Mental health is a major child public health issue in Sweden. The overall aims of this thesis are to explore girls’ and boys’ perspectives on mental health and on mental health-promoting initiatives, and to deepen the knowledge of disclosure and support for ado-lescents at risk of abuse and neglect. Four studies are included in the thesis, and a qualitative descriptive design was chosen. In three of the studies (Studies I, II, and III), adolescents in Sweden were interviewed individually or in focus-groups. In the fourth study (IV) officials and politicians in nine municipalities in Sweden were interviewed, and documents were analysed in a multiple-case-study design. In study I the adolescents were asked about the mental health-promoting dialogue with the school nurse. The results reveal that what the adolescents found important were trustiness, attentiveness, respectfulness, authenticity, accessibility, and continuity. The adolescents also had certain views on what issues to talk about in the health dialogue; physical and psychological issues should be included. In Study II, the adolescents perceived “mental health” to be an emotional experience with positive and negative aspects of internal and relational feelings. Family, friends, and school were regarded as important determinants of mental health by the adolescents. Neither girls nor boys thought that there were any major differences in mental health between girls and boys, but did think they were subject to different expectations. In Study III the results show that adolescents with families with alcohol problems are unsure whether to disclose their home situation to an adult; the adolescents seem to make a risk assessment when looking for trustworthy adults. It is a disclosure process. Friends are confidants and supportive, and sometimes facilitators for contacting adults, when support from adults is needed. Study IV show that even small grants to municipalities for children-at-risk projects lead to more activities for these children and adolescents. But children or adolescents were not involved in the planning or decision-making of the activities. The studies in this thesis show that most important thing for adolescents’ mental health is the relation between adolescents and adults, foremost parents, and between adolescents and friends. In addition, gender and age, adolescents’ perspec¬tives and par-ticipation, and society’s support, including the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, have an impact on adolescents’ mental health, both for ado-lescents in general and for adolescents at risk of abuse and neglect. The results are viewed in relation to the bioecological model, to illustrate how all levels in society influence mental health among adolescents, on an individual and a population plane. The findings have implications for adults: to learn more about adolescents and puberty, and about the home situation for children and adolescents at risk of abuse and neglect; to listen to suggestions from children and adolescents; to include friends in support to adolescents at risk of abuse and neglect; and to include girls and boys in all matters concerning them.

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This thesis examines the impacts of white supremacy on Jews’ freedom of religion in the United States. In what ways is the American white supremacist movement a threat to Jews’ freedom of religion, and to what extent is the federal state protecting this right in accordance with Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)? By using the Legal Analytical Method, and by applying Daniel Ian Rubin’s approach to Critical Race Theory (CRT), this thesis finds that the white supremacist movement is threatening Jews’ freedom of religion in three main ways: through physical attacks, psychological intimidation, and economic effects. Although the state provides Jewish communities with some protection from white supremacists, recent antisemitic attacks show that the U.S. government could do more to ensure that American Jews can fully enjoy Article 18 of the ICCPR.

Varje dag gifts 33 000 barn bort globalt, sammanlagt beräknas 650 miljoner av världens kvinnor ha gifts bort innan de uppnått myndighetsålder. År 1981 undertecknade Sverige konventionen om avskaffandet av all slags diskriminering av kvinnor (CEDAW) och konventionen började gälla samma år. CEDAW fastställer rätten att själv få välja med vem man vill ingå äktenskap samt att parterna ska vara minst 18 år vid tiden för giftermålet. Den 1 januari år 2020 inkorporerades barnkonventionen i svensk lag som ett steg i att stärka barns rättigheter. Barnkonventionen fastslår att konventionsstaterna är skyldiga att avskaffa skadliga sedvänjor, dit barnäktenskap hör. Som ett steg i att utöka skyddet för barn som riskerar bli bortgifta i utlandet infördes den 1 juli år 2020 ett utreseförbud i 31 a-i §§ (1990:52) med särskilda bestämmelser om vård av unga (LVU). Uppsatsen utreder vilken skyddsnivå Sverige, utifrån sina människorättsliga åtaganden, ska ge barn som riskerar att bli bortgifta i utlandet samt hur skyddsmekanismerna är utformade. Vidare utreds processen för att tillämpa utreseförbudet och vilka utmaningar som följer. För att skapa förståelse för det eventuella förtryck ett barn kan uppleva i samband med tillämpningen av utreseförbudet tillämpas Iris Marion Youngs teori om förtryckets fem ansikten i analysen.  