What I understand is that this person is very young and then there are mitigating circumstances in that you can be drawn into such environments, says Magnus Ranstorp, associate professor of political science and terrorism researcher at the Defense College.
Had it been about an adult who was deeply involved, it would have been a different matter, he says. Then it could have created a vulnerability that the Security Service must handle.
No one wants to be near these circles and forces, says Ranstorp.
But everyone who has had teenage children and young people in their vicinity knows that they sometimes go astray. You have to take that into account when making this assessment.
Can be an entry point
Expo revealed on Tuesday that a minister in the government has a close relative who has been active in the extreme right. The Government Offices have confirmed that the relative is a child.
The person is said to have, according to chats and posts that the newspaper has gone through, tried to recruit people to a white power organization and participated in activities with a violence-advocating so-called activist club.
Professor of political science Jonas Hinnfors believes that the government will need to act on the revelation.
This is not an issue the government wants to focus on now, he says and continues:
One way to solve it is for the minister to leave.
According to Hinnfors, it can also become a problem if the revelation takes too much focus so that it becomes difficult for the minister to do their job.
Such a development can also force a minister to withdraw, he says.
Discover and prevent
According to Ranstorp, the white power environments in Sweden have had a generational shift and are now betting more on reaching out to young people.
This can happen to almost anyone if you don't have sufficient control. Activist clubs and martial arts can become an entry point into these circles, and there may be a problem that not everyone is aware of.
The most important thing is that it has been discovered and that it can be corrected, Ranstorp believes.
It's good that it was discovered at an early stage. Now it's about taking care of this and ensuring that the person is not involved in the circles anymore. Everyone can go wrong sometimes, and then it's about supporting and standing up.
