The Swedish Migration Agency has not made adequate efforts to facilitate a wedding in a detention centre

Summary of the decision: A detainee and his girlfriend planned to marry in the detention centre were the man was being held. The man requested a visit by the girlfriend, a priest and two witnesses so that the wedding could take place. As the man was only permitted supervised visits, the Swedish Migration Agency refused to deviate from the procedure of permitting no more than two adults in the visiting room with a detainee. As a result, the planned wedding could not take place. The detainee was deported just over a month later.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman notes that the right of adult men and women to marry enjoys strong protection under Swedish law, even if the exercise of this right while in detention must be adapted to the Swedish Migration Agency’s rules and procedures in order to, for example, maintain order and security.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman states that the responsibility for finding a reasonable and fair balance between the various considerations rests with the Swedish Migration Agency. In the opinion of the Parliamentary Ombudsman, adequate efforts have not been made to facilitate the wedding and he criticises the Swedish Migration Agency for this.