Sylvi Listhaug, who was poised to lose confidence vote over terrorism comment, complains of ‘witch-hunt’

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

The Norwegian justice minister, Sylvi Listhaug, has resigned to avert a collapse of the country’s minority government after she caused uproar with comments accusing the opposition of being too lenient on terrorism suspects.



Listhaug had been poised to lose a vote of confidence in parliament on Tuesday over her Facebook posts that could have toppled the government. Her decision to resign on Tuesday morning defused Norway’s worst political crisis in years.

“The choice [to resign] was mine alone, and I’ve done what I believe was right,” Listhaug told a news conference, adding that she felt the process had been a witch-hunt against her.

Listhaug, of the Progress party, provoked outrage this month when she accused the opposition Labour party of putting “terrorists’ rights” before national security, a particularly sensitive topic for Labour which was in power in 2011 when the far-right militant Anders Behring Breivik carried out a mass shooting.

Listhaug made her comments after Labour and the Christian Democrats helped defeat a bill allowing the state the right, without judicial review, to strip individuals of Norwegian citizenship if they were suspected of terrorism or of joining foreign militant groups.

She apologised in parliament last week for causing a political storm. Opposition parties, however, said her gesture was not sincere enough and that she should resign.

The opposition Christian Democrats said on Monday they would join five centre-left parties in backing a no-confidence motion, securing a majority in favour of ousting Listhaug.

The vote in parliament had been scheduled to take place later on Tuesday.

The Conservative prime minister, Erna Solberg, faced the choice of letting Listhaug go, weakening the cabinet and risking a defection by her Progress party allies, or to get the whole government to resign.

Listhaug “told me late last night that she wanted to resign,” Solberg told a news conference, adding that Listhaug could potentially make a comeback in the cabinet at some point.

“The important thing for me is that the Progress party remains in government,” Listhaug said.

She lashed out at Labour and the Christian Democrats, arguing they were not sufficiently tolerant of free speech when they sought her dismissal.

“The national debate has been turned into something of a kindergarten dispute,” Listhaug said. “I don’t want to change. I see this as an attempt to gag the debate. I will continue to pursue the fight from parliament.”

Norway does not allow snap elections, and while Solberg might have been able to form a new government, the task could also have fallen to the Labour leader, Jonas Gahr Støre.

“My goal here is to keep Støre out of the prime minister’s office,” Listhaug said.</s>Sylvi Listhaug, a high-profile figure in the Norwegian tripartite coalition government, has resigned as justice minister, pre-empting a no confidence vote by opposition parties, stating that she couldn't have her Progress Party to lose power over her departure, Norwegian broadcaster NRK reported.

A vote of no confidence could have potentially resulted in either a new election for Conservative Prime Minister Erna Solberg or the head of the opposition Labor Party's leader Jonas Gahr Støre being asked to form a new government.

Although Listhaug stressed that she'd resigned of her own initiative, it is seen as a culmination of the political and public outcry over a post Listhaug made on Facebook.

READ MORE: Norwegian Justice Minister in Hot Water for Plan to Revoke Terrorists' Passports

"It has been a completely surreal week, when a Facebook post that I regretted has transformed Norwegian politics into a kindergarten. Then it's my job to behave like a grown-up," Listhaug said.

In a much-debated and later deleted post from March 9, which contained a photo of al-Shabaab* militants, Listhaug accused the rival Labor Party of "valuing the rights of terrorists above the security of the nation." This was Listhaug's reaction to Labor's opposition to a proposal to withdraw the citizenship of Norwegians deemed to pose a threat to the nation without a court order.

This post triggered an outcry among both politicians and ordinary Norwegians, as the Labor Party was the main target of the deadliest attack on Norwegian soil since WW2, when Anders Breivik, formerly a Progress Party member, killed 69 people at a Labor youth camp on the island of Utøya on July 22, 2011.

READ MORE: Faith no More: Norwegians Losing Trust in 'Fragile' Welfare State

In a message confirming her resignation, Listhaug stressed that the post had "nothing to do with July 22" and claimed herself to have fallen prey to a "witch-hunt" orchestrated by Støre.

"Støre has tried to label me, compare me with the views of Norway's worst mass murderer. I strongly reject that," Listhaug said.

She stressed that the aim of the 2017 election campaign was to keep Støre, whom she deemed unfit for the job, "away from the prime minister's office," which still was her goal. "The most important thing for me is the Progress Party and that it will continue to govern Norway," Listhaug said, as quoted by NRK.

