Anti-Nato protest sweeps Stockholm despite Ankara’s warning

STOCKHOLM: Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Stockholm city centre on Sunday to demonstrate against Sweden´s Nato bid and new anti-terror legislation, despite Ankara´s objections. “They are after the Kurds in Sweden,” Tomas Pettersson, spokesperson for the Alliance Against Nato, told AFP at the protest. He added that the idea behind the law is “to have an arrest and a trial and a victim” so that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “will then let Sweden into Nato”. The new law that came into effect on June 1 criminalises “participation in a terrorist organisation” as part of Sweden´s effort to beef up anti-terror legislation, a key demand from Turkiye to approve Stockholm´s stalled Nato membership bid. Ankara voiced its discontent earlier this week regarding the scheduled protest -- titled “No to Nato, No Erdogan Laws in Sweden” -- organised by groups close to the Kurdistan Workers´ Party (PKK), which is outlawed by Turkiye. On Sunday, the protesters were observed waving numerous PKK flags, along with signs stating “No to Nato.” A spokesman for the Turkish presidency on Tuesday said it was “completely unacceptable that PKK terrorists continue to operate freely in Sweden” and urged Swedish authorities to block them from demonstrating on Sunday.