Den svenske lagstiftaren har under de senaste decennierna ökat polisens och åklagarens möjligheter till förundersökningsbegränsning som innebär att alla brott inte behöver utredas i enlighet med 23 kap. 4 a § RB. Samtidigt har Europadomstolen tolkat Europakonventionen om mänskliga rättigheter i en allt mer brottsoffervänlig riktning. Det betyder att reglerna om förundersökningsbegränsning rört sig ännu mera i riktningen mot mera av samhällelig effektivitetshänsyn medan konventionen gått mer åt att stärka brottsoffrens roll. I en rad rättsfall har Europadomstolen slagit fast att staterna har positiva förpliktelser gentemot brottsoffer, att se till att deras grundläggande rättigheter respekteras. Det betyder att de anslutna staterna måste skydda brottsoffren. Det gäller i synnerhet mot grova brott men domstolen har också öppnat för att offer för mindre allvarlig brottslighet måste få en chans till upprättelse. Samtidigt förundersökningsbegränsas, nedlägges, brottsutredningar av den typen med stöd av 23 kap. 4 a § RB dagligen i Sverige. / The Swedish legislator has during the three last decades extended the possibility for the police and the prosecutors to use preliminary enquiry limitation. That means that according to chapter 23, paragraph 4 a of the code of judicial procedure, the police and prosecutors does not always have to investigate crimes.   In the meantime, the European court of human rights has eventually interpreted the European convention on human rights, the ECHR, in a more crime victim friendly way. This study shows that the convention states need to consider positive obligations of the ECHR towards crime victims. The main aim of the convention is to protect individuals from violations of their rights committed by representatives of the states. But although it is not clearly written in the convention, the court of human rights has several times interpreted that article 8 of the convention includes positive obligations that demands the convention states to take measures in order to protect individuals and guarantee them their rights to personal and family life.

In recent decades, men’s violence against women has been perceived as an increasing problem in our societies. Men’s violence against women are nowadays also classified as a serious crime against human rights. The violence in an intimate relationship between a man and a woman restricts the woman’s sense of freedom and justice. The violence results in violation of the women’s rights to a private life.  It's usually the physical and sexual abuse of women that is the center in legal contexts within the scope of domestic violence against women. It’s therefore necessary to examine other specific forms of domestic violence within the legal scope in Sweden and the European Convention on Human Rights. This study has focused on the psychological abuse against women as a form of domestic violence. The psychological abuse against women is a serious matter in the Swedish society. This study has examined whether the psychological abuse against women is included in the Swedish criminal classifications. It has also examined whether the psychological abuse is, or should, apply within the state’s positive obligations especially in article 8 in the European Convention.  The results of this study have shown that Sweden do not have legal security for all forms included in psychological violence even though it’s such a serious issue in the Swedish society today. It has also shown that the right to privacy and a private life may be one of the reasons why Sweden hasn’t come up with a criminal provision against psychological abuse against women. Women’s right to a private life and freedom from all forms of abuse are therefore not fulfilled under the state’s positive obligations without this criminal provision, according to the positive obligations that article 8 in the European Convention should provide to all individuals.  Key words: Human rights, Women’s rights, State’s positive obligation, Domestic violence, Psychological abuse, Intimate relationship, Private life, European Court, European Convention on Human Rights, Swedish legal context.