Listhaug confirmed that she would continue as an MP and "concentrate one hundred percent on promoting Progress' politics" alongside her "excellent parliamentary colleagues."

Conservative Prime Minister Erna Solberg praised Listhaug's efforts as a "hardworking politician" and said she was welcome to take a ministerial post in the future.

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Prior to Listhaug's resignation, a demonstration was held by her supporters in Oslo, where placards reading "Solidarity with Sylvi" were spotted.

Even Denmark's Immigration and Integration Minister Inger Støjberg praised Listhaug for her strict immigration policy, arguing that the Norwegian debate, fueled by the left, was exaggerated and hysterical.

"They have always had a thorn for Sylvi because she has been stronger than anyone else in Norwegian politics <…> and insisted that immigrants in Norway should respect Norwegian values," Støjberg wrote on Facebook, venturing that she would return "even stronger."

Odd Eilert Persen, the Progress leader in Finnmark county, argued that Listhaug had a "great future" in the Progress Party and possessed the potential for becoming the party's leader in the future.

"This is sad and tragic for the country. But trust me, Sylvi Listhaug will return. She will be our new party leader in a couple of years," Persen told the daily newspaper Aftenposten.

Following the controversy, the Progress Party polled a sensational 20 percent support from Norwegian voters.

​* al-Shabaab is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and many other countries</s>STAVANGER, Norway (AP) - A senior minister in the Norwegian Government resigned Tuesday for writing a Facebook post claiming the opposition Labor Party was more interested in protecting the rights of terrorists than protecting the Norwegian people.

The comment by Justice Minister, Sylvi Listhaug, touched a raw nerve in a country still tormented by memories of the July, 2011 attack by far-right terrorist, Anders Behring Breivik. Breivik opened fire on the annual summer camp of the left-wing Labor Party's youth wing on their holiday camp on Utoya Island, killing 69 people, mostly teenagers.

With opposition parties against her, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg faced the prospect of either dissolving the Conservative-led coalition or sacking Listhaug, who published the post earlier this month. She subsequently deleted the post and apologized.</s>Sylvi Listhaug says she can not allow her resignation to lead to the Progress Party to lose power and withdraws as the Minister of Justice.

– I am pleased that Siv and the whole party were willing to put the Government participation aside to support me as the Minister of Justice. But I can not allow my resignation to open for Progress Party to lose power, Listhaug writes in a post on her Facebook page.

She emphazieses that she withdraws voluntarily.

– It’s been up to me alone to remain, or if I should resign, wrote Listhaug.

The controversial Progress Party politician describes the last week as “totally surreal” and a “witch hunt”.

– A facebook post, which had nothing to do with July 22, and which I apologied for, has turned Norwegian policy into a kindergarten. Then I think it’s my responsibility to act as an adult, she argues.

– I have experienced this as a pure witch hunt, where the purpose of Jonas Gahr Støre has obviously been to suppress freedom of speech on a topic that is one of the most important things we must discuss for Norway’s future, she continues.

Will not shut up

Listhaug says quite ordinary people the last week has been labeled and hung out to dry in the roughest manner, just because they supported her and Progress Party. At the same time, she concludes that she certainly will not shut up in her role as a parliamentary representative.

– When I leave, I promise not to be quiet in the Parliament. From now on I’m going to concentrate one hundred per cent on fronting the Progress Party’s policy together with my parliamentary colleagues, says Listhaug.

Listhaug thinks she is exposed to “a pure witch hunt”

Tuesday morning it is clear that Sylvi Listhaug resigns as the Minister of Justice. She calls the process before her resignation “as a pure witch hunter”.

– Thank you very much for the amazing support you have given me! Especially this week where it has stormed this bad. It has been a very challenging time for both me and my family, Listhaug writes on Facebook Tuesday morning.

– The last week has been completely surreal. Hun mener hun har blitt utsatt for en «ren heksejakt», og anklager Ap-leder Jonas Gahr Støre for å kneble ytringsfriheten.

– I will never accept the debate to be on Støres’ premises. Freedom of expression is an important Norwegian and Western value we must stand up for. I will never be a politician like everyone else. I want to be true to myself, writes Listhaug.

Siv Jensen: Labour (Ap) and the Christian Democrats (KrF) has given Sylvi Listhaug the best start to her further political career

Progress Party leader Siv Jensen says she is sorry that Sylvi Listhaug resigns as the Minister of Justice and guarantee that her political career is far from over.

