COLUMN – The loss of two Swedish Army officers to combat in Afghanistan has put the military back on the Swedish patriotic map.

RELATED NEWS:
• Jan Myrdal: 'The United States is not invincible'
• Sweden's Crown Princess in Afghanistan

After years of hearing Swedes criticize American militarism, I never thought I’d see them drive around with yellow ribbon bumper stickers that say “Support Our Troops” on their Volvos. But the recent loss of two Swedish Army officers to combat in Afghanistan seems to have put the military back on the Swedish patriotic map.

On February 7, two Swedish Army officers and their local interpreter were killed in action in Afghanistan. This event dominated the news in Sweden for days, perhaps not surprisingly. Swedes are not used to losing its citizens to combat.

Expressen, one of the country’s largest newspapers, launched a campaign urging their readers to buy a yellow ribbon in support for Swedish troops abroad. The somber ceremony when the remains of the two officers arrived in flag-draped caskets at the airport was broadcast on national television. And on the Internet, the Facebook group “RIP: Capt. Johan Palmlöv and Lt. Gunnar Andersson, Swedish Heroes” has close to 30,000 members – and is steadily growing.

According to a fresh poll by Synovate, the support among Swedes for the troop presence in Afghanistan has more than doubled since the officers were killed, even among Left Party sympathizers.

Swedish heroes? Something about the expression sounds very un-Swedish. For as long as I can remember, Swedes have struggled with their patriotism. It has been downplayed, attributed to some sort of chauvinist historical illusion, or claimed by right-wing groups as a way to express discontent with immigration policy. This may seem absurd to many of our international readers, but displaying the Swedish flag in Sweden, at least excessively and for no clear reason, is often met with suspicion. For those who are familiar with the Jante Law, embellishing and celebrating your country’s greatness go quite contrary to it. And in many ways, the Jante Law functions as a subconscious constitution of the Swedish mind.

Other explanations for Swedes’ ambiguity over national pride are feelings of collective guilt for turn-coat policy during World War II, or the Social Democrat ethos of total equality between peoples and nations: “How can we be proud when our wealth is founded on the misfortune of others?” Even though Sweden’s history of colonization and oppression of foreign lands and peoples must be regarded as minimal (except when it comes to its neighbors), Swedes seem to possess colonial guilt. Or perhaps they are just extremely socially conscious?

One thing is clear: In today’s multicultural Sweden, national pride cannot based on factors such as ethnicity and language, or the myth of the Vikings and wars of kings past. Instead, Swedish identity has been centered on (largely) uncontroversial concepts, such as universal healthcare, the world’s longest paid maternity leave, midsummer and meatballs, clean streets and fresh air. Military symbolism as an expression of patriotism, referring to soldiers as “heroes” and the like, have long been absent from Swedish mainstream society. But the reactions to the deaths of Capt. Palmlöv and Lt. Andersson suggest that the military is back as a source of Swedish pride and national identity.

However, since we are dealing with Sweden, things are not so cut and dry. A blanket, unconditional support for the military, as can be encountered in the United States, is out of the question. Fighting global terrorism, protecting the integrity of the European Union or securing the survival of Sweden as a nation all lack a legitimizing component that is key to the Swedish mindset. Yes, I am talking about social justice. In essence, a military component of Swedish patriotism will only be valid as long as the armed forces are engaged in missions for “making it possible for girls to go to school” or “promote civil reconstruction”.

We help, therefore we are proud. Everyone should know that the best way to win an argument in Sweden, and this goes a long way, is to frame it in a language for the greater good, or even better, for the empowerment of the disenfranchised and the elimination of inequalities. Then you will be speaking to the heart of the Swedish patriot, or at least the politically correct one.

Jonas Vesterberg is a U.S.-based journalist and communications consultant.