Nearly two dozen lawmakers in the Swedish parliament say they have experienced sexual assault, some at the hands of their colleagues, according to a survey in the Expressen newspaper on Thursday.

"Besides the online messages with sexual undertones, I've had unwelcome hands placed on my body at political events," said Annie Loof, Centre Party leader, according to the report.

Expressen sent the survey to 347 parliamentarians. Of the 101 responses sent back, 23 said they had experienced sexual assault in their political life, the majority of them women.

Last week, Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom, addressing the recent "#MeToo" social media campaign, drew attention for telling the media that there was sexual harassment in elite political circles.

Thousands of people took to the streets at the weekend in cities across Sweden to demonstrate against sexual assault.