Reykjavík Grapevine - 19.11.2018, Síða 19

19 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 19— 2018
Words: Andie Fontaine
It may be hard to believe now, but
there was a time when Icelanders
adamantly believed that protesting
was just not something they do. Sure,
there were riots when Parliament
voted to join NATO in 1949, but apart
from that, the running narrative was
that Icelanders don’t protest.
That began to change in the middle
of the first decade of this century,
when the Icelandic government gave
the green light for the Kárahnjúkar
dam project, which flooded a large
swath of the Highlands, Europe’s last
great wilderness. It was then that a few
Icelanders began to experiment not
only with protesting, but with direct
action. The practice was so alien to
Icelandic authorities that they began
floating rumours that foreign “profes-
sional protesters” were behind most of
what the protesters were doing.
One of these Kárahnjúkar protest-
ers, most of whom were organised
into a group called Saving Iceland,
included Haukur Hilmarsson, then
just 17-years-old. Haukur did not need
coaxing from foreign protesters—as
his mother, Eva Hauksdóttir, told
us, Haukur was born with an innate
sense of justice. That passion for
standing up for the oppressed would
end up having him to fighting for the
rights of refugees in Iceland, taking
an active (and iconic) role in the 2008-
2009 protests, and ultimately all the
way to Syria where, fighting alongside
the International Freedom Brigade,
he would pay for his quest for justice
with his life. He was 31 years old.
But that was last March. Since then,
Haukur’s remains have yet to be repa-
triated, despite repeated pleas from
Eva and pressure placed on Icelandic
authorities by her and other family
and friends of Haukur. She has been
stonewalled by the Icelandic govern-
ment at every turn, even as Haukur’s
case made international headlines.
So who was Haukur Hilmarsson?
What is, or should be, his legacy? And
why exactly are the whereabouts of
his remains still largely unknown?
THE MEDIATOR
"When Haukur was a child, he was very
obedient to his parents and teachers,
but he always defended people who he
felt had been treated unjustly,” remem-
bers Eva. “As he grew older, he became
more rebellious towards authorities;
questioning the law and the police,
and I was a bit surprised because he'd
always been such a good child. When
I asked him about this he said it's very
different being under the authority of
someone who cares for you, or if you're
under the command of some imper-
sonal state or system with no personal
connection to you. I think most of what
Haukur has been doing since he was
a teenager can be seen in light of the
distinction he made between personal
authority and the state or some other
impersonal authority."
This personal philosophy was
arguably formed when he was still in
kindergarten, and Eva offers one tell-
ing aspect of young Haukur’s charac-
ter that would be the hallmark of his
actions for the rest of his life.
“When he was in kindergarten, he
got a written assessment from his
teacher who said that Haukur was the
mediator in the class; that he was the
most peaceful of all these children
and always wanted to take everyone's
interests into account,” she says.
“He always stood up for justice, and
if someone was being harassed or
bullied, he would always be the one to
stand up for them. Even if he was very
afraid of the bullies. I think this is
important. Haukur was not fearless.
He just wasn't controlled by fear.”
Which is not to say that Haukur
had a chip on his shoulder. He also
had a strong sense of diplomacy,
especially towards people who simply
didn’t know any better. “When he
grew older, he developed this atti-
tude that when you have a conflict
with someone, and they're saying
some nonsense and are misinformed,
but they show that they're willing to
consider what you're saying, then
you should always let them have a
chance to step out with dignity,” Eva
recounts. “He wasn't just a fighter; he
was a mediator, and I think that's an
important aspect of his character.”
SAVING ICELAND
His willingness to confront abusive
power, even when scared, showed in
his participation in the Kárahnjúkar
protests, when he was barely 18 years
old. This was his first act of protest
(that we know of) where getting
arrested was a real possibility.
“I wasn't expecting that,” Eva says. “I
was worried about him, but he always
explained to me why he was willing to
take these risks. It wasn't because he
wanted to pick a fight with the police.
There were principles and visions that
he was ready to take risks for.”
As a testament to his respect for
legitimate authority, when he was
eventually arrested for his participa-
tion in the Kárahnjúkar protests, the
first thing he did was ask the police to
call his mom.
THE PAUL RAMSES INCIDENT
News stories about refugees and
asylum seekers in Iceland are
frequently reported now, but just ten
The Peacemaker:
Uncovering The Legacy And
Fate of Haukur Hilmarsson
Words: Andie Fontaine
Photos: various
Photo by Borghildur
Hauksdóttir
Photo by Sunneva Weishappel