Audun Bjørlo Lysbakken (born 30 September 1977 in Bergen) is a Norwegian politician for the Socialist Left Party. In 2006 he became deputy leader of the party. On 20 October 2009, he was appointed Minister of Children and Equality.
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Lysbakken is the son of actor Sigurd Lysbakken (1947–1994) and cultural worker Geirdis Bjørlo (1952]). He attended primary school at Møhlenpris elementary school (1984–1993), and high school at Bergen Handelsgymnasium (1993–1996). He has university minors in French and comparative politics from the University of Bergen (1996–1998). After his university studies he performed mandatory civil service instead of conscript military duty, and served this duty as a secretary at Norsk Økologisk Landbrukslag and as a journalist in the daily Klassekampen 2000–2001.[1]
Lysbakken held various posts in the youth NGOs Ungdom mot EU and Natur og Ungdom 1995–1996, and was involved in student politics during his university studies 1998–1999. He held his first post in Sosialistisk Ungdom, the Socialist Left party's youth organization, as leader of its Bergen chapter in 1996–1998, and went on to become leader of the county (Hordaland) organization in 1998–2000, and finally became deputy leader of Sosialistisk Ungdom in 2000–2002. Lysbakken's first public office was as member of the Bergen city council in 1999–2000.
Lysbakken was elected to the Parliament of Norway, in 2001 as a representative for Hordaland county. He was a member of the assembly's Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs. He failed to be re-elected in 2005, but became first deputy representative. He was elected deputy leader of the Socialist Left Party on 18 February 2006.
In 2009 he again won a seat in Parliament from Hordaland, and held a seat in the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence. He was named parliamentary leader of his party group,[2] but was shortly thereafter appointed as Minister of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion in Stoltenberg's Second Cabinet on 20 October 2009, as the first man to hold this post. When Lysbakken was appointed to the ministry, his deputy Gina Barstad took his place in Parliament.
Lysbakken has described himself as a Marxist, and has expressed wishes to "abolish capitalism" as well as the Oslo Stock Exchange.[3] In the study booklet Manifest 02 he also said that he wanted to abolish the right to own private property as well as wage labour.[4] He has later stated that he no longer considers himself a Marxist.[5]
Lysbakken has refrained from commenting on "quotes taken out of context," while Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg has commented Lysbakken's views by pointing at former Norwegian Prime Minister Einar Gerhardsen who was also a revolutionary Marxist.[6] In an interview with the Norwegian weekly Morgenbladet, Lysbakken has explained that "[labels] don't matter to me [...], but if someone asks, I explain that Marxism is important to me in providing understanding of the society and the distribution of political power."[7] During the launch of Deltakerne. En reise i demokratiets framtid. (The Participants. A Journey to the Future of Democracy.) he explained his views on elections, modern democracy and worker's influence in the work place.[8]
Some have claimed that he has uncritically praised and defended Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez,[9] although he has in fact stated that "I do not approve of everything Chavez does. But his government's efforts to defeat poverty, and the widening and deepening of democracy seen in Venezuela is sufficient grounds to support him against his many enemies."[10]
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| Preceded by Anniken Huitfeldt |
Norwegian Minister of Children and Equality 2009–present |
Incumbent |
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