In the spring of 2023, a woman sought medical attention for hemorrhoids at a healthcare center in Uppsala. The doctor asked her to remove her veil in order to make an assessment, which the woman opposed and the examination did not take place.
The Discrimination Ombudsman (DO) believed that the woman had been discriminated against due to her religion and demanded that Region Uppsala pay 70,000 kronor in discrimination compensation to the woman.
The region refused, whereupon the DO took the case to the district court. Now, Uppsala District Court announces that the claim is dismissed and orders the DO to pay the region's legal costs of 240,000 kronor.
The court does not question that the woman felt discomfort, but does not consider it to be discriminatory according to the Discrimination Act, since it has not been shown that the woman suffered harm or other disadvantage as a result of the question.
"Nor has the doctor's inquiry in itself constituted any violation of the woman's dignity," says the court's chairman Louise Conradi in a press release.
