Hans-Olaf Henkel (born 14 March 1940) is a German politician, a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

(MEP) from Germany and a publicist. He was formerly a manager at IBM, president of the Federation of German Industries
BDI
and president of th
Leibniz Association
After decades as a political observer, he was elected to the European Parliament in 2014 for the AfD (''Alternative für Deutschland''). In response to the election of

Frauke Petry Frauke Petry (; ; born 1 June 1975) is a German politician who chaired the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party from July 2015 to September 2017. A chemist by training and with a professional background as a businesswoman, some political scientis ...

as the new federal chairman in July 2015, he resigned from the AfD. He is now an independent member of the

European Conservatives and Reformists The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) is a soft Eurosceptic, anti- federalist political group of the European Parliament. The ECR is the parliamentary group of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party) European pol ...

Life and career

Hans-Olaf Henkel was born and raised in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. He studied at the ''Akademie für Gemeinwirtschaft'', which merged as Universität für Wirtschaft und Politik (HWP) with

Hamburg University The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vor ...

in 2005. Henkel joined IBM Germany in 1962. From September 1993 to December 1994 he was head of IBM Europe, Middle East and Africa with his office in Paris. From 1995 to 2000 he was the president of the Federation of German Industries (BDI). He was president of the

Leibniz Association The Leibniz Association (German: ''Leibniz-Gemeinschaft'' or ''Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz'') is a union of German non-university research institutes from various disciplines. As of 2020, 96 non-university research insti ...

from 2001 to 2005. Henkel is also a board member of the Deutscher Familienverband (German family association). Until 2013 Henkel was a member of the supervisory board of

Bayer AG Bayer AG (, commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of business include pharmaceutica ...

Continental AG Continental AG, commonly known as Continental or colloquially as Conti, is a German multinational automotive parts manufacturing company specializing in tires, brake systems, interior electronics, automotive safety, powertrain and chassis compo ...

DaimlerChrysler Aerospace ''Dasa'' ( sa, दास, Dāsa) is a Sanskrit word found in ancient Indian texts such as the ''Rigveda'' and ''Arthasastra''. It usually means "enemy" or "servant" but ''dasa'', or ''das'', also means a " servant of God", "devotee," " votary" or ...

Ringier AG Ringier AG is a media group in Switzerland, founded in 1833 in Zofingen and based in Zürich. The current strategy is based not only on media but also on e-commerce and entertainment. It has a yearly income of approximately 1000 million CHF and ...

and other companies. He resigned from these positions to join the

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (german: link=no, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD; ) is a right-wing populist * * * * * * * political party in Germany. AfD is known for its opposition to the European Union, as well as immigration to Germany. I ...

in 2014, which he left again in 2015. Since November 2000 he is a Professor of International Management at the

University of Mannheim The University of Mannheim (German: ''Universität Mannheim''), abbreviated UMA, is a public research university in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1967, the university has its origins in the ''Palatine Academy of Sciences'', ...

. In November 2010, Henkel suggested in an article in the German magazine ''FOCUS'' to split the

Eurozone The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro (€) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU policies ...

into two currencies, a northern and a southern one, which received a lot of attention. In 2011 he proposed in an article in the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'', that "

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, Germany and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

should leave the eurozone" and "create a new currency leaving the euro where it is".Hans-Olaf Henkel
A sceptic's solution – a breakaway currency
/ref> Henkel received an Honorary Doctor's degree from the Technical University of Dresden. The WWF named him "Environmental Manager of the Year". As author of numerous publications he received among other awards the international writer's award "Corine". Currently, he is on the industry and investment panel of the think tank

OMFIF The Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) is an independent think tank organization concerned with central banking, economic policy, and public investment. OMFIF was co-founded in 2010 by David Marsh, who has subsequently se ...

's advisory board, where he is regularly involved in meetings regarding the financial and monetary system.

Commitment to Human Rights

Hans-Olaf Henkel has been a member of the

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

(AI) human rights organization since 1996, and he has been donating to the organization all the income raised from the publication of his books for many years. On the occasion of his 60th birthday, he also donated 150,000 German marks to Amnesty International with a request "to strengthen the commitment to the rights of women, especially in the Islamic world." In Cuba, Henkel championed the improvement of the human rights situation and in particular the abolition of the death penalty. He met regularly for discussions with

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

. The dialogue with Castro broke off in 2003 when he arrested 75 dissidents and executed three. Henkel protested strongly against this practice. Henkel campaigned for the persecuted Chinese artist

Ai Weiwei Ai Weiwei (, ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly c ...

and initiated in 2011 the "Berliner Appell", which required the release of the artist then detained at an unknown location. In this context, Henkel criticized what he considered to be a low commitment to human rights and democracy in China of German companies. In his commitment to human rights and democracy, Henkel is convinced that free trade and the market economy inevitably improve the human rights and democratic rights of a country.

Works (selection)

* Rettet unser Geld!: Deutschland wird ausverkauft – Wie der Euro-Betrug unseren Wohlstand gefährdet, 2010. * Die Abwracker: Wie Zocker und Politiker unsere Zukunft verspielen, 2009. * Der Kampf um die Mitte: Mein Bekenntnis zum Bürgertum, 2007. * Die Ethik des Erfolgs. Spielregeln für die globalisierte Gesellschaft, 2004. * Die Macht der Freiheit, 2002.

Awards

1991 Award of the "Karmarsch-Denkmünze" of the Leibniz Universitätsgesellschaft Hannover e.V. 1992 Honorary doctorate from the Technical University of Dresden 1992 "Environmental Manager of the Year" magazine Capital and WWF Germany 1992 Innovation Award of the German Economy of the magazine "Wirtschaftswoche" 1995 "Dinosaur of the Year" awarded by the German Nature Conservation Union 1998 "Order of the Southern Cross" by the President of Brazil 1999 "Order of the Sacred Treasure" by the Emperor of Japan 2000 "Commandeur" of the French Legion of Honour 2001 Cicero-Speaker Award ("Best Speaker Economy") In 2002, Henkel refused to accept the Federal Cross of Merit for reasons of Hanseatic tradition (→ Hanseatic League and awards) 2003 International Book Prize Corine for the book "Die Ethik des Erfolgs" 2003 Ludwig Erhard Prize for Business Journalism 2006 German SME Award of the market intern-publisher "because of his opposition to compulsory membership of medium-sized enterprises in the chambers of industry and commerce" 2007 He was awarded with the Friedrich A. von Hayek medal Henkel received the New York Programming Award for his Sunday jazz program on Berlin's jazz radio 101.9. From 2007 to 2013, the Leibniz Association awarded the "Hans Olaf Henkel Prize – Prize for Science Policy" every two years, an award for outstanding achievements in the promotion of science in Germany. In addition, the butterfly species Bracca olafhenkeli was named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henkel, Hans-Olaf Living people 1940 births Liberal Conservative Reformers MEPs Alternative for Germany MEPs Politicians from Hamburg MEPs for Germany 2014–2019 German male writers

Life and career

Commitment to Human Rights

Works (selection)

Awards

External links

References