– I have had an earnest wish that Sylvi should continue as the Minister of Justice. She has been and would continue to be a good Minister of Justice for Norway and the Progress Party, says Jensen in a statement to NTB.

– I can guarantee that Sylvi Listhaug’s political career is far from over. It has just begun. Labour and KrF have not managed to remove Sylvi Listhaug, you have provided her with the best possible start to her further career, she continues.

The Progress Party leader says the party has stood behind Listhaug all the way.

– This weekend I spoke to the county leaders in the Progress Party. All of them stand behind Sylvi Listhaug and were ready to leave the Government as an answer to the proposed vote of no confidence. It was in no way a possibility to follow the demands from Ap and KrF to have Sylvi replaced.

Parliamentary leader of the Conservatives, Trond Helleland, has great respect for Sylvi Listhaug’s (Progress Party) decision to resign as Minister of Justice.

-I think Sylvi provides a very good reasoning, it has become a very difficult situation, says Trond Helleland to NTB.

Helleland believes that Listhaug’s decision to leave was selfless.

– She also says in her statement that the Progress Party will still be a part of Governmental co-operation, and that she will not stand in the way of that, says Helleland, who describes the situation as being tough for Listhaug.

She has apologized and done what she has been asked to do, but still the pressure has been maintained, I therefore really respect the decision she has made, says Trond Helleland.

On questions about how the Ministry of Justice’s departure will be received by the Conservatives (Høyre) Government partner the Progress Party, he answers the following:

– She has had all alternatives available to her and when she chooses this out of her own free will, I will believe that it is accepted by the Progress Party

Listhaug: Støre is not suitable to be Norwegian Prime Minister

Sylvi Listhaug went to frontal attack against Labour leader Jonas Gahr Støre during Tuesday’s press conference. She thinks he is not fit to become Prime Minister.

Listhaug announced that she withdraws as Minister of Justice and Emergency at 8 am Tuesday morning. At the same time she went to frontal attack on Labour leader Jonas Gahr Støre for initiating what she calls a “witch hunt”.

– The main goal of the election campaign was to keep Støre away from the Prime Minister’s office, and it is still the aim. He is not fit to be Prime Minister of Norway, she says.

She emphazises that she resigns voluntarily.

On Monday, a unanimous country council in the KrF voted to support a motion of no confidence, and Listhaug thinks the party lacks a backbone.

– It’s a party without management and no clear path onward, she says.</s>STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — A potential collapse of the minority Norwegian government was averted Tuesday after a senior minister resigned for writing a Facebook post claiming the opposition Labor Party was more interested in protecting the rights of terrorists than the Norwegian people.

The comment earlier this month by Justice Minister Sylvi Listhaug touched a raw nerve in a country still tormented by memories of the July, 2011 attack by far-right terrorist, Anders Behring Breivik.

Breivik opened fire on the annual summer camp of the left-wing Labor Party's youth wing on their holiday camp on Utoya Island, killing 69 people, mostly teenagers. He had earlier murdered eight in a car bomb attack in downtown Oslo.

The resignation of Listhaug, who represents the anti-immigration Progress Party in the minority right-wing coalition government, has eased the immediate pressure on Prime Minister Erna Solberg, who had publicly supported the minister.

Opposition lawmakers had tabled a confidence vote in the minister for later Tuesday, which she looked set to lose. That would have forced Solberg to either fire Listhaug or dissolve the three-party minority government.

"The most important thing for me is the Progress Party," Listhaug said as she announced her resignation. Progress is the junior partner in the Conservative-led government.

Listhaug, a polarizing force in Norwegian politics for her direct style and strident views on immigration, has been under pressure since her March 9 post.

In it, she said: "Labor thinks terrorists' rights are more important than the security of the nation. Like and share." The comment was accompanied by a picture of masked men in black scarves and military clothing.

Her post came in response to Labor opposing a bill that would have allowed the government to strip terrorists or suspected terrorists, who have traveled overseas, of their Norwegian citizenship.

A week after the post, Listhaug removed it and apologized.

"It would have solved everything if the Prime Minister and the leader of the Progress Party had just removed her," said Eirik Holmoyvik, Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Bergen.

"But that would have infuriated parts of the electoral base of the Progress Party. Many people are saying that it was incredibly selfish of her to have not resigned sooner."

