https://sputnikglobe.com/20211123/netflix-sued-for-defamation-over-drama-about-assassination-of-swedish-pm-olof-palme-1090946130.html
Netflix Sued for Defamation Over Drama About Assassination of Swedish PM Olof Palme
Netflix Sued for Defamation Over Drama About Assassination of Swedish PM Olof Palme
Sputnik International
Sweden's beloved, yet polarising Prime Minister Olaf Palme was shot dead in Stockholm in 1986 while on his way home from the cinema. The assassination has... 23.11.2021, Sputnik International
2021-11-23T06:45+0000
2021-11-23T06:45+0000
2021-11-23T06:45+0000
netflix
newsfeed
society
sweden
lawsuit
scandinavia
https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/105809/52/1058095206_0:127:3001:1815_1920x0_80_0_0_397ab4c69eb67fb43b2f9e6f4cda5726.jpg
Movie streaming giant Netflix is being sued for defamation in Sweden over a crime drama about the assassination of the Scandinavian country's Prime Minister Olof Palme.Palme was shot dead in central Stockholm in 1986 wile he and his wife were walking home from the cinema, without bodyguards, as was the habit in those days. The murderer has never been conclusively identified, despite a decades-long investigation. Last years, prosecutors concluded that the likeliest suspect was a man named Stig Engström, a witness to the case who died in 2000.However, in the Netflix drama “The Unlikely Murderer”, Engström is pictured killing the prime minister and proceeding to cover up traces by merely posing as a witness. A complaint lodged anonymously with the Swedish Chancellor of Justice, which handles free speech cases, argued that this amounts to a “crystal-clear case of defamation”, national broadcaster SVT reported.The person who filed the report argued that Engström had been subjected to a character assassination.Swedish law prohibits the defamation of the dead if the statements are deemed to dishonour their reputations or harm surviving relatives.In yet another case, Netflix has been sued by Ulrika Glaser Rydberg, daughter to the so-called “arms collector”, who is also portrayed as complicit in the case, by bullying Engström into going ahead with the assassination.Ulrika Glaser Rydberg welcomed the previous report on behalf of Stig Engström.“It's very hurtful. I don't think I really have a chance, but if the alternative is to walk around with a clenched fist in my pocket, at least I can do something,” she said.The producers by contrast, emphasised that it is a largely fictional depiction and each episode has a disclaimer that it has not been proven that Engström murdered Olof Palme. In yet another comment, Netflix previously also said that the series doesn't claim to solve the case, and that it is based on the eponymous book by Thomas Pettersson.“Dramatising a theory linked to one of Sweden's biggest national traumas is challenging – and we have respect for the fact that the image conjured by some of the characters is not shared by all,” Netflix said.The unresolved Palme assassination remains a sore spot in Sweden's psyche and a legal conundrum. In August 2020, Chief Prosecutor Anders Jakobsson decided not to initiate a preliminary criminal investigation after investigator Krister Petersson pointed out Stig Engström as a possible perpetrator. Furthermore, Petersson himself was subsequently reported to several authorities for defamation of the deceased. Meanwhile, Netflix is facing lawsuits around the world for alleged defamation, inaccuracies or invasion of privacy in its series. These includes a lawsuit from 80-year-old women's chess champion Nona Gaprindashvili, who seeks $5 million in damages over “The Queen’s Gambit”, a drama featuring a fictional US chess player becoming the first woman grandmaster.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20200610/swedish-prosecution-announces-it-knows-who-killed-pm-olof-palme-1079573533.html
sweden
scandinavia
Sputnik International
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
2021
News
en_EN
Sputnik International
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
Sputnik International
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
netflix, newsfeed, society, sweden, lawsuit, scandinavia
netflix, newsfeed, society, sweden, lawsuit, scandinavia
Netflix Sued for Defamation Over Drama About Assassination of Swedish PM Olof Palme
Sweden's beloved, yet polarising Prime Minister Olaf Palme was shot dead in Stockholm in 1986 while on his way home from the cinema. The assassination has remained a sore spot on the national psyche ever since.
Movie streaming giant Netflix is being sued for defamation in Sweden over a crime drama about the assassination of the Scandinavian country's Prime Minister Olof Palme.
Palme was shot dead in central Stockholm in 1986 wile he and his wife were walking home from the cinema, without bodyguards, as was the habit in those days. The murderer has never been conclusively identified, despite a decades-long investigation. Last years, prosecutors concluded that the likeliest suspect was a man named Stig Engström, a witness to the case who died in 2000.
However, in the Netflix drama “The Unlikely Murderer”, Engström is pictured killing the prime minister and proceeding to cover up traces by merely posing as a witness. A complaint lodged anonymously with the Swedish Chancellor of Justice, which handles free speech cases, argued that this amounts to a “crystal-clear case of defamation”, national broadcaster SVT
reported.
The person who filed the report argued that Engström had been subjected to a character assassination.
Swedish law prohibits the defamation of the dead if the statements are deemed to dishonour their reputations or harm surviving relatives.
In yet another case, Netflix has been sued by Ulrika Glaser Rydberg, daughter to the so-called “arms collector”, who is also portrayed as complicit in the case, by bullying Engström into going ahead with the assassination.
“They made my father into a monster”, she told national broadcaster SVT, stressing that she would like to stand up for her father. “The portrayal of my dad is anything but true, and very offensive.”
Ulrika Glaser Rydberg welcomed the previous report on behalf of Stig Engström.
“It's very hurtful. I don't think I really have a chance, but if the alternative is to walk around with a clenched fist in my pocket, at least I can do something,” she said.
The producers by contrast, emphasised that it is a largely fictional depiction and each episode has a disclaimer that it has not been proven that Engström murdered Olof Palme. In yet another comment, Netflix previously also said that the series doesn't claim to solve the case, and that it is based on the eponymous book by Thomas Pettersson.
“Dramatising a theory linked to one of Sweden's biggest national traumas is challenging – and we have respect for the fact that the image conjured by some of the characters is not shared by all,” Netflix said.
The unresolved Palme assassination remains a sore spot in Sweden's psyche and a legal conundrum. In August 2020, Chief Prosecutor Anders Jakobsson decided not to initiate a preliminary criminal investigation after investigator Krister Petersson pointed out Stig Engström as a possible perpetrator. Furthermore, Petersson himself was subsequently reported to several authorities for defamation of the deceased.
Meanwhile, Netflix is facing lawsuits around the world for alleged defamation, inaccuracies or invasion of privacy in its series. These includes a lawsuit from 80-year-old women's chess champion Nona Gaprindashvili, who seeks $5 million in damages over “The Queen’s Gambit”, a drama featuring a fictional US chess player becoming the first woman grandmaster.
