Jo Benkow (born Josef Elias Benkowitz; 15 August 1924 – 18 May 2013) was a Norwegian politician and writer, notable for being an important person in the

Conservative Party of Norway The Conservative Party or The Right ( nb, Høyre, nn, Høgre, , H; se, Olgešbellodat) is a liberal-conservative political party in Norway. It is the major party of the Norwegian centre-right, and was the leading party in government as part of ...

, and the President of the Parliament 1985–1993. He was also President of the

Nordic Council The Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomou ...

in 1983.

Private life

Jo Benkow was born in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

to Jewish parents, Ivan Benkow (1885–1955) and Annie Louise Florence (1895–1942). The family moved to the municipality of

Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electoral ...

outside

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

when Jo was a child. Jo Benkow married Bjørg Gerda Folkestad (1930–2012) in 1952, but the marriage dissolved in 1983. From 1985 he was married to fellow politician

Annelise Høegh Annelise Høegh (26 July 1948 – 27 March 2015) was a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party (Høyre). Høegh was a member of the Parliament of Norway from 1985 to 2001, representing Oslo. From 1981 to 1985 she was a deputy member of pa ...

(1948–2015),

Lars Roar Langslet Lars Roar Langslet (5 March 1936, Nes, Buskerud – 18 January 2016) was the Norwegian Minister of Education and Church Affairs (culture and science affairs only, not church affairs) in 1981, and Minister of Culture and Science from 1982 until 19 ...

Jo Benkow
''

Store norske leksikon The ''Great Norwegian Encyclopedia'' ( no, Store Norske Leksikon, abbreviated ''SNL''), is a Norwegian-language online encyclopedia. The online encyclopedia is among the most-read Norwegian published sites, with more than two million unique vis ...

'', retrieved 18 May 2013 former parliamentary representative for the Conservative Party, and daughter of war aviator Anders Høegh (1920– 1989). He was the uncle of journalistic fraudster

Bjørn Benkow Bjørn Leo Benkow (13 February 1940 – 17 February 2010) was a Norwegian journalist who became infamous for faking interviews with celebrities. Among the persons Benkow claimed to have interviewed were Bill Gates, Michael Schumacher, Oprah Winfre ...

(1940–2010). As a member of the tiny Jewish minority of Norway, he experienced first-hand prejudice while growing up. In 1942, he fled persecution by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

occupying Norway, to Sweden. His mother and sister were deported by the Nazi regime from Norway and murdered in

Auschwitz Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...

. Jo reached the United Kingdom where he served in the

Royal Norwegian Air Force The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) ( no, Luftforsvaret, , The Air Defence) is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian Armed Forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peacetime establishment is approximatel ...

. He returned after the war and took up photography as a trade, his father's profession.

Political career

In 1965 he was elected to the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

, representing the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. In parliament he soon became a leading figure, as party leader 1980–84, group leader of the Conservative Party in parliament 1981–85 and most notably becoming

President of the Storting The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years base ...

(Speaker) on 9 October 1985, a position he held until his retirement on 30 September 1993, after 28 years in parliament. Benkow served as president of the

International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) was a self-governing group of non-governmental organizations that acted to protect human rights throughout Europe, North America and Central Asia. A specific primary goal was to monitor ...

, taught

international relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such as ...

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

, and has written books on human rights, modern monarchy in Norway, and other issues. His

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

''Fra Synagogen til Løvebakken'' (''From the synagogue to Løvebakken''; Løvebakken refers to a place outside the Parliament) published in 1985 sold 250,000 copies in Norway and earned him the

Norwegian Booksellers' Prize The Norwegian Booksellers' Prize (''Bokhandlerprisen'') is a literature prize awarded annually by the Norwegian Booksellers Association after voting among all who work in Norwegian bookstores. The prize is awarded for one of the year's books in t ...

. His book ''Olav'' – ''menneske og monark'' ("Olav – Man and Monarch"), a product of several conversations with his friend King

Olav V Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Norw ...

, was a huge bestseller as well. He was also a much sought-after lecturer on issues concerning the Middle East and

Anti-Semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

. In recent years he managed to create some controversy when he criticized former prime minister and party colleague

Kåre Willoch Kåre Isaachsen Willoch (; 3 October 1928 – 6 December 2021) was a Norwegian politician who served as the 30th prime minister of Norway from 1981 to 1986 and as leader of the Conservative Party from 1970 to 1974. He previously served as the M ...

, calling him "the most biased person in the country," on account of Willoch's views on the Middle East and his criticism of Israeli politics. Benkow died on 18 May 2013, at a hospital in Oslo, aged 88.

Awards

Defence Medal 1940–1945 The Defence Medal 1940–1945 () is the award rewarded to those military and civilian personnel who participated in the fight against the German invasion and occupation of Norway between 1940 and 1945. The Defence Medal 1940–1945 can be awarde ...

, 1985 *Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. ...

, 1990 * Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold for Services to the Republic of Austria, 1996 *Knights of the Order of St. Olav, 1998

Books

*''Fra synagogen til Løvebakken'' (1985); ''From Synagogue to Parliament'' *''Folkevalgt'' (1988); ''Elected by the People'' *''Haakon, Maud og Olav. Et minnealbum i tekst og bilder'' (1989); ''Haakon, Maud and Olav. A Memorial Album of Text and Images'' *''Hundre år med konge og folk'' (1990); ''A Hundred Years with King and Nation'' *''Olav – menneske og monark'' (1991); ''Olav – Man and Monarch'' *''Det ellevte bud'' (1994, with afterword by

Elie Wiesel Elie Wiesel (, born Eliezer Wiesel ''Eliezer Vizel''; September 30, 1928 – July 2, 2016) was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Peace Prize, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored Elie Wiesel b ...

); ''The Eleventh Commandment''

References

Article in Aftenposten, May 2004 (in Norwegian) on the Norwegian Refugee Council and Kåre Willoch's visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories. {{DEFAULTSORT:Benkow, Jo 1924 births 2013 deaths Norwegian Jews Presidents of the Storting Members of the Storting Norwegian writers Jewish Norwegian politicians Politicians from Trondheim Bærum politicians Royal Norwegian Air Force personnel of World War II Leaders of the Conservative Party (Norway) 20th-century Norwegian politicians