From the 1960s to the early 1990s, Sweden became one of the world’s most consistent and principled opponents of apartheid. While many Western governments hesitated, Swedish civil society, students, churches, journalists, unions, women’s groups, and organisations such as ISAK and the Africa Groups of Sweden mobilised nationwide campaigns, boycotts, and education drives to expose the brutality of apartheid. These individual acts of conscience formed a powerful people’s movement rooted in empathy, dignity, and moral clarity.

The Swedish government mirrored this commitment. Under leaders like Tage Erlander and Olof Palme, Sweden became the first Western country to offer official humanitarian support to South Africa’s banned liberation movements. Through SIDA, Sweden funded education, healthcare, and refugee programmes across southern Africa, making it one of the most significant non-African contributors to the liberation struggle. Palme insisted that neutrality could never mean silence in the face of injustice, framing Sweden’s stance as a moral duty.

For many South Africans in exile, Sweden became a place of refuge, study, and preparation for a democratic future. These connections were grounded not in charity but in solidarity, a belief in “walking with” South Africans, expressed through shared meals, letters, visits, and enduring friendships. This was especially the case with O.R. Tambo and Olof Palme.

In the small town of Oskarshamn, this spirit of solidarity took on a deeply personal form. A group of friends, among them Tormod Nesset and Håkan Juholt, who would later become South Africa’s ambassador, became involved in anti-apartheid work as early as 1976. They were among Sweden’s most committed grassroots supporters, volunteering their time, organising local actions, and ensuring that the struggle for freedom remained visible in Oskarshamn, a small southern town in the Kalmar region. After democracy was achieved in South Africa, they chose to continue this relationship, leading to the twinning partnership with our town. This connection has grown over more than three decades, built on trust, commitment, and the dedication of key individuals.

When Nelson Mandela was released in 1990, celebrations in Sweden, from Stockholm to small towns like Oskarshamn, reflected the depth of this bond. Mandela’s first visit outside Africa after his release was to Sweden, where he thanked the Swedish people for standing with South Africans “in our darkest hour”. Today, the partnership continues, strengthened by 31 years of shared history, friendship, and a commitment to justice that transcends borders.rs.