Jonathan Motzfeldt
 | This article contains weasel words: vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. (October 2012) |
Jonathan Motzfeldt | |
|---|---|
Lars Emil Johansen | |
| Member of the Landsting for Nanortalik | |
| In office 1 May 1979 – 2 June 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Position Established |
| Succeeded by | Anders Olsen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 September 1938 Siumut |
| Spouse |
Kristjana Guðrún Guðmundsdóttir
(m. 1992) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | University of Copenhagen |
| Occupation | Priest, politician |
Jonathan Jakob Jørgen Otto Motzfeldt (25 September 1938 – 28 October 2010
Personal life
Jonathan "Junnuk" Motzfeldt was born in 1938 in the settlement of
After his teacher's exam at Ilinniarfissuaq (Greenland College) in Nuuk in 1960, he studied theology at the University of Copenhagen until 1966, subsequently working as a pastor in Qaqortoq, Greenland until 1979.[2][4]
In 1992, Jonathan Motzfeldt married Kristjana Guðrún Guðmundsdóttir (born 1951) from Iceland. They had no children.[5] However, from a previous partnership with Margit Kock Petersen, he had two children: Karen Motzfeldt (born 1966) and Claus Motzfeldt (born 1969).[6][7] Greenlandic handball player Hans Peter Motzfeldt-Kyed is Motzfeldt's nephew.
Political career
Already in the mid-1950s, Jonathan Motzfeldt started his battle for Greenland's autonomy with a group of young Inuit activists.
In 1977 he was elected Chairman of Siumut party for the first time. In addition, he served as
On 1 May 1979, Jonathan Motzfeldt became the first
Jonathan Motzfeldt was then again elected chairman of the Greenlandic parliament. His last political year were marked by renewed alcohol abuse and uncontrolled expenses on travel and representation.[citation needed]
Mr. Motzfeldt resigned as speaker of Greenland's Parliament on 18 January 2008 amid allegations that he had groped a female civil servant who reported him to the police. Motzfeldt denied wrongdoing. The case was subsequently dropped, without charges.[5] Fellow party member Ruth Heilmann became his successor as speaker of the parliament.
In the spring 2009 Motzfeldt was hit by a major scandal involving the abuse of public funds for private purposes. The newspaper AG documented that up to 2008 he had let the government pay for private dinners. Also, it was the public purse that paid when the former Prime Minister consumed large amounts of alcohol. The scandal culminated when he briefly before parliamentary elections in June 2009 was denied boarding a helicopter in Qaqortoq due to intoxication. He was not re-elected in the parliamentary elections on 2 June 2009. [citation needed]
Death
Motzfeldt died on 28 October 2010, aged 72, from a cerebral hemorrhage.[5] At the time of his death Motzfeldt was the president of the West Nordic Council.
References
- ^ "Jonathan Motzfeldt er død" (in Danish). BT. 28 October 2010.
- ^ a b Greenland mourns politician Jonathan Motzfeldt, nunatsiaqonline.ca, October 29, 2010
- ^ Familien Søren Motzfeldt/Kirsten Klemmensen Archived 2015-08-15 at the Wayback Machine, akj-cbj.dk
- ^ Jonathan Motzfeldts datter: Jeg er ikke min far og bliver det aldrig, sermitsiaq.ag, November 18, 2014
- ^ a b c d e J. Motzfeldt, Ex-Premier Hailed as a Pillar of Greenland, Dies at 72, nytimes.com, OCT. 29, 2010
- ^ Familien Jonathan Jørgen Jacob Otto Motzfeldt/Margit Kock Petersen, agerbaeks.dk
- ^ Farvel far, sermitsiaq.ag, November 5, 2010
- ^ Guided Tour of Inatsisartut
- ^ Unilingual Inuk becomes Greenland’s new premier, nunatsiaqonline.ca, December 13, 2002
External links
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