STOCKHOLM (AP) – Swedish police scattered hundreds of people in central Stockholm on Saturday to protest the Swedish government’s coronavirus restrictions.
Swedish authorities said the demonstration – the first major protest against coronavirus restrictions in the country – was illegal because it took place without permission.
Stockholm police said on their website that they had decided to adjourn the meeting immediately after it began when the number of participants exceeded the limits for public meetings under Swedish pandemic laws.
Video images from the Swedish media showed a considerable number without the collection of masks in the Medborgarplatsen square, not far from the capital’s old town. The local press estimates that 300-500 people participated.
Swedish Aftonbladet and Expressen reported that the demonstration was largely dispersed peacefully, but six police officers were injured after fighting broke out with some protesters who did not want to leave.
Aftonbladet said the rally was organized by a group called Freedom Sweden, which said COVID-19 rules restrict human freedom.
“There are so many people in Sweden who are tired of these restrictions, who are really unfounded, and they want to put their foot down and show that we no longer agree,” said Filip Sjostrom, an organizer from Freedom Sweden, Expressen said.
According to Expressen, the protesters included far-right activists, people against vaccines and some families with children.
At the beginning of the pandemic, Sweden, unlike most other European countries, opted to keep its society largely open, with few restrictions, but the government has taken a substantially tougher stance in recent months.
Sweden has more than 13,000 deaths during the pandemic, while its northern neighbors Denmark, Norway and Finland, which chose to impose coronavirus restrictions much earlier, have a combined COVID-19 death toll of 3,777.
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