The Sweden's migration agency has decided that the country has run out of room, contracting an investment company to provide holding facilities for single men and families.
The tender information provided by the immigration department details prison-like conditions, with one shower per 15 people and strictly regimented meal times. Nearly nothing is known about the company which won the tender, other than that it deals in recycling solutions. The actual vessel to be used for housing the migrants is unknown.
"The Migration Board can not disclose the name of the actual vessel because the supplier requests commercial confidentiality," the migration agency's release states.
In the Russian Civil War, both sides put undesirable people on boats which were sometimes sunk ahead of advancing forces, earning them the name "death barges." More recently, Augusto Pinochet's military regime in Chile used the Esmeralda sailing ship as a floating torture and killing center for political prisoners.
The bidder has a limit of 150 Swedish kroner per day ($17.83) to spend on feeding the migrants, including kitchen services. This is roughly the price of two meals at McDonalds in Sweden, which has an expensive cost of living compared to most other countries. It is unknown how the migrants will be fed, as such contracts tend to be won by the lowest bidder.
There is also no information on such policies as curfews, although the company which won the contract is expected to hire a private security force.
The plan follows increasingly hostile measures toward refugees in Scandinavian countries, generally known for broad political correctness. Denmark's government previously proposed stripping refugees of all but the most personal valuables and money upon entering the country. Sweden has also banned train service with Denmark in fear of refugees and inadequate personnel for checking identification documents.
