Successful Human Rights Implementation? Victims of Crime and the Swedish Example

ABSTRACT Consideration of victims and how best to acknowledge their rights and position in the criminal prosecution process has become an intrinsic part of the drafting and negotiation of new international criminal law instruments. In studies of states’ implementation of international victims’ rights, Sweden often places at the top of the class. This article challenges the concept of successful implementation of human rights norms by critically analysing the conformity of Swedish law with international legal obligations towards victims of crime. It further contributes to existing literature describing the factors that may facilitate or obstruct such implementation, and demonstrates that Sweden’s position as a model of successful implementation is more the result of the historical position given to victims of crime in the country than of its commitment to live up to its international obligations. The article also raises doubt as to the Swedish government’s commitment to assuring that Swedish national law upholds its present conformity with international law norms, protecting victims into the future.