Eskil Pedersen

Eskil Pedersen (born 6 March 1984 in Skien) is a Norwegian politician and former leader from 2010 to 2014 of the Workers' Youth League (AUF), the youth organisation associated with Norway's leading Labour Party.

Pedersen survived the massacre on the Workers' Youth League summer camp at Utøya on 22 July 2011. Many have accused Pedersen of treason due to him commanding the Utøya ferry to leave without other victims. Although leaders of AUF are never anonymous, his role in the aftermath as a representative for the organisation has caused a vast increase in media exposure, particularly in the months following the attacks. Anders Behring Breivik, the perpetrator of the attacks, stated that Pedersen was one of his three primary targets.

Early life and education

Born in Skien in Telemark, Pedersen has studied towards a bachelor's degree in political science, and studied courses in European and American studies at the University of Oslo. He was also elected as the first openly gay leader of the Workers' Youth League.

Political career

He has previously served as the leader of AUF in Telemark (2001–2004) and Oslo (2006–2008). He was elected deputy leader of AUF from 2006 to 2010. Pedersen has previously served as a board member in the Telemark branch of No to the EU, and has served as a political advisor to AUF on election campaigns and environmental matters. He also served as deputy member of the Oslo city council and between 2007 and 2011.

Leader of the Workers' Youth League

Eskil Pedersen became the leader of AUF when he was elected to the post on 17 October 2010, narrowly defeating Åsmund Aukrust for the leadership. Pedersen succeeded Martin Henriksen who was later appointed senior advisor to the Minister of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs Lisbeth Berg-Hansen. Under Pedersens tenure as leader, the organization experienced a sharp upsurge in membership numbers, more than doubling in size from since 2003, and established itself as Norway's by far largest youth organization. He was reelected to a second term as leader in October 2012.

In May 2012, he publicly declared his intent to run for parliament by accepting a nomination by his local party chapter of Skien to the Telemark district list at the upcoming 2013 parliamentary election. He would seek the seat of retiring veteran Sigvald Hansen, however according to analysts he would face stiff competition to secure the party nomination. Among his challengers in the primary were health department state-secretary Robin Kåss and the recently elected mayor of Hjartdal Sven Løkslid. He was however quickly endorsed both by the AUF and his local Skien party chapter.

It soon became apparent that Pedersen would be a controversial choice, the Labour party chapters from Porsgrunn, Bamble and the eastern Telemark chapters vehemently opposed his nomination. This was partly due to him living and working in Oslo, but also because he was born in Skien, a city which was already represented in the parliament. Pedersen responded by vowing to relocate to Porsgrunn in Telemark should he be elected. On 24 November 2012 he lost the nomination to dark horse candidate Christian Tynning-Bjørnø. In March 2014, Pedersen announced his resignation, saying that he would not seek re-election as leader of the AUF.

Political views

Progress Party

Pedersen is an outspoken opponent to the policies of the Progress Party. In May 2011, he pressed criminal charges against member of parliament Christian Tybring-Gjedde based on the a statement the latter made regarding integration in Groruddalen. The charges were dismissed by the police.

In 2013, Pedersen compared Progress Party leader Siv Jensen to the evil antagonist Sauron from ''The Lord of the Rings''. The comments were in the run-up to the 2013 parliamentary election, which Pedersen described as a "struggle between good and evil".

Labor rights

A staunch trade unionist, Pedersen has actively campaigned against legislation aimed at relaxing existing labour laws. He has voiced fierce opposition to the EU Temporary Agency Work Directive. He has called for tougher penalties, including prison time, for employment agencies which were found to exploit their employees, as well as being involved in social dumping. He has called for the Norwegian government to end economical ties to international corporations who violated Norwegian labour laws.

LGBT rights

Pedersen is openly gay since coming out at the age of 18. Since that time, he has been a vocal proponent of LGBT rights, as well as being one of Norway's most high-profile LGBT figures. He frequently appears in the annual Gay Pride through Oslo. When in April 2014, the Ecclesiastical Synod of the Church of Norway decided against the introduction of special liturgy for same-sex marriage, Pedersen called it a "shameful stain" on the Church. Pedersen, who is still a member, said he himself hopes to one day be legally married in the church.

Utøya massacre

On 22 July, the day of the 2011 Norway attacks, Eskil Pedersen was present at the annual AUF summer camp on Utøya. As leader of the organization he was one of the assailant, Anders Behring Breivik's, stated targets, along with former prime minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, who was there that day but had left the island before the killer arrived. Breivik would later state that he had studied Pedersen's physical appearance and facial attributes to be able to recognize him during the attack.

Very soon after the shooting erupted, Pedersen, along with his political aide, sought refuge on the ferry MS Thorbjørn, and along with seven other people decided to make their escape from the island.
Pedersen later stated that while being at the Hønefoss police headquarters he feared a coup d'etat had taken place, and that he could not trust any member of the police. In an interview with TV2 he stated: "I thought the entire country was under attack hellip;if we docked anywhere we would be killed."

M/S Thorbjørn controversy

There has been widespread speculation in forums and independent blogs about the conduct on the ferry, but most professional media outlets have been cautious in their coverage of the events on the MS ''Thorbjørn''. A news website, Nettavisen, published a story raising questions about the conduct a day after the massacre, but received fierce reactions from other members of the press as well as the AUF itself.

In 2012, Adrian Pracon, a survivor and employee of AUF who himself was wounded, wrote of his reaction to seeing the ferry leave in a book describing his ordeal. One section describes his disbelief and disappointment of seeing M/S ''Thorbjørn'' head away from the island, depriving him of hope of escape. The 22-year-old from Telemark (Pracon) later underscored that the passage in the book was not intended as criticism of Eskil Pedersen or the crew of M/S Thorbjørn.

Another survivor of the massacre, 20-year-old Bjørn Ihler from Oslo, said of Pedersen in an interview with the BBC
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