For us democracy is a question of human dignity. And human dignity is political freedom.

A longtime protégé of Prime Minister Tage Erlander Palme led the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1969 until his assassination in 1986 and was a two-term Prime Minister of Sweden heading a Privy Council Government from 1969 to 1976 and a cabinet government from 1982 until his death. A pivotal renowned and polarizing figure domestically as well as in international politics since the 1960s Palme was steadfast in his non-alignment policy towards the superpowers juxtaposed to support of numerous third world liberation movements following the process of decolonization including most controversially economic and vocal support for a number of non-democratic anti-imperialist regimes. Frequently a critic of US and Soviet foreign policy he resorted to fierce and often polarizing criticism in pinpointing his resistance towards imperialist ambitions and authoritarian regimes including those of Francisco Franco of Spain Gustáv Husák of Czechoslovakia and B J Vorster and P W Botha of South Africa.