Lars Ohly: Difference between revisions
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Ohly became a member of the [[Liberal Youth of Sweden]], the youth wing of the [[Liberal People's Party (Sweden)|Liberal People's Party]], in 1970 but left shortly afterwards and became a [[Communism|communist]]. He joined the [[Young Left (Sweden)|Communist Youth]] in 1978 and the [[Left Party (Sweden)|Left Party]] in 1979. He became a member of board of the Communist Youth in 1980, was elected as a substitute of the party board in 1987 and became a full member of the party board in 1990. From 1994 to 2000 he was [[party secretary]] and in 2004 he was elected [[party chairman]]. He has been a [[Parliament of Sweden|Member of Parliament]] since 1998. |
Ohly became a member of the [[Liberal Youth of Sweden]], the youth wing of the [[Liberal People's Party (Sweden)|Liberal People's Party]], in 1970 but left shortly afterwards and became a [[Communism|communist]]. He joined the [[Young Left (Sweden)|Communist Youth]] in 1978 and the [[Left Party (Sweden)|Left Party]] in 1979. He became a member of board of the Communist Youth in 1980, was elected as a substitute of the party board in 1987 and became a full member of the party board in 1990. From 1994 to 2000 he was [[party secretary]] and in 2004 he was elected [[party chairman]]. He has been a [[Parliament of Sweden|Member of Parliament]] since 1998. |
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Lars Ohly was nominated for the ''Kurd friend of the year 2008'' ([[Swedish |
Lars Ohly was nominated for the ''Kurd friend of the year 2008'' ([[Swedish language|Swedish]]: Årets kurdvän 2008)<ref>http://beyan.net/nyheter-artikel.aspx?id=634 Dags för Kurdgalan 2009</ref>. |
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== Controversies == |
== Controversies == |
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Revision as of 10:26, 10 February 2009
Lars-Magnus Harald Christoffer Ohly (IPA: ['oːlʏ]; born 13 January 1957) is a Swedish politician, currently serving as party chairman of the Swedish Left Party. He was elected party chairman on 20 February 2004, succeeding Ulla Hoffmann.
Early life and career
Lars Ohly was born in Spånga, Stockholm County. His father, like all his forefathers for six generations, was a priest.[1] He grew up in various places around Stockholm. After finishing his gymnasium (secondary) education in 1978, he started working at Statens Järnvägar (the Swedish state-owned railway company), where he later became a conductor (Swedish: tågmästare). He is still employed at SJ but is on leave of absence since 1994.
Ohly became a member of the Liberal Youth of Sweden, the youth wing of the Liberal People's Party, in 1970 but left shortly afterwards and became a communist. He joined the Communist Youth in 1978 and the Left Party in 1979. He became a member of board of the Communist Youth in 1980, was elected as a substitute of the party board in 1987 and became a full member of the party board in 1990. From 1994 to 2000 he was party secretary and in 2004 he was elected party chairman. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1998.
Lars Ohly was nominated for the Kurd friend of the year 2008 (Swedish: Årets kurdvän 2008)[2].
Controversies
Nacka Skoglund
During his first weeks as party chairman, Ohly claimed in an interview to once have, as a boy, played football against Swedish football legend Nacka Skoglund in a friendly match. The newspaper Dagens Nyheter later revealed that this claim was most likely fictitious.[3] When confronted about this, Ohly claimed it to be an indeliberate error on his part.[4]
Uppdrag granskning
Lars Ohly used to be an outspoken communist. On 5 October 2005, Uppdrag granskning in Sveriges Television (the Swedish public service television) aired a programme about Lars Ohly's background and views on democracy.[5] In the programme, Ohly was accused of trying to rewrite his own history and of hiding his past. Several quotes by Ohly were found where he defended the political systems of the Eastern bloc.[6] Several prominent party members, among them former party leader Lars Werner, also witnessed about Ohly's views. It was also found that, in 2000, Ohly had reworded a letter of apology to the "Kiruna-Swedes" - victims of harassment from the Left Party after their return home from Soviet custody - with a number of critical references to Joseph Stalin being removed. The programme also showed that Ohly branded himself as a leninist as late as 1999.
Following this controversy, the leaders of all the other parliamentary parties have urged Ohly to drop his adherence to communism. On 30 October 2005, Ohly declared on Swedish TV that he would stop labeling himself a communist.[7] But he stressed at the same time that he would stay faithful to the ideals of communism and always would keep fighting for a "classless society".
Swedish-Cuban Association
During the controversy regarding Ohly's views on communism and his definition of socialism and socialist leadership, Ohly's membership in the Swedish-Cuban Association became known. The Swedish-Cuban Association supports the government of Fidel Castro in Cuba and does not want to label the country as a dictatorship. Ohly then released a statement that he considers Cuba to be a dictatorship and that he is critical of the lack of political freedom in Cuba, a statement which in response was criticized by the chairman of the Swedish-Cuban Association. In September 2005, Ohly declared that he had left the organisation.[8]
Raising the middle finger during a live debate
During a live debate on Swedish TV4 on 18 September 2006, the day after the Swedish general election, Ohly caused some controversy when he raised his middle finger to the right-wing commentator Marie Söderqvist who called his leadership style typical of a communist.[9] Ohly later apologized and said that he experienced a "temporary blackout".[10]
Personal life
Lars Ohly currently lives with his common-law spouse Åsa Hagelstedt. He has two children from a previous marriage.
References
- ^ Olsson, Karin (2006-07-13). "Prästsonen som såg rött" (in Swedish). Expressen. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ http://beyan.net/nyheter-artikel.aspx?id=634 Dags för Kurdgalan 2009
- ^ Grimlund, Lars (2004-02-19). "Mötte du Nacka, Ohly?" (in Swedish). Dagens Nyheter. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ Grimlund, Lars (2004-02-20). "Ohly: "Jag måste ha stått vid sidan av"" (in Swedish). Dagens Nyheter. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Bagge, Peter (2004-10-05). "Lars Ohlys syn på demokrati" (in Swedish). Uppdrag granskning. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ "Vad har Ohly sagt? Här är citaten" (in Swedish). Uppdrag granskning. 2004-10-05. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ "Lars Ohly slutar kalla sig kommunist" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. 2005-10-30. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ Melzer, Herman (2005-09-24). "Lars Ohly lämnar Kuba-förening" (in Swedish). Ekot. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ "Här ger Ohly fingret åt högerdebattören" (in Swedish). Ekonominyheterna. 2006-09-18. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ Kemilä, Alexander (2006-09-18). "Expressens krönikör fick fingret - av Ohly" (in Swedish). Expressen. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help)
External links
- Lars Ohly at the Left Party's website
- Lars Ohly at the Swedish parliament's website