Mona Scobie Røkke (3 March 1940 – 13 July 2013) was a Norwegian and politician for 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 ...

. She was the

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

from 1981 to 1985.

Early life and career

She was born in

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken (county), Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and village ...

as a daughter of Randal William Scobie (1904–1979) and Aslaug Høyendahl (1908–1997), both office managers. She

finished Finished may refer to: * ''Finished'' (novel), a 1917 novel by H. Rider Haggard * ''Finished'' (film), a 1923 British silent romance film * "Finished" (short story), a science fiction short story by L. Sprague de Camp See also *Finishing (disa ...

her secondary education in 1958, and graduated from the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

with the

cand.jur. Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries. ...

degree in 1963. After seven years as a businesswoman in Drammen and

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 ...

, she was a

police superintendent Superintendent (Supt) is a rank in the British police and in most English-speaking Commonwealth nations. In many Commonwealth countries, the full version is superintendent of police (SP). The rank is also used in most British Overseas Territories ...

in Drammen from 1971 to 1977. The years 1973 and 1976 were exceptions; she served one year as deputy judge in Kongsberg District Court and one year as a lawyer in Drammen.

Political career

Røkke started her political career in Drammen city council from 1971 to 1979. She chaired Drammen Conservative Women's League from 1974 to 1975, later the county league from 1976 to 1979 and the Conservative Women's League of Norway from 1979 to 1985. From 1976 to 1985 she was also a central board member of the Conservative Party. She ended her partisan tenure as chair of Drammen Conservative Party from 1988 to 1990. She was also deputy chair of the European Movement in Norway from 1986 to 1988. She 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 ...

from

Buskerud Buskerud () is a former county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Oppland, Sogn og Fjordane, Hordaland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardan ...

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, and was re-elected in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

and

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

. She was a member of the

Standing Committee on Justice The Standing Committee on Justice ( no, Justiskomiteen) is a standing committee of the Parliament of Norway. It is responsible for policies relating to judicial system, the probation service, the police, persons performing civilian national service ...

. From 1981 through 1985 she was a member of

Willoch's First Cabinet Willoch's First Cabinet was a minority, Conservative Government of Norway. It succeeded Brundtland's First Cabinet (which was a Labour government), after the Conservative victory in the 1981 Storting election; and sat from 14 October 1981 to ...

. Her seat in Parliament was in turn filled by

Øivin Skappel Fjeldstad Øivin Skappel Fjeldstad (born 6 February 1936) is a Norwegian banker and politician for the Conservative Party. Personal life He was born in Oslo as a son of conductor Øivin Fjeldstad (1903–1983) and housewife Julie Skappel (1910–1996). He ...

Hallgrim Berg Hallgrim Berg (born 28 January 1945) is a Norwegian author, traditional folk musician, and former politician for the Conservative Party. He was a member of the Norwegian Parliament from 1982 to 1997, representing Buskerud. He has released several ...

and Odd Kallerud. She then returned to Parliament for her second real term, serving in the Standing Committee on Defence and Standing Committee on Social Affairs until 1989. From 1987 she was also a delegate to the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

. In October 1987 she was named as the County Governor of Vestfold, a position she assumed in 1989 after her parliamentary career. She served until her professional retirement in 2010. In March 2010 her successor as County Governor was announced as

Erling Lae Erling Lae (born 16 March 1947) is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party. He was born in Oslo, is a cand.philol. by education and formerly worked as a journalist. From 1981 to 1985 he was a political advisor in the Ministry of Consum ...

. She chaired the corporate council of

Telenor Telenor ASA ( or ) is a Norwegian majority state-owned multinational telecommunications company headquartered at Fornebu in Bærum, close to Oslo. It is one of the world's largest mobile telecommunications companies with operations worldwide, ...

(1994–2005), was deputy chair of the Norwegian State Agriculture Bank and ''Landbrukets utviklingsfond'' (1994–1999). She also held a wide array of cultural posts, as deputy chair of the

Norwegian Cancer Society The Norwegian Cancer Society ( no, Kreftforeningen) is a non-profitmaking organisation in Norway. History It was established as no, Norsk Forening til Kreftens Bekjempelse, label=none in 1938, and took the current name when it merged with no ...

(1988–1993) and the

Norwegian Museum of Cultural History Norsk Folkemuseum (Norwegian Museum of Cultural History), at Bygdøy, Oslo, Norway, is a museum of cultural history with extensive collections of artifacts from all social groups and all regions of the country. It also incorporates a large open- ...

(1989–1997), deputy member of the

Norwegian Nobel Committee The Norwegian Nobel Committee ( no, Den norske Nobelkomité) selects the recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize each year on behalf of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel's estate, based on instructions of Nobel's will. Five members are appointed by ...

(1991–1993) and board member of Kommunale kinematografers landsforbund (1976–1979) and

Norsk Film Norsk Film was a Norwegian film production company established in 1932 and disestablished in 2001. It was located in Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast ...

(1992–1998). She led the committee that published the

Norwegian Official Report A Norwegian Official Report ( no, Norges offentlige utredninger, NOU) is a report published by a panel or committee appointed by the Norwegian government. The Norwegian Parliament The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the sup ...

1991:20 on legal protection of developmentally disabled. She was also a member of the committees that published the Norwegian Official Report 1992:1, 1995:26 and 2004:18. She was decorated with the

Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this O ...

in 2000 and as a Commander of the Order of St. Olav in 2005.

Personal life

Mona Røkke was divorced and had two grown-up children and four grandchildren. She was diagnosed with cancer for the first time when she was quite young, and for the second time in 1985, while serving as Minister of Justice. Røkke went on sick leave for about one year before she returned to work as a member of parliament. She told about her experience with cancer and time as minister in the self-biography ''Ingen tid for tårer'' ("No Time for Tears") in 1986. She died in July 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rokke, Mona 1940 births 2013 deaths Politicians from Drammen University of Oslo alumni Justice ministers Norwegian businesspeople 20th-century Norwegian lawyers Conservative Party (Norway) politicians Members of the Storting Government ministers of Norway County governors of Norway Recipients of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Norwegian memoirists Deaths from cancer in Norway Norwegian women lawyers Women members of the Storting 20th-century Norwegian politicians 20th-century Norwegian women politicians Female justice ministers Women government ministers of Norway Women memoirists Ministers of Justice of Norway