In Case of Crisis or War: the brochure made by the Swedish Government to prepare for war scenarios

The Swedish Government produced a brochure named “In Case of Crisis or War” to inform and prepare Swedish citizens for the worst possible scenario: an armed attack on Sweden. The brochure has been sent out to all Swedish homes starting from the 18th of November 2024, it is available in Swedish, Simple Swedish and English and it is possible to download it in many more languages. 

In the pamphlet are depicted  the behaviours to apply in case of alert: the alert system, that uses loud sirens, is operational in most municipalities and around Sweden’s nuclear power plants, recommending to the citizens to seek shelter, close all doors and windows and wait for instructions listening to Swedish public broadcaster “Sveriges Radio”, channel P4. People have to prepare beforehand so they don’t have to run outside in case of an emergency. They are required to keep water, warm clothes, long-lasting foods (such as pasta, crackers, instant mashed potatoes), tinned goods, energetic boosts and children's food, like oatmeal and infant formula. 

Moreover, from the year a citizen turns 16 until the end of the year they turn 70, they are required to be a part of Sweden's total defence system and they will be needed in case of war or war threat. Despite the Swedish Government’s claim to involve every citizen from when they enter their 16th year of age until they finish their 70th, it is appropriate to remind that Sweden is part of the Convention on the rights of the Child of 1989 and it has also ratified the Additional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflicts (2000), where article 2 states that “States Parties shall ensure that persons who have not attained the age of 18 years are not compulsorily recruited into their armed forces.”.