Swedish university found guilty of rejecting Turkish student over NATO bid

STOCKHOLM

Sweden’s official equality body has found Stockholm University guilty of rejecting a Turkish student due to a dispute between the two nations over Sweden’s NATO admission process.

The incident dates back to 2022, when third-year psychology student Fatma Zehra S. was granted approval for an internship at Stockholm University under the EU’s Erasmus+ program.

After receiving the entitlement, Fatma Zehra S. expressed interest in joining a research study led by Professor Per Carlbring, one of the university's instructors, via email. However, in response, Carlbring rejected the student’s request, stating, “Dear Fatma, I would love to host you. However, since Türkiye does not allow Sweden to join NATO, I have to decline. Sorry.”

Fatma Zehra S. later filed a complaint with Sweden’s Equality Ombudsman (DO) against Stockholm University. In response, Torun Lindholm Ojmyr, the university's vice president of the psychology department, acknowledged in a letter of apology that Professor Carlbring's actions were improper and incorrect.

After nearly two years, the DO concluded that Fatma Zehra S. had indeed experienced ethnic discrimination, with Stockholm University found guilty of discriminatory practices.

However, following her negative experience, a different professor from the psychology department at the same institution approved the application of Fatma Zehra S.

Sweden and Finland had applied to join the alliance in May 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Türkiye greenlighted Finland in early 2023 while delaying Sweden’s process due to Stockholm’s failure to meet Türkiye’s demands in the fight against terrorism and multiple anti-Türkiye and anti-Muslim protests in the country.

While Sweden tightened its anti-terrorism legislation in response, Türkiye's parliamentary vote on Jan. 23 last year endorsed Sweden's NATO membership.