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Sylvi Listhaug confirms her resignation as Justice Minister in Oslo. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB scanpix

Sylvi Listhaug has resigned as Norway's Minister of Justice following a motion of no confidence against her by opposition parties.

Parliament had been set to vote on the motion of no confidence on Tuesday.

But the minister pre-empted the vote by announcing her resignation early Tuesday morning, stating she could not allow the Progress Party to lose power over her departure.

Listhaug is a high-profile figure in the anti-immigration party, which is part of Norway’s tripartite coalition government.

Prime Minister Erna Solberg earlier said that if there was a majority against Listhaug, she would call a vote of confidence (kabinettsspørsmål in Norwegian) in the entire government, potentially resulting in new elections or either Solberg or Jonas Gahr Støre, the head of the opposition, being asked to form a new government.

The minister said her resignation was made on her own initiative. The decision is reported by state broadcaster NRK to have come as a surprise to both Solberg and Progress Party leader Siv Jensen.

“I appreciate that Siv and the entire [Progress] party were prepared to prepared to set aside our position as a government partner to support me as justice minister. But I cannot allow my departure to result in the Progress Party losing power and influence,” Listhaug wrote in a statement, which was also posted on her Facebook page.

She is reported to have given no indication on Monday to government or Progress Party leadership of her intention to resign.

“It was entirely up to me whether to see this through to the end or to step down,” she wrote.

The minister's resignation is the culmination of political and public outcry over an image and message posted by Listhaug on Facebook.

In the March 9th social media post, which contained a photo of al-Shabaab militants, she accused Labour of considering that "the rights of terrorists are more important than the security of the nation".

She was criticising Labour's opposition to a proposal to strip the citizenship of Norwegians who pose a threat to the nation's vital interests, without a court order.

Labour members were the main victims of the deadliest attacks on Norwegian soil since the Second World War when, on July 22nd, 2011, Breivik, who once was a member of the Progress Party, killed 77 people in twin attacks: one targeting then Labour prime minister Jens Stoltenberg's office in Oslo and another against a Labour youth camp on the island of Utøya.

In the message confirming her resignation, the minister wrote that her post “was nothing to do with July 22nd” and claimed the subsequent outrage was a “witch-hunt”.

“I have found this to be nothing but a witch-hunt, in which Jonas Gahr Støre’s intention was to connect freedom of speech to an issue which is one of the most important things we must discuss for Norway’s future,” she wrote.

“The most important thing for me is the Progress Party and that it will continue to govern Norway,” she said at a press conference Tuesday according to NRK’s report.

She also reiterated her criticism at Tuesday’s press meeting of Støre for connecting her Facebook post to the July 22nd attacks.

“The aim of the [2017] election campaign was to keep Jonas Gahr Støre away from the Prime Minister’s office, and that is still my goal. I don’t think he is suitable for the role of Prime Minister of Norway. I am happy that Siv [Jensen] and the rest of the party have supported me 100 percent. They were willing to see this through,” she said.

“Støre has tried to label me, compare me with the views of Norway’s worst mass murderer. I strongly reject that,” she said.

Listhaug confirmed that she will continue as an MP and “concentrate one hundred percent on promoting Progress’ politics with my excellent parliamentary colleagues.”

Listhaug’s decision comes after the Christian Democrats on Monday refused to back her over the controversial Facebook post.

Although Listhaug eventually removed the post and apologised in parliament, a motion of no confidence against her gained the support of all parties in Norway's opposition, leaving her fate as justice minister potentially in the hands of the one remaining non-coalition party, the centre-right Christian Democrats.

Both Labour and the Centre Party are reported to have decided to move against Listhaug after seeing the way the apology was made.

She was asked for an apology on eight occasions and came to the speaker's stand four times during the session on Thursday last week.

The Facebook post announcing her resignation was published at 8am on Tuesday, just two hours before the no confidence motion was set to be voted in parliament.

After a long meeting Monday, the Christian Democrats concluded that they no longer could support Listhaug as justice minister, furthering the possibility of the government crisis, although they did not give a final confirmation as to how they would vote on the no-confidence motion.

The party’s votes would have determined whether the motion gained a majority.

On Monday evening, the three government parties – the Progress Party, Solberg’s Conservatives and the Liberal party – held crisis talks at the prime minister’s residence. Neither Solberg nor Jensen are thought to have asked Listhaug to step down, NRK reports.

At Tuesday’s press conference, she called the Christian Democrats a party “without a backbone, leadership or a way forward”.

