local councillor, municipality of Dorotea (2012).

15. Personal interview with L. Tengnander, public official, municipality of Dorotea (2012).

16. Personal interview with M. Skoog, head of municipality department, municipality of Dorotea (2012).

17. Personal interview with A. Riesbeck, local councillor, municipality of Rättvik (2012).

18. Personal interview with A Riesbeck, local councillor, municipality of Rättvik (2012).

19. Personal interview with K Estvind, public official, municipality of Rättvik (2012).

20. Personal interview with A-L Bergvik, head of social department, municipality of Rättvik (2012).

21. Personal interview with A. Riesbeck, local councillor, municipality of Rättvik (2012).

22. Personal interview with K. Estvind, public official, municipality of Rättvik (2012).