Gert Petersen

Gert Petersen ( born August 19, 1927 in Nykøbing; † 1 January 2009 Herlev ) was a Danish journalist and politician. He was from 1974 to 1991 Chairman of the Socialistisk Folkeparti.

Career

Gert Petersen was born the son of a factory worker on the island of Falster. He grew up with his grandparents and showed an early interest in politics. At the age of 13 he joined in 1940 the Danish National Socialist Workers Party. This fact was made ​​in 1977 by the journalist and Holocaust denier Erik Haaest public. Petersen was initially claim to be a " mole" occurred, but admitted later that he had been convinced as a young man by the leader principle. He then worked in the Resistance during the German occupation, was arrested by the Nazis and interned in the camp Frøslev. After the Second World War he joined the Parti Danmarks Kommunistiske. After 1945, studied history at the University of Copenhagen and became a journalist.

From 1953 to 1956 he worked in the editorial office of "dialogue". After the Hungarian national uprising and revelations of Joseph Stalin, he distanced himself from Communism and joined the Socialistisk Folkeparti (SF ) to. Since 1960 he was a permanent employee and from 1962 editor of the party newspaper "Her og Nu ".

Party presidency

In 1974 he became chairman of the SF, which had lost much of its voter confidence in the previous year and feared for their influence. 1979 again won the party at the general election after a long dry spell 11 seats, two years later, 21 In the 1980s he steered the course of the party on environmental issues and promoted links with the anti - nuclear movement. In 1987 the party won its biggest success with 14.6% and 27 seats. Thus, the parliamentary influence of SF, but still faced a center-right government under Poul Schlüter over grew.

After massive loss of votes in the election in 1990 ( from 13.0 % to 8.3 %) Petersen moved a year later back from the party chairmanship. Deputy he remained until 1998.