READ ALSO: Norway's government could fall as majority seek ouster of Sylvi Listhaug</s>OSLO, March 20 (Reuters) - Norwegian Justice Minister Sylvi Listhaug, who faced a no-confidence vote in parliament, said on Tuesday she will resign from the cabinet, likely preventing a collapse of the centre-right minority government.

She announced the resignation in a posting on Facebook.

Listhaug rocked Norway's traditionally consensual politics on March 9 by accusing the opposition Labour Party - target of the country's worst peacetime massacre - of putting terrorists' rights before national security. (Reporting by Terje Solsvik, editing by Ole Petter Skonnord)</s>OSLO (Reuters) - Norwegian Justice Minister Sylvi Listhaug, who was almost certain to lose a no-confidence due later on Tuesday, has resigned in a bid to prevent a collapse of the centre-right minority government.

Listhaug provoked anger and dismay earlier this month when she accused the opposition Labour Party of putting “terrorists’ rights” before national security, a particularly sensitive topic for Labour which was hit in 2011 by a mass shooting by far right militant Anders Behring Breivik.

Listhaug made her comments after Labour and the Christian Democrats helped defeat a bill allowing the state the right, without judicial review, to strip individuals of Norwegian citizenship if they were suspected of terrorism or of joining foreign militant groups.

Listhaug’s comments triggered a political storm, and she apologised in parliament last week. Opposition parties, however, said her gesture was not sincere enough, and that she should resign.

Norway’s opposition Christian Democrats said on Monday it would join five centre-left parties in backing a no-confidence motion, securing a majority in favour of ousting Listhaug.

The vote in parliament had been scheduled to take place later on Tuesday. Prime Minister Erna Solberg faced the choice of letting Listhaug go, weakening the cabinet and risking a defection by Progress, or to get the whole government to resign.</s>Norwegian Justice Minister Sylvi Listhaug resigned on Tuesday, ahead of a no-confidence vote she was likely to lose and could have prompted the center-right minority government’s collapse.

Listhaug, a member of Norway’s anti-immigration Progress Party, insisted the decision to step down was her own initiative, writing in a statement on Facebook: “I appreciate that Siv [Jensen, Progress Party leader] and the entire party were prepared to set aside our position as a government partner to support me as justice minister. But I cannot allow my departure to result in the Progress Party losing power and influence.”

Listhaug sparked anger earlier this month when she accused Norway’s opposition Labour party of putting the rights of terrorists ahead of national security. The Labour party, alongside the Christian Democrats, had opposed a bill that would have allowed the state to strip the citizenship of Norwegians suspected of terrorism or joining foreign militant groups without judicial review.

Her accusations struck a nerve with the Labour party, whose youth wing was the target of a mass shooting in 2011 when far-right militant Anders Behring Breivik killed 69 people at a summer camp of young center-left political activists.

“A Facebook post, which had nothing to do with July 22 [2011], and which I regretted was posted, has turned Norwegian politics into a kindergarten,” Listhaug wrote on Facebook. “Then I think it’s my responsibility to act adult.”

Listhaug also compared the outcry over her comments to a “witch hunt.”

Listhaug apologized for her comments in parliament last week. But the Christian Democratic party, also currently in opposition, said on Monday it would join five other parties in backing the no-confidence motion against Listhaug, making it likely she would be forced out.

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg previously said she would trigger a vote of confidence in the entire government if a majority voted against Listhaug in parliament.</s>LAHORE: A delegation led by Norway’s Honorary Consul Naveen Fareed called on Punjab Minister for Human Rights and Minority Affairs Khalil Tahir Sandhu on Tuesday at his camp office and discussed matters of human rights, women issues, promotion of peace and tolerance.

The delegation included Siv Kaspersen and Javed William. The provincial minister informed the delegation about the measures taken by the Punjab government for the protection of human rights and welfare of minorities.

Recently, the Punjab Assembly had approved a historic bill about the Sikh marriages, he said, adding that the provincial assembly had also approved the Hindu Marriage Act before any assembly in the country. Recently, the Human Rights and Minority Affairs Department organised Holi festival to promote coexistence.

The Norwegian delegation appreciated the measures taken by the Punjab government for the protection of human rights and welfare of the minorities and assured that full cooperation would be continued with the government to promote peace and tolerance in the province.
Norwegian justice minister Sylvi Listhaug resigns amid controversy over remarks on human rights and national security.