[IPA: çɛl: mɑŋnə bun:əvi:k] (born 3 September 1947) is a
NorwegianNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...
LutheranLutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the 16th century German reformer Martin Luther. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
minister and
politicianPolitics in Norway take place in the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the King's council, the cabinet, led by the Prime Minister of Norway. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Storting, elected...
. He served as
Prime Minister of NorwayThe Prime Minister of Norway is the political leader of Norway and the Head of His/Her Majesty's Government. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Stortinget , to their political party, and...
from 1997 to 2000, and from 2001 to 2005, making him Norway's longest serving non-Socialist Prime Minister since World War II. He is also the first Prime Minister who took sick leave due to
mental illnessA mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern that occurs in an individual and is thought to cause distress or disability that is not expected as part of normal development or culture. The recognition and understanding of mental disorders has changed over time and...
. Currently, he is President of the Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights.
On 31 October 2006 he published his memoir, called
Et liv i spenning (
A life of excitement/tension).
Bondevik was born in
MoldeMolde is a city and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Romsdal region.Molde is the administrative center of Møre og Romsdal county, the commercial hub of Romsdal, and the host of the bishop of Møre....
, Norway.
[IPA: çɛl: mɑŋnə bun:əvi:k] (born 3 September 1947) is a
NorwegianNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...
LutheranLutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the 16th century German reformer Martin Luther. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
minister and
politicianPolitics in Norway take place in the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the King's council, the cabinet, led by the Prime Minister of Norway. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Storting, elected...
. He served as
Prime Minister of NorwayThe Prime Minister of Norway is the political leader of Norway and the Head of His/Her Majesty's Government. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Stortinget , to their political party, and...
from 1997 to 2000, and from 2001 to 2005, making him Norway's longest serving non-Socialist Prime Minister since World War II. He is also the first Prime Minister who took sick leave due to
mental illnessA mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern that occurs in an individual and is thought to cause distress or disability that is not expected as part of normal development or culture. The recognition and understanding of mental disorders has changed over time and...
. Currently, he is President of the Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights.
On 31 October 2006 he published his memoir, called
Et liv i spenning (
A life of excitement/tension).
Family and early life
Bondevik was born in
MoldeMolde is a city and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Romsdal region.Molde is the administrative center of Møre og Romsdal county, the commercial hub of Romsdal, and the host of the bishop of Møre....
, Norway. He became a
theologicalThe term "theology" literally means the study of God, deriving from the Greek word theos, meaning 'God', and the suffix -ology from the Greek word logos meaning "discourse", "theory", or "reasoning"...
candidate from
MF Norwegian School of TheologyMF Norwegian School of Theology in Norwegian Det teologiske Menighetsfakultet , is a private, independent, accredited Norwegian specialised university institution...
in 1975. In 1979 he was ordained as pastor in the (Lutheran) Norwegian State Church. He is married to Bjørg Bondevik (born Rasmussen), and has the three children Bjørn (born 1972), Hildegunn (born 1973) and John Harald (born 1976). Kjell Magne Bondevik is also the cousin of the Norwegian
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
Odd BondevikOdd Bondevik was the bishop of Møre in the Church of Norway from 17 November 1991 until retirement in 2008.Bondevik is an alumnus of MF Norwegian School of Theology, and worked as a missionary to Japan . From 1987 he worked at the home office of the Norwegian Missionary Society as a secretary for...
.
Political career
Representing the Christian Democratic Party, Bondevik was a member of the
StortingThe Parliament of Norway is located in the capital city Oslo. It sits in the Parliament of Norway Building which was completed in 1866 and was designed by the Swedish architect Emil Victor Langlet.- History :...
(Parliament) from 1973 to 2005. He was his party's parliamentary leader in the periods of 1981–1983, 1986–1989, 1993–1997, 1997 and 2000–2001, and party leader from 1983 to 1995. In this position, he was succeeded by
Valgerd Svarstad HauglandValgerd Svarstad Haugland is a former Minister of Culture and Church Affairs and former leader of the Christian Democratic Party in Norway between 1995 and 2004, to which also former Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik belongs.As Minister of Culture and Church Affairs she paid special attention to...
. Bondevik was also Minister of Foreign Affairs in
Jan P. Sysewas a lawyer and Norwegian politician from the Conservative Party. He was Prime Minister of Norway from 1989 to 1990. He also served as Minister of Industry from 1983 to 1985...
's government of 1989–1990, Minister of Church and Education in
Kåre WillochKåre Isaachsen Willoch is a Norwegian politician from the Conservative Party. He was Prime Minister of Norway from 1981 to 1986.Willoch graduated as an economist from the University of Oslo...
's government 1983–1986, also Prime Minister Willoch's deputy 1985–1986, and state secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister during
Lars Korvaldwas a Norwegian politician from the Christian Democratic Party. He was Prime Minister of Norway from 1972 to 1973, leading the cabinet that took over when Trygve Bratteli resigned in the wake of the first referendum over Norway's membership in the European Economic Community.-Early life and...
's government 1972–1973.
As Prime Minister
Bondevik's first term as Prime Minister lasted from 17 October 1997 to 3 March 2000, in a
coalitionA coalition is an alliance among individuals or groups, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in his own self-interest, joining forces together for a common cause. This alliance may be temporary or a matter of convenience. A coalition thus differs from a more formal covenant...
cabinetBondevik's First Cabinet governed Norway between 17 October 1997 to 3 March 2000. It was led by Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik, and consisted of the Christian Democratic Party, the Centre Party and the Liberal Party. There was a major reshuffle in March 1999. It had the following...
consisting of the Christian Democratic Party, the
Centre PartyThe Centre Party is a centrist and agrarian Norwegian political party founded in 1920. Until 1959 it bore the name Bondepartiet...
and the
Liberal PartyThe Liberal Party of Norway is a social liberal political party in Norway. It is the oldest political party in the country, founded in 1884. Since 1996, the party has been led by Lars Sponheim, while the vice-presidents are Ola Elvestuen and Trine Skei Grande...