Sverige ska enligt barnkonventionen och CEDAW till sin yttersta förmåga skydda barn från skadliga sedvänjor såsom barnäktenskap. För att vidareutveckla skyddet har bland annat ett utreseförbud införts i LVU. Resultatet visar att Sverige förvisso arbetar aktivt för att minska antalet barnäktenskap men att undantag gjorts för vilka resor som omfattas av förbudet. Frivilliga utlandsresor, där båda parter är minderåriga, omfattas inte vilket riskerar reducera barnens rättsliga skydd. Analys av förvaltningsrättens domar i mål rörande utreseförbud påvisar att barn som riskerar bli bortgifta i utlandet kan uppleva flera olika typer av förtryck, både från sin hemmiljö och staten. När staten fattar beslut som inskränker ett barns fri- och rättigheter för att skydda denne från att utsättas för skadliga sedvänjor är det av vikt att utreda hur det påverkar barnet. / Every day, 33,000 children are married off globally. In addition, a total of 650 million of the world's women are estimated to have been married off before reaching the age of majority. In 1981, Sweden signed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the convention came into force the same year. CEDAW establishes the right to choose with whom you want to marry and that the parties must be 18 years or older at the time of the marriage. In 2020, the Convention on the Rights of the Child was incorporated into Swedish law as a step in strengthening children's rights. It states that States Parties are obliged to abolish harmful practices to which child marriage belongs. As a step in increasing the protection for children who are at risk of being married off abroad, a travel ban was also introduced in 2020 in 31 a-i §§ The Care of Young Persons (Special Provisions) Act. According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and CEDAW, Sweden must do its utmost to protect children from harmful practices such as child marriage. This thesis investigates what level of protection Sweden should provide children who are at risk of being married off abroad and how the protection mechanisms are designed. Furthermore, the process for applying the travel ban and the challenges that follow are investigated. To create an understanding of the possible oppression a child may experience in connection with the application of the travel ban, Iris Marion Young's theory of the five faces of oppression is applied in the thesis' analysis.  The results show that Sweden certainly works actively to reduce the number of child marriages, but that exceptions have been made for which trips are covered by the ban. Voluntary trips abroad, where both parties are minors, are not covered, which risks reducing the children's legal protection. Analysis of the Administrative Court's rulings in cases concerning travel bans shows that children who are at risk of being married off abroad can experience several different types of oppression, both from their home environment and the state. When the state makes decisions that restrict a child's freedoms and rights to protect him or her from being exposed to harmful practices, it's important to investigate how it affects the child.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, European states have taken numerous measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Several states have introduced various forms of compulsory vaccination against COVID-19. While vaccines are one of the most effective tools for protecting people against COVID-19, it raises the question to which extent states may justifiably make vaccination schemes compulsory in the pursuit of public health. This paper, therefore, analyses the compatibility between compulsory vaccination and the right to respect for private life as set out in Article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (the ECHR). As of today, the European Court of Human Rights (the ECtHR) has not decided whether vaccine mandates are compatible with the right to respect for private life.  An interference in the right to respect for private life must be in accordance with the law and fulfil one of the legitimate aims that are set out in Article 8.2 of the ECHR. An interference also needs to be necessary in a democratic society in order to achieve that legitimate aim. The protection of health as well as the protection of the rights and freedoms of others are two of the legitimate aims stipulated in Article 8 of the ECHR that are relevant in relation to the introduction of compulsory vaccination in society. In assessing whether an interference is necessary in a democratic society, the states enjoy a certain margin of appreciation. However, their assessment remains subject to review by the ECtHR. The principle of proportionality is an important part in assessing whether the interference has been necessary in a democratic society or not. The interference in question must remain proportionate to the legitimate aim pursued. In this paper, the compatibility between compulsory COVID-19 vaccination and the right to respect for private life is examined primarily by analysing prior case law of the ECtHR concerning vaccination and other medical interventions. This paper concludes that the states enjoy a wide margin of appreciation when assessing the necessity of introducing compulsory COVID-19 vaccinations, mainly because of the lack of European consensus regarding such vaccination schemes. Furthermore, it is concluded that compulsory COVID-19 vaccinations can be compatible with the right to respect for private life as set out in Article 8 of the ECHR, provided that the vaccines are considered safe and efficient by the research community, the vaccines used are monitored and the vaccine mandate is only indirectly imposed by sanctions of a protective nature. In addition, necessary precautions must be taken by prior assessment of potential contraindications and there must exist a possibility to receive compensation as a result of potential injuries caused by the vaccine.