Tino Sanandaji - Mass Challenge: The Socioeconomic Impact of Migration to a Scandinavian Welfare State

For we are conquered by overwhelming motives: honor, fear, and profit

Thucydides, on the motives for human conflict, 5th century b.c.

In the early morning of Saturday, July 16, 2016, the Rosendal fire station in the city of Uppsala received a phone call. The alert concerned a suspected fire in Gottsunda. This high-rise neighborhood is located about a mile southwest of the city center and was built as a part of the Million Program in the 1960s. Gottsunda is a typical immigrant neighborhood characterized by social exclusionone of the areas often portrayed in the news in connection with unrest.

Earlier during the night, violent disturbance had erupted in the district. Some thirty masked youths set fire to trash bins and threw rocks at rescue personnel. The fires escalate at midnight and create a riot-like atmosphere in the area. At 2 am, the fire station receives an alarm that someone has noticed smoke smell in the stairwell of Bandstolsvgen 38. The fire commander had earlier in the evening made the decision that the fire department was not allowed to go to Bandstolsvgen without a police escort. Therefore, the fire truck awaits the five or six police cars that are to escort the fire department to the address. When the convoy approaches, another delay occurs when the fire truck is forced to stop, so that the police can regroup and protect it on foot for the last few hundred yards. This evening, the distance of about two miles, which typically takes less than ten minutes to travel, took more than 25 minutes.

The above description is based on the accident investigation report that was produced by the Uppsala Fire Department (2016). I used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain a selection of the partly classified incident report, created by the Swedish Police Authority in Uppsala (2016), which is cited below:

19:46:52 Situation yellow, upset atmosphere

19:49:25 Meeting ambulance

19:55:57 Very bad atmosphere at [crossed out]

22:01:26 Call from bus traffic control, individuals have thrown something at the bus on its way towards Bandstolsvgen

22:02:05 They will stop buses to Gottsunda

22:03:08 [Crossed out] regarding that [crossed out] had an incendiary bomb thrown at his unit

22:04:23 [Crossed out] perceives that its bottles that theyre throwing which explode when they reach the ground

22:05:20 Now trash bins are burning at [crossed out]

22:06:48 [Crossed out] burning tires and trash bins

22:15:19 Theres a fire in a dumpster at Bandstolsvgen and two dumpsters at Hugo Alfvns

22:16:45 The gang that has set the fire was wearing masks in [crossed out]

23:20:31 Aggressive atmosphere Bandstolsvgen and trash bins thrown out into the road are burning

23:46:50 Have received information from [crossed out] that juveniles are going to throw rocks and eggs at police and emergency services

01:13:24 The objective of the operation is to restore order in Gottsunda. The operation must be carried out as safely as possible from a work environment perspective

02:02:02 Call from emergency servicespublic has called and reported the smell of smoke in the stairwell [crossed out]

02:25:28 Emergency services, they will now break down an apartment door

02:27:11: Theres been a fire inside the apartment

02:27:28 Emergency services wants ambulance on scene

02:33:55 One individual deceased in apartment

The person found lifeless on the floor of the apartment was an elderly disabled man, whose life could not be saved. The direct cause of death appeared to be smoke inhalation, as a likely consequence of having left the stove on. While we cannot be sure, there are indications that the mans life could have been saved had the rescue operation not been delayed. The fire department report states: Since there was unrest in the area during the evening, including arson of trash bins and rock-throwing at rescue personnel, the fire truck was escorted by police to Bandstolsvgen 38, which delayed arrival with about 1315 minutes. Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet (2016a) interviewed a neighbor:

Jawad Kerim, 33, lives in the same stairway as the deceased man, and he was in bed when his wife noticed the smell of smoke.

I checked our apartment first and found nothing, so I went out on the balcony and talked with the neighbor. Then I went out into the stairwell and the smell was very strong, and then I knocked on a lot of neighbors doors, including his door. But he couldnt walk, he had a walker with him at all times, said Jawad Kerim. When the smell got even more intense in the stairwell, the neighbor called 112.

The fire department didnt get here immediately because of these idiots who burn things, said Jawad Kerim. He estimates that it took between 20 and 30 minutes before the fire brigade arrivedwhich is consistent with the fire brigade time logs.

The riots didnt stop after the tragic death, but continued for another three nights. It is not clear what prompted this particular incident, as is often the case with riots in Sweden today. The trigger may have been the polices attempt to arrest the driver of a stolen dirt bike. Aftonbladet (2016b) quotes the Uppsala police:

The unrest in Gottsunda and Valstra began on Friday evening. There has been unrest in these areas before. The inception of this event may have been that police arrested a man on a stolen dirt bike in Valstra on Friday.