Sweden: Turkish-origin politician receives hate letter

By Atila Altuntas

STOCKHOLM, Sweden

A Swedish politician of Turkish origin said he received a racist hate letter sent to his party's headquarters in Sweden’s second-largest city of Gothenburg.

Mikail Yuksel, an active member of Sweden's Centre Party, which takes part in the country’s coalition government, told Anadolu Agency that the letter read: "Go back to your country, you filthy Muslim."

Yuksel will be a parliamentary candidate in the Swedish general election scheduled for September 2018.

Claiming that his parliamentary election candidacy disturbed some racist lobby groups due to his Turkish and Muslim origin, Yuksel said: "They started a smear campaign against me although they are not taken seriously."

Yuksel said he had similar threats before and was not surprised, adding that he will not give up. "My only goal is to serve Sweden as a Swedish politician of Turkish origin," he said.

An estimated 100,000 Turks live in Sweden.