By Annemieke Wolthuis, on her last day as vice chair of the EFRJ.
Siri Kemény, I am happy to be able to say a few words to you today now Tim Chapman, our chair, has handed to you this beautifully designed award by Clair Aldington 2022. The wood, the link to nature and the design suit you so well. You have inspired me, like many others in the Restorative Justice field. Ivo Aertsen and Karen Paus gave me relevant input for this speech.
You were one of the first active Norwegian members. But not the very first I heard… during the first years of the Forum, it was Torunn Bolstad who represented the Norwegian Mediation Service. She was Board member until 2003. The Norwegian government considerably supported the EFRJ financially in the first years too.
But back to you… you started your career within this field in 1990. You established and coordinated one of the then 4 mediation offices in Oslo. In a time when Norway was about to pass and implement the very first law on mediation in penal and civil cases (1991).
Towards the end of the 1990s up until 2004, you worked as a senior advisor in The Ministry of Justice with responsibility for the restorative justice field. You were part of the important development to reorganise and further develop The Norwegian Mediation Service as a fully state funded activity, though still by using local volunteer lay mediators.
Your restorative justice work, especially in severe cases of violence, was mentioned by your previous colleagues. For many years you played a significant contribution in Norway - by leading a first inter-sectorial working group on this topic in the Ministry of Justice – which resulted in improvements that they now can still harvest further improved practices from.
Personal stories were always an inspiration for you. A study trip in 1998, including Ivo Aertsen and others who became active later in EFRJ, to Huntsville prison in Texas, made an impact for example. Not only stories, but also language matters. Your profound engagement for language and respect was evident. And you made people aware that in restorative work in more severe cases it is better to talk about “facilitate” and not only mediate.
In order to find the three core values for Konfliktrådet you engaged a philosopher that helped the organisation to lead a process to identify– “Quality, innovation and faith in humans”. They are still accurate and at the core of the organisation.
In relation to the theme of our conference ‘Justice beyond borders’, it is good to mention that you were always focused on inclusion, for example to do not only work in the capital, but also in other parts of Norway. You were organising events in the north of the country like daring walks in the wild nature, with a supportive attitude and encouraging comments from you as some struggled to climb down the steep mountain trails. A sign of your early engagement for mother nature.
Colleagues mention about you that you are: “always engaged, never indifferent, respecting others, holding high standards and demands, Siri herself reflects our organisation’s core values – quality, innovation and faith in humans”. You are also well received by partners & ministries.
Director of The National Mediation Service Christine Wilberg and The Ministry of Justice by Director General Håvard Bekkelund, Department of Crime Prevention both convey their heartfelt congratulations to you with this award as a well deserved recognition. Karen and Lars and other colleagues are also proud and congratulate you.
That is at the national level, but you went beyond that. You are for the EFRJ and for me an outstanding RJ prominent who brought your national expertise to the European level. That led you to a close cooperation with several colleagues who are also present here.
You appeared at the European scene as a member of the Committee of Experts on Mediation in Penal Matters with the Council of Europe in Strasbourg in 1997. During two years you helped to prepare the 1999 CoE Recommendation on Mediation in Penal Matters. The Committee was chaired by Christa Pelikan, and Tony Marshall was the appointed expert, together with Heike Jung. Later you were sharing expertise from Norway. The basics of the Recommendation were followed by the UN ECOSOC Resolution of 2000 (and later 2002), and some of the formulations are literary taken over. Historical work was done by that Committee of Experts in the late 1990s, so to say.
The EFRJ was launched in 2000. Remarkable to see, how from the years 2002-2004, committees started to work in the Forum: the Communication Committee, the Research Committee, the Information Committee, the Practice & Training Committee and the Newsletter Editorial Board. Twenty years already! And scrolling through reports from that time, it is unbelievable to see how many have participated in this European restorative justice endeavour. You have been in the heart of this business and hard work during these years – and this is forgotten so quickly. We should keep an eye for the way how such an organisation has developed, in order to better understand what we should do towards the future. ‘Historical’ insight can make a difference.
You were elected as Board member and became immediately chair at the AGM in Budapest in October 2004. You served as chair until the AGM of 2009 in Leuven. A driving force of the Forum, together with the secretariat in Leuven in the person of Jolien Willemsens and later Karolien Mariën from 2008, the year that also Bruna Pali appeared in Leuven, not to forget all the others who have worked for the Forum during these years – there are really many, and some of them are here today. You led the AGM’s of 2005 (Sofia), 2006 (Barcelona), Lisbon (2007), Verona (2008) and Leuven (2009). And two Board meetings each year. And all daily contacts and work with the secretariat. Summer schools of the Forum in Pilsen (2005), Riga (2007), Budapest (2008) and Barcelona (2009).
You are for me also a stylish woman breathing Scandinavian design and peacefulness, also shown in your (and mine) yoga practice, your care for the environment and people who need extra care. This beautiful new wooden piece of art reward made by Clair Aldington suits you very well. I also think of your laugh, the sisterhood you have with Christa, the nice conversations we had and the fun at the parties we had during many EFRJ conferences, for example in Bilbao, Verona and Barcelona also with Karin Sten Madsen and so many others.
When I asked your friend Ivo Aertsen about an outstanding contribution made by you to the restorative justice community, he replied: “A perfect personal balance between commitment, seriousness, high quality, competence, very strong expertise on the one hand, and personal attention and care to all working in this field on the other hand. A calm but very convinced and consistent personality, consequent en integer, struggling with issues in the field of restorative justice and the wellbeing of the Forum, but never burdening people with her concerns and uncertainties. For me, she became a close friend, from the first days in Strasbourg until now. even when she did not stop to call me a slave driver. And I still remember the laudatio that she spoke when I received the first EFRJ award in 2010 …”
Congratulations on behalf of the full board and team of the EFRJ. Siri, there are just three words that I would like to end this laudatio with: We love you.
