Ewa Helena Björling (born 3 May 1961) is a
Swedish politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
and a member of the
Moderate Party
The Moderate Party ( sv, Moderata samlingspartiet , ; M), commonly referred to as the Moderates ( ), is a liberal-conservative political party in Sweden. The party generally supports tax cuts, the free market, civil liberties and economic liber ...
. She served as
Minister of Commerce and Industry from 2007 to 2014 and as
Minister for Nordic Cooperation from 2010 to 2014 in the
Swedish Government
The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden ( sv, Konungariket Sveriges regering) is the Cabinet (government), national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's Executive (government), executive authority.
The Government consists of the Prime Minister ...
. She was a member of the
Swedish Riksdag
The Riksdag (, ; also sv, riksdagen or ''Sveriges riksdag'' ) is the legislature and the supreme decision-making body of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral legislature with 349 members (), elected proportionally and s ...
for
Stockholm County
Stockholm County ( sv, Stockholms län, link=no ) is a county or '' län'' (in Swedish) on the Baltic Sea coast of Sweden. It borders Uppsala County and Södermanland County. It also borders Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The city of Stoc ...
from 2002 to 2014.
On 16 October 2014, she submitted her resignation from the
Riksdag and announced that she will retire from politics.
Prior career
Ewa Björling is a
dentist
A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofacial co ...
,
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degre ...
and a
docent
The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de con ...
in
virology
Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, th ...
. Prior to her election to the
Swedish parliament
The Riksdag (, ; also sv, riksdagen or ''Sveriges riksdag'' ) is the legislature and the supreme decision-making body of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral legislature with 349 members (), elected proportionally and s ...
in 2002, she worked as a lecturer at
Karolinska Institutet
The Karolinska Institute (KI; sv, Karolinska Institutet; sometimes known as the (Royal) Caroline Institute in English) is a research-led medical university in Solna within the Stockholm urban area of Sweden. The Karolinska Institute is consist ...
in
Stockholm. She was also a member of the
municipal council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural coun ...
in
Ekerö Municipality
Ekerö Municipality ( sv, Ekerö kommun) is a municipality in the province of Uppland in Stockholm County in east central Sweden. The name derives from the name of the main island within the municipality whose name is Ekerön, and literally means ...
from 1999 to 2006, and served as its chairman from 2005 to 2006. She was elected a Member of Parliament in 2002 and served in the parliament's
Committee on Foreign Affairs. She was also a substitute in the
Committee on the Constitution, the
Committee on Education
(Parliamentary) Committee on Education ( sv, utbildningsutskottet) (UbU) is a parliamentary committee in the Swedish Riksdag. The committee's areas of responsibility concern School, Preschool, Higher education, Research on Education, along wit ...
and the
Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs
The Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs ( sv, Utrikesnämnden) is a permanent council appointed by the Riksdag and led by the King. It operates as a consultational organ between the Riksdag and the Government regarding matters of Foreign Affairs ...
.
She was a member of the board of the
Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency
The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency ( sv, Styrelsen för internationellt utvecklingssamarbete, ) is a government agency of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Sida is responsible for organization of the bulk of Swede ...
from 2003 to 2007. She was also chairman of the Swedish National Council for Coordination of Efforts Against
HIV/AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
in 2007, and Europe's representative in the
Inter-Parliamentary Union
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU; french: Union Interparlementaire, UIP) is an international organization of national parliaments. Its primary purpose is to promote democratic governance, accountability, and cooperation among its members; other ...
's working group on HIV/AIDS. Björling has promoted the use of contraception in
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, a country which maintains solid links to the Roman
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
Career as Minister of Commerce and Industry
In November, 2012 Björling traveled with two Swedish trade delegations to discuss increasing bi-lateral trade between Sweden and war-torn country of
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
, despite an existing EU
arms embargo
An arms embargo is a restriction or a set of sanctions that applies either solely to weaponry or also to " dual-use technology." An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes:
* to signal disapproval of the behavior of a certain actor
* to maintai ...
against Myanmar.
[Björling: Burmavapen hade exporterats till Indien, Publicerat: torsdag 13 December kl 17:23, Sverige Radio, http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=83&artikel=5380204] Björling was later questioned by the
Swedish Parliament
The Riksdag (, ; also sv, riksdagen or ''Sveriges riksdag'' ) is the legislature and the supreme decision-making body of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral legislature with 349 members (), elected proportionally and s ...
regarding the discovery of Swedish made
Carl Gustav recoilless rifle
The Carl Gustaf 8.4 cm recoilless rifle (, named after ''Carl Gustafs Stads Gevärsfaktori'' which initially produced it) is a Swedish developed caliber man-portable shoulder-fired recoilless rifle, initially developed by the Royal Swedi ...
s found in Myanmar in December, 2012.
Following the
2010 general election, Björling also took office as
Minister for Nordic Cooperation. She made mining one of the areas of Nordic cooperation.
[Sweden’s Minister for Nordic Coordination Ewa Björling has a soft spot for mines, http://www.nordiclabourjournal.org/artikler/portrett/portrait-2011/article.2011-10-06.4068239192/]
Awards
In 2006 Björling was awarded with the "Jerusalem Prize" from the
Zionist Federation in Sweden
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after '' Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in J ...
.
The award is given to persons who has shown "extraordinary support for
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
and
Zionism
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a Nationalism, nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is ...
".
[
]
Personal life
Ewa Björling is married and has two children. She lives on the island of Ekerö
Ekerö is a locality (urban area) and the seat of Ekerö Municipality in Stockholm County, Sweden, with 11,524 inhabitants in 2017. It is also an alternative name of the island Ekerön, on which the Ekerö urban area is situated.
Sports
The ...
west of Stockholm.
References
External links
Frihandelsministern
blog
Ewa Björling
at the Government Offices of Sweden
Rosenbad (, lit. "rosen bath") is a building in central Stockholm, precinct of Norrmalm. It is a building owned by the Swedish State and serves as the seat of the Government. The present government of Sweden is the right-leaning Kristersson Ca ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bjorling, Ewa
1961 births
Living people
Swedish dentists
Swedish virologists
Academic staff of the Karolinska Institute
Members of the Riksdag from the Moderate Party
Swedish Ministers for Trade
Women members of the Riksdag
Women government ministers of Sweden
Members of the Riksdag 2002–2006
Swedish women academics
21st-century Swedish women politicians
Swedish Ministers for Nordic Cooperation