A Swedish politician has said he was assaulted and raped at knifepoint because of his work in politics and left-wing views.
Patrik Liljeglöd, a care worker and representative for Sweden’s Vänsterpartiet [Left Party], was allegedly attacked and sexually assaulted in his hometown Falun, in central Sweden, in July this year.
Yesterday, Mr Liljeglöd revealed that the attack had been politically motivated and that the unknown male assailant had called him a ‘left-wing c***’ and a traitor.
Brave: Patrik Liljeglöd, a representative for the Left Party, has revealed he was sexually assaulted in Falun, and that the assailant had called him a ‘left-wing c***’ and a traitor
In a candid letter on social media, Mr Liljeglöd disclosed that he had been sexually assaulted on the way home from a night out with a fellow Left Party member.
‘At the end of July this year, when the buses had stopped running, the mild summer night invited me to wander home alone after a pleasant night spent with a fellow party member.
‘That is where the pleasantness ends. On the way home, I was attacked by an unknown man armed with a knife.
‘I was brutally treated, and also raped at knifepoint under the pretext that I am a left-wing “female genitalia”, and that the likes of me “enjoy this sort of stuff”, and finally that I am a traitor.
Attacked: Swedish police are investigating the alleged rape, but no suspect has been arrested as of Friday
‘The few words and sentences uttered by the man had an explicit connection to me as a politically active person, and that is why this affects us all.’
Mr Liljeglöd highlighted that while this was an assault on him as an individual, the fact that it was made clear that he was being attacked for his political views and work for the party, also made it an assault on democracy.
His open letter, read out during a party meeting and posted on his Facebook on Thursday has received hundreds of supportive comments in response.
Swedish police have confirmed to local media that there is an ongoing investigation into the alleged attack, but that so far, no one has been arrested.
The Left Party is the sixth largest political party in Sweden, describing itself as socialist and feminist.
It is the most left-wing out of the eight political parties with seats in the Swedish parliament.