Background
Gahrton, Per was born on February 2, 1943 in Malmo, Sweden. Son of Arnold and Asta (De Sharengrad) Gahrton.
political party official author
Gahrton, Per was born on February 2, 1943 in Malmo, Sweden. Son of Arnold and Asta (De Sharengrad) Gahrton.
Bachelor of Arts, University Lund, 1967. Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology, 1983.
Early in his career, Gahrton was elected chairman of the youth and student wing of the Swedish Liberal Party, in 1969. He was re-elected in 1979 but left the parliament and the party the same year, expressing disenchantment with the parliament bureaucracy. Gahrton currently serves as Presidentof the Swedish Association for Solidarity with Palestine.
In December 2008, Gahrton sharply criticized the a European Union proposal ”Guidelines for strengthening the political dialogue structures with Israel” arguing that the guidelines in fact were meant to establish "a Security Pact with Israel." He also argued that due to "the well-known Israeli skill in lobbying and in influencing opinions worldwide, it is no exaggeration to argue that from now on and for all practical purposes the Middle East Policy of the European Union will be elaborated, even co-written, by Israel."
Under orders from local politicians, the match was played behind closed doors.
Gahrton claimed that this decision had already given demonstrators some success, stating that "We have been helped by brave politicians in Malmö. We thank them for that."
Gahrton is the author of "Life and Death in the European Parliament", part political thriller, part tell-all memoir.
Consequently, Gahrton was forced to distribute the book free of charge. Gahrton has described himself as Jewish according to the traditional Jewish definition, as his matrilineal family, viz.
Turning to the nascent Green Party, in the 1980s he was one of its founders in 1981 and one of its more high-profile men for many years, one of relatively few in the new party who had several years of prior experience of professional politics before joining. He served as one of two spokespersons for the party from 1984 to 1985.
He was a Member of Parliament, holding a seat for the Liberal Party from 1976 to 1979, and for the Green Party from 1988 to 1991, and again in 1994-1995. Later, he was a Member of the European Parliament from 1995 to 2004. Gahrton entered in 1976 as a Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party.
He also served as a Member of Parliament for the Green Party from 1988 to 1991 and again from 1994 to 1995.
From 1995 to 2004 he was a Member of the European Parliament.
Married Ulla Lemberg, 1983. Children from previous marriage: Petter, Stina.