Refugee controversy in Sjöbo

The controversial referendum passed with a 67.4% majority for the ban in 1988, gaining Olsson and Sjöbo much publicity in the Swedish media.

Immigration minister and Social Democrat Georg Andersson described the vote as a "macabre expression of egoism, and a violation of the refugees' human dignity.

[7] On the day of the vote, 18 September 1988, the Associated Press reported that the refugee issue had split families, friends and even the town's only church.

On 12 September 1988, The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote: "A referendum on accepting refugees in this quiet Swedish town has flared into an ugly battle watched closely by a country that prides itself on its tolerant attitudes and absence of racism.

"[7] Madeleine Ramel, a baroness, and the head of the local Social Welfare Board that was planning on taking care of the refugees, said: "a lot of people are very ashamed.

"[6] Olsson's main argument in the debate leading up to the day of the referendum was that foreigners would not be able to fit into a community such as Sjöbo.

He said in an interview that he was surprised by the attention the town had received in the media: "They make us out to be stupid, fools, farmers who live in isolation.

[10] Then-Prime Minister of Sweden Ingvar Carlsson said the results were "tragic", and the then-leader of the Centre Party, Olof Johansson, called the ban "improper".

"[11] Heléne Lööw, a Swedish historian, stated that one of the likely reasons for the relatively large xenophobia in Skåne County at the time was the high unemployment numbers.

The county had accepted a large number of refugees compared to the rest of Sweden, and many saw this as the reason for the lack of jobs.