A rifle in a Christian Democrats' EU election video which defends hunting as a traditional pastime has made Facebook see red and stop the ad.
The ad, which features MEP candidate Ella Bohlin wearing an orange cap, strolling through the forest with a gun and dog on a leash, makes the case for hunting, which, it claims, is under attack from Brussels.
"Hunting is freedom. A time to be in nature," Bolin, herself a licensed hunter, says in the film, warning of EU rules that will make life difficult for Swedish hunters and severely limit competition shooting.
Nevertheless, the ad, whose motto is "Make EU Lagom Again", with 'lagom' being a uniquely Swedish word often translated as "just the right amount", was stopped from promotion.
"It feels really crazy. Hunters are an important group of voters for us and our strategy is to communicate with them through this video. It's very bad that Facebook has stopped us from doing so", Ella Bohlin told the newspaper Aftonbladet.
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"The ad does not glorify weapons in any way. The message is that issues relating to hunting and wildlife conservation must be settled in Sweden," she pointed out.
In her befuddlement, Bohlin was supported by her party, who couldn't see any controversy either.
"I do not understand at all how they reason," Steven Crosson, the Christian Democrats' press manager in Stockholm, said. "The video shows how Ella Bohlin walks in the forest with a dog and a rifle over her shoulder. It is an everyday phenomenon for a lot of Swedes. I can't see anything controversial about it."
"Hunting is an important part of Swedish nature conservation and should not be stopped by either Facebook's filters or Brussels bureaucrats," Christian Democrats party leader Ebba Busch Thor tweeted.
Jakt är en viktig del av svensk naturvård och ska vare sig stoppas av Facebooks filter eller byråkrater i Bryssel. #svpol #jakt https://t.co/P7bIXo9ef1
— Ebba Busch Thor (@BuschEbba) 16 de maig de 2019
According to Bohlin, Facebook's ban on the ad will affect the Christian Democrats' campaign extremely negatively.
"We don't have much money for this election. Our entire strategy has been based on using social media to reach voters," she pointed out.
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Since hunting is a traditional pastime for tens of thousands of Swedes, the Christian Democrats received a lot of positive feedback.
"The Soya vegans on Facebook are easily angered," one user wrote.
A total of about 60 species of game may be hunted in Sweden. Moose and deer are the most common prey animals in the country. Approximately 90,000 moose and 200,000 deer are shot annually. Small game hunting is also extensive and involves hare, grouse and duck.
