(Photo credit: Merkez Partisi/Anadolu Agency)
Elham Asaad Buaras
A politician of Turkish origin became a deputy for the Centre Party following the general election in Sweden on September 11.
Stockholm-born Muharrem Demirok has pariticpated in politics for almost two decades, joining the Centre Party in 2004 and was elected the mayor of Linköping.
The 45-year-old father-of-two was the first candidate for the liberal Centre Party’s Östergötland region, meaning he will take one of the 349-seats in the Riksdag, Sweden’s Parliament.
Traditionally, a member of the Nordic agrarian parties, the Centre Party has shifted its focus to economic liberalism, environmental protection, gender equality, and decentralisation of power. Self-described as liberal feminists, the party advocates individualist policies to enhance gender equality.
The party’s environmental policies emphasise consent and voluntary action, including working with foresters and private landowners to promote biodiversity.
Demirok said, “I was the mayor responsible for Environment and Energy for 12 years in the city of Linköping. I hope I will carry the experience I gained from here to the Parliament and try to find solutions to many problems.”
Demirok comes from a working-class family that migrated from the Kulu district of Turkey’s central Konya province,
His father immigrated to Sweden from Konya, Turkey in 1974 as a labourer. Born in Stockholm’s Hunddinge Municipality, Demirok studied Community Planning at Linköping University after high school.
Muharrem Demirok’s father Hamza said he was delighted that his son was elected a deputy in the Swedish parliament, adding that he saw the benefits of the support he gave his son to get a good education.
