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Swedish music festival to be female-only 'until all men learn how to behave themselves'

Following numerous reports of sexual assault at other festivals

Christopher Hooton
Wednesday 05 July 2017 10:19 BST
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(Getty)

"Sweden's first man-free rock festival will see the light next summer," its organiser has confirmed, following a string of sexual assault reports at other festivals in the country.

It was announced on Saturday that Bråvalla, Sweden's largest one, would not be taking place in 2018 after police received reports of four rapes and 23 sexual assaults at this year's event.

Following the news, Swedish radio presenter and comedian Emma Knyckare tweeted: "What do you think about putting together a really cool festival where only non-men are welcome, that we'll run until ALL men have learned how to behave themselves?"

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It would seem she received a lot of support for the idea, as she later confirmed on Instagram: "Sweden's first man-free rock festival will see the light next summer.

"In the coming days I'll bring together a solid group of talented organisers and project leaders to form the festival organisers, then you'll hear from everyone again when it's time to move forward."

Sexual allegations also blighted Sweden's We Are STHLM festival and are a worldwide problem, with 28 British festivals staging an online "blackout" in May in accordance with the #saferspacesatfestivals campaign.

Since 2016, Glastonbury's attractions have included The Sisterhood, a space exclusively for people who self-identify as women.

(via NewsWeek)

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