Ingvar Carlsson and the secret negotiations that shaped Swedish politics in the 1990s

It was February 1995 and Ingvar Carlsson was gloomy. We each sat with a glass of white wine at the bar of a luxury hotel in Cape Town. A heavy day. Pastor and ANC activist Alan Boesak had embezzled Swedish aid funds. It had become glaringly clear during the conversation with him. When a phone signal cut through the quiet room, it felt liberating. Carlsson disappeared for a while and returned smiling: "Now it's clear, the Center supports the government. Olof Johansson is as satisfied as I am."

The month-long negotiation between the two parties had taken place under the utmost discretion. And Tage Erlander's old motto "We must have the farmers with us" had been fulfilled.

Ingvar Carlsson had been about to break tradition. On an archipelago island in Bohuslän, one of his close associates Leif Pagrotsky had started serious talks with his neighbor, the Left Party's Johan Lönnroth. Both were obsessed with the history of Bohuslän and with economics, national and global. They also drew up plans for government collaboration to clean up the financial mess left behind by Carl Bildt's government.

Lönnroth built a negotiating delegation with party comrades Lars Bäckström, eventually governor, and Hasse Andersson, metal worker and academically trained philosopher. Their interlocutor was mainly Göran Persson from time to time. Insecure and ignorant, according to the somewhat condescending left-wing trio. Together they wrote programs to clean up the economy. "We even gave up on the child support," admitted Lönnroth.

In vain. The industrial confederation's leader, Karlfeldt expert Bo Berggren, demanded that Carlsson end the alliance with the left. Otherwise investment would stop. The directors' bags were packed. The center had to take over from the Left in order to secure a social democratic government. Confirmation was sent from the Riksdag to the hotel lobby in Cape Town. We toasted to that.

About six months later, Ingvar Carlsson was able to resign, flee to Tyresö and continue out into the world with new assignments. Göran Persson took over his government but could quite easily be overthrown by the Center. That threat came from Per-Ola Eriksson, known as Pekka.

The private and personal took over and neutralized politics - by good neighbours. Persson and Pekka both lived on Götgatan in Stockholm and they were united by their passions for food and drink. They proudly joined the "100 kilo club", and soon agreed to try to form a government coalition like in the 50s. LO said no.

In time, Pekka's loyalty was rewarded, he became governor. Like Bäckström.

Göran Persson and Pekka Eriksson both lived on Götgatan in Stockholm and were united by their passions for food and drink. They were proudly included in the '100 kilo club'

Göran Persson had to turn to Gudrun Schyman for assistance. Their friendship was not damaged by the fact that the Left, despite a successful election result of 12 percent in 1998, was left out of the government. Schyman did not want to be a minister, she built her new party Feministisk Initiativ.

Göran Persson was not only a cooperation strategist, he also stuck to an ideological project: to build a green people's home. Easy to anchor with the Green Party. Persson chose his partner with pinpoint accuracy: Peter Eriksson, pragmatic, like Persson equipped with a hunting degree and municipal political credentials. Cooperation began and, after much mutual hesitation, a government coalition was created. In time, Peter Eriksson was also rewarded with the office of governor.

In recent decades, coalitions have been built and government cooperation created, quite quickly and often with success. Personal alliances have emerged on archipelago islands, over food and drink and as a pure survival strategy.

An extreme case: four well-known people, Harry Schein, Gunnar Fredriksson, Anders Ferm and Stig Hadenius, signaled from their sailboat to Olof Palme that he should make Ola Ullsten head of government. The message was heard. Once, Dagens Nyheter's editor-in-chief Sven-Erik Larsson opened his home to leading social democrats and people's parties to ask them to form a government. It came off.

Bizarre examples, sure, but less absurd than the touch terror that reigns within the now victorious political bloc. In a break from the silence, the parties were able to describe some important issues where it would be possible to agree: Environmental and climate policy, upgrading of infrastructure especially in sparsely populated areas, freeing healthcare and schools from private large companies.

If you need help in the further work: Call in experienced, popular politicians such as Margot Wallström, Annie Lööf, Ulla Andersson, with Amanda Lind as conversation leader.