"Poor EU-migrants who come to Sweden to beg are exposed to violence and harassment and threats, while encouragements of violence against them occur in social media where they are dehumanized," said Anders Dalsbro, head of the anti-racism magazine Expo, which surveyed the comments made by tens of thousands of participants of internet forums.
Dalsbro warned of the consequences of exchanges on the internet which encourage violence against migrants, telling Swedish Radio News:
"If you actively dehumanize people and call them pests, cockroaches and vermin, chances are that it will ultimately legitimize acts of violence against these individuals."
On Wednesday the Swedish government rejected calls to impose a ban on begging as a response to the growing number of EU migrants begging on the streets of Sweden.
According to a survey carried out by Swedish broadcaster SVT in April, the number of beggars from the EU is believed to have doubled in the last year to more than 4,000, mostly from Romania and Bulgaria.
Rather than a ban on begging, Justice and Migration Minister Morgan Johansson announced plans for new legislation to prevent people from profiting from begging, similar to legislation intended to prevent the industry in prostitution.
