Inger-Marie Ytterhorn’s remark on Kamzy Gunaratnam and the Committee of 17 May generates controversy; for a reason. Ytterhorn is completely right in writing that Gunaratnam is unsuited. It has, however, nothing whatsoever to do with Gunaratnam’s ethnicity.
It needs to be pointed out that Norway will never ever become an ethnic state where all share the same ethnicity. During the past decades, we have experienced an extremely high rate of immigration that to a large extent has been both destructive and needless. However, several have also arrived who in the long run have become part of the Norwegian society and feel connected to our country and our values, norms, and traditions. No matter if we get a restrictive immigration policy pleasing to this writer and regardless of whether we deport tens of thousands of non-integrated immigrants, quite a lot of those who have arrived will still be here.
Gunaratnam is, however, definitely not suited to lead the Committee of 17 May, due to the fact that she rejects Norway, the idea of a national state, and the very process making it possible for minority persons to be elected for such positions altogether; that is, integration. During a debate with Himanshu Gulati (FrP) in 2015, she said the following,
— Integration implies that one minority adapts to the majority society, which is totally erroneous. The idea that people have, that in Norway we have a Norwegian culture and that people arriving here must adapt to it is a little weird. The world changes. Norge changes. Norwegian culture changes. Just look at all those cities to which we are attracted; they are melting pots where people give and take, and change along with society. I do not consent with the premise that «Norwegian is forever Norwegian, and so be it». I think that the word best describing that which we experience today is inclusion; everybody must adapt to everybody.
In my opinion, this statement effectively disqualifies Gunaratnam from leading the Committee of 17 May. She simply dissociates herself from Norway. She exposes an opposition against the national state, which is exactly that which we celebrate on 17 May. She regards the national state as passé, something outdated, to be dismissed. That, if anything, is incompatible with leading a committee responsible for conducting the celebration of Norway’s National Day.
No, Kamzy Gunaratnam. The world has always been changing and we have always been in touch with the world surrounding us. This does not imply that every change is to the better and that no changes whatsoever could and should be opposed. The national state is a blessing to be preserved. Only the national state provides the security and the trust that you and I enjoy in Norway today. These are blessings that one can only dream of in multi-cultural societies like in the Balkans. If there is anything characterising the most secure and consistent countries in this world, it is that they are national states, they are homogeneous. It is quite impossible to build a nation based on differences and completely opposite values. The nation must be built on a fellowship. Consequently, the minorities are obliged to adapt themselves if we shall have a nation worth mentioning.
It is completely unreasonable to claim that Norwegians must adapt to cultural practises imported here by people who of their own, free will have chosen to settle right here; people who have arrived here as part of an exchange they have never been asked whether they wanted. It should be completely out of the question to adapt to norms and values originating in the Middle East and Africa.
Gunaratnam’s extreme view on integration is not a new one; such an attitude causes suffering and subjugation in the West today. It is wishing to adapt to the newcomers that makes the British accept that Sharia courts may function on British soil, exposing women to a systematic discrimination that we in the West thought belonged to the past. It is wishing to adapt to the minority that makes Swedish teachers check whether the young girls they teach are suitably covered, in accordance with instructions from the girls’ parents. It is wishing to adapt to the minority that has inaugurated segregation of the sexes in several Norwegian swimming baths in 2018.
Ytterhorn may well think that Gunaratnam is unsuited to the position as leader of the Committee for 17 May; after all, it is a prestigious position and there should be certain criteria present to be appointed. Gunaratnam’s ethnicity is, however, completely irrelevant. There are other minority persons who are just as suitable for such a position as some ethnical Norwegians; persons who in an excellent way come forward for the values we celebrate on 17 May.
Unfortunately, Gunaratnam is not among those. She has made her position crystal clear. She does not see the value of preserving basic cultural values that are evident premises for the national state we celebrate on our National Day. She is ready to sacrifice those basic values, norms, and traditions on the altar of adaptation. Gunaratnam has made it crystal clear to anyone who is willing to listen; she does not believe in Norway and what Norway was meant to be. Consequently, she is unsuited as leader of the Committee for 17 May.
Translated to English by Lars Hoem