.
While serving his first term as Prime Minister, Bondevik attracted international attention in August 1998 when he admitted that he was suffering from
depressive episodeMajor depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
, becoming the highest ranking world
leaderLeadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”...
to admit to suffering from a mental illness while in office. Upon this revelation,
Anne Enger LahnsteinAnne Enger, formerly Anne Enger Lahnstein is a Norwegian politician, but out of politics for the moment, as she is County Governor of Østfold. A former leader of the Centre Party, she is best known for her opposition to the European Union. She was the front person of the "No to EU"-campaign at the...
became acting Prime Minister for three weeks, from 30 August to 23 September, while he recovered from the depressive episode. Bondevik then returned to office. Bondevik received thousands of supportive letters, and said that the experience had been positive overall, both for himself and because it made mental illness more publicly acceptable.
His cabinet during his second period in office, a coalition
cabinetBondevik's Second Cabinet governed Norway between 19 October 2001 and 17 October 2005. It was led by Kjell Magne Bondevik and consisted of the Conservative Party, the Christian Democratic Party and the Liberal Party. It had the following composition:...
consisting of the Christian Democratic Party, the
Conservative PartyThe Conservative Party is a Norwegian political party. Founded in 1884, it is Norway's second oldest party. The current leader is Erna Solberg.-History and political platform:...
and the
Liberal PartyThe Liberal Party of Norway is a social liberal political party in Norway. It is the oldest political party in the country, founded in 1884. Since 1996, the party has been led by Lars Sponheim, while the vice-presidents are Ola Elvestuen and Trine Skei Grande...
, was appointed 19 October 2001, succeeding
Jens Stoltenbergis the Prime Minister of Norway. He took office in October 2005; having previously served as Prime Minister from 2000 to 2001. He has also been the leader of the Norwegian Labour Party since 2002 and has been a Member of Parliament from Oslo since 1993...
.
The second Bondevik government carried out reforms and left a booming economy. However, Bondevik was defeated in the
2005 parliamentary electionParliamentary elections were held in Norway on 12 September 2005. More than 3.4 million Norwegians were eligible for vote for the Storting, the parliament of Norway. The new Storting has 169 members, an increase of four over the 2001 election....
, with 81 seats obtained for Bondevik's coalition and its supporters to the opposition
Red-Green CoalitionThe Red-Green Coalition is a centre-left coalition of Norwegian parties, formed by the Labour , the Socialist Left Party , and the Centre Party. It was established in 2005 to constitute an alternative to the centre-right government of Kjell Magne Bondevik, and won the Norwegian parliamentary...
's 88.
Bondevik announced his retirement from national-level politics at the end of his term as prime minister and did not seek re-election for his seat in parliament.
Awards and decorations
Bondevik was awarded the Grand Cross of St. Olav in 2004, the first sitting Norwegian Prime Minister to receive the Order of St. Olav in 80 years. The award happened due to a change in the Statutes of the Order with automatic awards to the Prime Minister and Ministers of the Government. With the succeeding
Stoltenberg Governmentis the Prime Minister of Norway. He took office in October 2005; having previously served as Prime Minister from 2000 to 2001. He has also been the leader of the Norwegian Labour Party since 2002 and has been a Member of Parliament from Oslo since 1993...
, this controversial practice was halted.
Member of the
Club of MadridThe Club of Madrid is an independent organization created for the purpose of promoting democracy and change in the global community. Its exclusive members are of exceptional merit, usually former heads of state and government who have the ability to work as catalysts for change...
.
Kjell Magne Bondevik is an Honorary Member of
The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.
In 2009, Bondevik was awarded an honorary degree from the
University of San FranciscoThe University of San Francisco is a selective, private, Jesuit university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco...
http://www.usfca.edu/usfnews/news_stories/Bondevik.html.
The Oslo Centre
The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights was founded by Kjell Magne Bondevik in January 2006. The purpose of the centre is to work for world
peacePeace is commonly understood as the absence of hostility, or the existence of healthy or newly-healed interpersonal or international relationships, safety in matters of social or economic welfare, the acknowledgment of equality and fairness in political relationships and, in world matters,...
,
human rightsHuman rights refer to the "basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled." Examples of rights and freedoms which have come to be commonly thought of as human rights include civil and political rights, such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression, and equality before the...
and inter-religious tolerance world wide. The centre cooperates closely with the
Carter CenterThe Carter Center is a nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter. In partnership with Emory University, The Carter Center works to advance human rights and alleviate human suffering...
in Atlanta, the Kim Dae Jung Library in
SeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest city of South Korea. With a population of over 10 million, it is one of the world's largest cities. The Seoul National Capital Area, which includes the major port city of Incheon and most of Gyeonggi-do, has 24.5 million...
and the
Crisis Management InitiativeCrisis Management Initiative is an independent, non-governmental organisation responding to challenges in sustainable security. CMI has offices in Helsinki and Brussels and activities in Liberia, Ethiopia, the Black Sea region and Aceh. It was founded by Martti Ahtisaari, the former President of...
in
HelsinkiHelsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the southern part of Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, by the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it the most populous municipality in Finland by a wide margin...
.
External links