– He wants more space for belief

– He says: It is a great honor, and it is something I do not take lightly Joel Yestibo (21) About the senior job in the second largest city in Norway, on the phone with Fermitida.

He says hiring a KrF team in the most beautiful city in the world is in many ways a dream job.

Ystebø was previously deputy leader of the KrFU, until last year he announced his departure from the party with a desire to build a government. A neoconservative Christian player in the Norwegian social debate. But when the KrF Bergen Nominations Board approached him and asked him to be shortlisted, he thought it was an exciting opportunity. After a simple operation, he said yes.

I met opponents of abortion

Ystebø caused a stir last year when He advocated banning abortion in NorwayExcept in cases of violence, incest, or danger to the mother’s life. He is on the conservative right wing of the party and wants to challenge the narrative that the young are more liberal than the old.

I, like many in our country and city, have a faith that characterizes the values ​​I hold. This means that many consider me conservative in values. But it’s also about classic values: to think carefully before making big changes in society. It’s a conservative way of thinking that’s also had a big impact on the right, Wisser says:

– This may apply when you convey to children and young people that you can change sex. Or a Bergen local: when you open your doors to pour in Torgalmenningen. When major changes occur in society, we must have someone to stop and think: Is this right? He says.

It calls for a better public conversation

Ystebø says he received a lot of backlash during the abortion debate last year. Both positive and negative. In previous cases, he was encouraged to commit suicide, and I got a picture of a bloody fetus On the message. He says it can be difficult to stand in the discussion when you’re making a statement about this kind of question.

– I hope and believe that the fact that I have said a number of things on this subject contributes to a general conversation which will be better. If people are quiet because it is not “allowed” to say such things, that is not a positive thing. There are legitimate views on abortion, no matter what one believes. He adds that it is therefore important to have a good, open debate with consensus, and to contribute to a good debate which is really difficult and demanding.

Ystebø says he himself stands up well in exchanging difficult words, but he is surprised that one is forced to be so uncompromising in order to share more counter-current opinions.

Think more locally

Yestipo says he still sticks to the same opinion, though According to Bergens Tidende He speaks more carefully. Ystebø himself tells Framtida that he is not trying to hide what he stands for, but that he is focusing more on domestic issues in this election.

– So same-sex marriage or abortion laws are relevant to Bergen’s policy. What I think about national issues, he says, is irrelevant now.

One of this year’s campaign messages is ONE Zero vision against abortion in Bergen Welfare services are so good that it is not “necessary” to have an abortion. Deputy Mayor of Bergen, Ira Martinsen Garrido (SV), He described the proposal as extreme and harmful.

Ystebø believes that one of the reasons he is such a good candidate in Bergen is to contribute to the KrF’s ability to be more visible and polish its profile in order to get through to the party’s message.

For Ystebø, it is important that Bergen be a good city to grow up in, grow old and believe in – regardless of religion. In practice, this means a “tough and fair” policy on drugs and alcohol, monetary support from municipalities for families with children, and the maintenance of free Christian schools.

– I hope to end up in a position where I can contribute to the influence of KrF policy, inside or outside the city council. “We’ll look at situations and the like when the results are ready,” he says.

He states that the KRF is unlikely to get a city council in Bergen. And while the city’s KrF has traditionally been open to working with both the right and the left, the party has now chosen a sharper direction:

– We want to point out Christine Meyer and Hujry.

Other issues being voted on by the KRF in Bergen are ensuring school services at Christmas, allowing Bibles to be distributed at school, and preventing the school from becoming an arena for “ideological battles over questions of values”.

Young people will like it

Ystebø was active in politics from his early teens. His involvement was shaped by his upbringing in a socially engaged family. Among other things, his father, Bjarte Yestebo, was an assistant editor at the Christian conservative newspaper Norge IDAG, and started the conservative conference at the Oslo Symposium.

– My political awakening was when I went to an independent Christian school, and I saw that the Minister of Education spoke negatively about independent schools. He says: I think this is completely unreasonable.

As a 21-year-old, he has an important role to play in a party such as the 2021 elections. He fought to attract the youngest voters. He believes he brings an important perspective with him.

My age affects how I look at things and experience other issues. But I don’t feel any difference in the way I am treated in the party. And here we are on equal footing. But I am among those who fully believe that young politicians bring other perspectives, experiences, and experiences with them. It is believed that the combination of younger and older voices is very necessary and important.

He believes that younger voters appreciate seeing politicians their own age, with whom they can relate.

At the same time, despite his young age, Ystebø has already completed a term on Bergen City Council. He considers the four years an important experience.

– We must interpret each other in the best sense

Ystebø believes that the field of faith and value preservation should be larger. It feels tight.

Many of the young people I talk to, whether they are Christians or other believers, feel that it is difficult to make choices based on their faith. “I think a lot of us find it more demanding,” he says.

– What do you think you need to do to open up that room further?

A climate of public debate where people interpret each other in the best sense, where the media does not portray what someone thinks about a topic, is important to avoid creating unexpected misunderstandings. And we politicians who speak out in public debates must use consensus when dealing with demanding topics, no matter what one thinks. So should the others who participated in the discussion. “I think these moves are important to how you experience the space of imagination,” he says.

Updated: Wed 30 Aug 2023 11.06