To the healthcare center, people come because they don't feel well. Then they shouldn't have to meet Mao Zedong and Vladimir Lenin, two of history's worst mass murderers, Paul Svensson, regional councilor for the Sweden Democrats and member of Ystad's municipal council, has previously said to the newspaper.
Region Skåne's property director Pål Svensson motivates the decision by saying that the two works belong to a private art collection, owned by one of the healthcare center's doctors.
Private art should not hang in the region's premises, he emphasizes. He underlines that the decision was not made based on an assessment of the art's quality.
The decision leads to a hundred modern works of art being taken down from the walls, which are part of the doctor's art collection.
"It's incredibly problematic that Region Skåne has listened to the Sweden Democrats' demands and forces the healthcare center to remove these works. This is art that makes fun of two of world history's worst mass murderers", comments Mätta Ivarsson, group leader for the Green Party in Region Skåne in a press release.