Violence (Våld)

Is mentioned in relation to certain crimes in the Swedish Penal Code. These include robbery (Chapter 8, Section 5 of the Penal Code) and assault against an official (Chapter 17, Section 1 of the Penal Code). Rape, although the crime can consist of violent elements, does not require any violence for the perpetrator to be convicted (Chapter 6, Section 1 of the Penal Code). As such, violence as an element of crimes is defined differently depending on the crime. For example, snatching something from another person or pushing someone is normally not enough for violence as a requirement for robbery or assault against an official; whereas violence with regards to rape also constitutes physical coercion (e.g., by splitting the victim's legs or obstructing the victim's body movements) as well as less severe forms of violence, such as jerking or tearing another person's arm or clothing or pushing or holding someone.

Moreover, in the handbook on violence in close relationships^[6] issued by one of the major local regions in Sweden, Västra Götalandsregionen, violence is defined as "any act that is directed against a person, through which that person is harmed, caused pain or humiliation, caused to do something against its will or abstain from doing something against its will."

Domestic violence (våld i nära relationer)

Means all acts of physical, sexual, psychological or economic violence that occur within the family or domestic unit or between former or current spouses or partners, irrespective of whether or not the perpetrator shares or has shared the same residence with the victim. Swedish rules relating to domestic violence have a broader grant than the Istanbul Convention and include, among other things, violence in same-sex relationships.

Stalking (olaga förföljelse)

Refers to when a person persecutes another person through criminal acts of a certain kind (explicitly listed acts in the regulation), which are assault, unlawful coercion, unlawful threats, violation of the privacy of a person's home, photographic activity constituting invasion of privacy, identity theft, unlawful violation of integrity, violation of a restraining order, abuse, sexual abuse or harm. Each of these acts must have resulted in a repeated violation of the person's integrity.

Can mean many things under the Swedish law. The definition of harassment as stipulated in the Istanbul Convention is closest to the definition of "sexuellt ofredande" (sexual harassment) in the Swedish regulation. Criminal liability for sexual harassment includes when a person exposes themselves to another person in a way that is likely to cause discomfort, or otherwise through words or actions, harasses a person in a way that is likely to insult the person's sexual integrity. Such crime is intended to apply to acts that have a sexual orientation. It is sufficient that the act itself is typically of a kind that violates the sexual integrity of the victim, meaning that the victim does not need to show that the violation actually happened in the individual case (thus, the criminal liability goes further than the Istanbul Convention requires). Ruthless behavior that does not have a sexual dimension may instead be considered as molestation (ofredande) in accordance with Chapter 4, Section 7 of the Criminal Code. Other statements, accusations, insults or gestures may constitute insults (förolämpning) according to Chapter 5, Section 3 of the Criminal Code.

NOTE! There is a reason here to touch on the fact that if sexual or nonsexual harassment (ofredande/sexuellt ofredande) is committed on a constitutionally protected medium, e.g., on a constitutionally protected website, such as a mass media website, no liability can be claimed under Swedish law.

Victim (brottsoffer/målsägande)

Has no generally accepted definition. The crime victims who report crimes to the police in Sweden are called plaintiffs in Sweden. The term plaintiff is defined in Chapter 8, Section 8 of the Trial Code as the person against whom a crime has been committed or who has been offended or suffered damage by the crime. To obtain plaintiff status, the crime must be reported to the police.

This means that the definition of a crime victim is significantly broader than the definition of plaintiff, as not everyone who is exposed to crime reports it. Anyone who reports a crime to the police gets access to a number of rights, including information, support and compensation, which crime victims who do not report risk losing. Another example of a person who suffers from a crime but does not get the status of a plaintiff is children who witness domestic violence. That child is considered a victim of a crime under the Social Services Act, but not as a plaintiff under the Trial Code.

Abuser (gärningsman)

Civil protection order (kontaktförbud)

Refers to a ban against a person visiting or otherwise making contact with another person or following that person.

Such ban may be issued if there is a  clear and concrete  risk that the person to whom the prohibition applies will commit a crime against or otherwise seriously harass the person whom the prohibition is intended to protect.

The Swedish legislation on protection orders goes beyond the protection required under the Istanbul Convention, as the Swedish protection rules are aimed not only at the risk of crime, but also at persecution and serious harassments that are not necessarily punishable.

Marital rape (våldtäkt inom äktenskap)

Is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent.