Norway – Tjen Folket Media: Militarization in Elementary Schools

We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by Tjen Folket Media on August 18.

The Minister of Education Opens the Door to Allowing the Military into Elementary Schools

The NRK [Translator’s note: Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation] reports that Education Minister Kari Nessa Nordtun (Labour Party) is considering having Norwegian students receive training in “war preparedness” next year.

The NRK citing the newspaper Nationen, reported on this. Nordtun stated: “This is intended to prepare our youth and our country to build resilience should natural disasters or wartime situations occur.” It is proposed that this be implemented as a course on conscription and “emergency preparedness.” The course will be conducted in collaboration with the county government and the Armed Forces, and students will be graded as “pass” or “fail.”

It was first proposed by Chief of Defense Eirik Kristoffersen, and the proposal therefore originated with the military itself. This is part of the trend towards militarization and rearmament in society that is currently underway and an expression of the fact that the bourgeoisie itself is now saying that we are living in a time of war.