Khamshajiny Gunaratnam

Politics

Gunaratnam was elected as a representative to Oslo City Council for the first time in 2007 and took office as the deputy mayor of Oslo on 21 October 2015. She is a member of the Labour Party, who represent a progressive, social democratic political approach. In Workers' Youth League (AUF) she has had both local and central key positions and has been editor of the nationwide membership magazine, Praksis

During an interview with Guardian journalist Lauren Razavi two months after she was elected, Gunaratnam described her political approach: "The only way we can move society forward is by disagreeing, discussing and coming up with new solutions to the problem we’re facing. We need as many people as possible to be involved to realise the best solutions for our city and our country. In 10 or even 100 years, we have to be able to look at ourselves in the mirror and tell our children and grandchildren that we took these decisions and we’re proud to have done what we’ve done."

Response to European Refugee Crisis

Speaking to Guardian journalist Lauren Razavi in December 2015, Gunaratnam said: "I believe every country should take their responsibility. There was a time when Norwegian people flew over the Atlantic to the US because of the situation in Norway. Today people see Norway as a great place to be, and we should feel honoured by that."

Background

Gunaratnam was born in Sri Lanka and moved to Norway when she was three years old. Her parents were part of the Tamil diaspora who worked to maintain the fishing industry in the north of Norway, though they relocated to Oslo a few years after arriving in the country so that Gunaratnam and her brother could go to a Tamil school.

After joining the Tamil Youth Organisation in Oslo, Gunaratnam met governing mayor Raymond Johansen who encouraged her to get involved with politics, which she did. She was subsequently banned from Sri Lanka as a result of her engagement with politics in Norway. She later studied social geography at the University of Oslo.

On 22 July 2011, when Gunaratnam was aged 23, she attended a Workers' Youth League Camp on the island of Utøya, where Anders Breivik committed a massacre that killed 69 people. Gunaratnam swam 500 metres across the Tyrifjorden Lake to survive as bullets struck the water around her. Breivik was later, as one of the many charges, found guilty and sentenced for the attempted murder of her.