The Royal Ministry Of Foreign Affairs,
Oslo Press Division

Norway Daily No. 65/00

Date: 31 March 2000

JAGLAND’S NEW SPECIAL ADVISER ( Aftenposten)

Yesterday’s appointment of Socialist Left party chairman Erik Solheim to the position of special adviser for Foreign Minister and Labour party chairman Thorbjørn Jagland was unexpected. Mr. Solheim will try to negotiate in the violent conflict between the government of Sri Lanka and the guerrillas. He will be on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs payroll as an ordinary senior official at ambassador level. I see no problem in working together with a former Storting opponent as long as he functions as an official and not as a politician, says Mr. Jagland.

CENTRIST POLITICIANS TAKEN BY SURPRISE ( Dagsavisen)

As early as the day after Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg presented the Government’s inaugural address to the Storting on Wednesday 22 March, Kjell Magne Bondevik took the floor and presented a 12-point response. This was intended to illustrate the main features of the centrist parties’ continued close cooperation. Key politicians in the Centre Party are furious at the way this statement was forced through in the party. Several of the party’s Storting members had not been informed of Mr. Bondevik’s plans before he took the floor and told the whole country how the centrist parties will continue to work together on important issues.

FAT PAY HIKES FOR POLITICIANS ( Dagsavisen)

Politicians are asking business leaders to show restraint, and believe that large wage increases would be unseemly when ordinary wage earners must exercise moderation in their demands. But national politicians are no better themselves. Salaries for the prime minister, members of the Storting and Government ministers have risen sharply during the past five years, in striking contrast to the wages of ordinary workers. Unlike most wage earners in Norway, national politicians determine their own salaries.

RAPISTS ARE GETTING YOUNGER AND YOUNGER ( Aftenposten)

Recent statistics show that the percentage of people under the age of 21 who are accused of rape has more than doubled during the last ten years. Professionals in the field believe that there is a trend towards younger rapists and younger victims. At the rape reception centre in Oslo, 31 per cent of the patients were under 20 years old in 1998, as opposed to 18.5 per cent in 1993. In the view of Commissioner for Children Trond Waage, a clear connection can be traced between the spread of pornography and the number of rapes among the younger generation.

IMMIGRANTS PROMISED MORE LUCRATIVE GOVERNMENT JOBS ( Vårt Land)

Minister of Labour and Government Administration Jørgen Kosmo promises to recruit more immigrants to middle-management positions in the Government. Immigrants are almost totally absent from positions of power. We must focus on the absence of immigrants in all bodies that are responsible for job appointments. We will not place special demands on applicants with immigrant backgrounds, but it should not be regarded as a disadvantage to be an immigrant, either, says Mr. Kosmo.

IT SHARES DROPPED BY NOK 9 BILLION ( Aftenposten)

The value of IT and Internet companies on the Oslo Stock Exchange dropped by almost NOK 9 billion yesterday. The IT index sustained a loss of 6.3 per cent. Many investors are now dumping their IT shares. Senior analysts at Norwegian stockbroking firms are extremely cautious about predicting future developments. Many are now recommending traditional shares for investment.

OPERA FANS ARE TAKING OVER FORNEBU ( Aftenposten)

Yesterday 236 models proposed for the new opera house at Bjørvika went on display for an enthusiastic public at Fornebu. There is a rich choice. A disorganized and unorchestrated overture, exclaimed Thomas Thiis-Evensen, professor of architecture. In his view, none of the models stands out as an obvious winner. In addition, he thinks that the jury will have a tough job determining whether some of the models are really as they should be, or whether they were damaged during transport.

WORTH NOTING

• I have never tried to evade responsibility, said group managing director Osmund Ueland of the Norwegian State Railways during yesterday’s hearings on the Åsta accident. However, he blames his employees for not informing him about the poor safety conditions on the Røros line. ( Dagsavisen)
• Norway will increase oil production by 100 000 barrels per day. The goal of this decision is to stabilize oil prices. Almost the entire Storting supports this action. ( Dagsavisen)
• Harald Norvik is not relinquishing his position as Statoil head voluntarily. He would like to continue, but the new board and the Minister of Petroleum and Energy have agreed that they want a new man at the top. This explains why the new board is committed to maintaining the favourable retirement benefits promised to Mr. Norvik by the previous board. ( Verdens Gang)
• While under the leadership of Jens Stoltenberg in 1997, the Ministry of Finance was warned by the Directorate of Public Construction and Property that there would be problems with the expansion of the new National Hospital. The Progress Party, the Conservatives and the Christian Democrats think that this situation is serious for Prime Minister Stoltenberg, and that he should explain his position in an open hearing. ( Dagens Næringsliv)
• The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) can go on strike for a long time to ensure that employees get five weeks’ holiday and opportunities for further education. The organization and the relevant private sector unions have well over NOK 20 billion in their strike funds. The LO unions will join forces on a strike so there will be muscle behind their demands. ( Dagens Næringsliv)
• During arbitration yesterday evening, the Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry is said to have come close to accepting the fifth holiday week, but has evidently made several counter demands. ( Verdens Gang)
• 25 000 inhabitants of Troms and Finnmark are so tired of the heavy snows that they are considering moving away from that part of the country. This represents 11 per cent of the population. ( Verdens Gang)

TODAY'S COMMENT from Aftenposten

Whatever one’s political opinion, there is no doubt about Erik Solheim’s sense of international commitment or his knowledge of relations between peoples. In this sense he is a good choice when Norway wants to play a more active role as mediator in the conflict on Sri Lanka, an area in which Mr. Solheim has been interested for a long time. However, there are grave constitutional misgivings connected with yesterday’s announcement. Our elected representatives are obligated to appear in the Storting, and in a democracy there is no higher authority than the will of the people as expressed in public elections. Mr. Solheim and those who have appointed him are not treading new paths. Trygve Lie ceased to be eligible for election when he accepted the position of Secretary-General of the UN 54 years ago, and Edvard Hambro relinquished his seat in the Storting to become Norwegian ambassador to the UN. And there have been others. But such resignations are seldom, and should remain that way.