Lars Stjernkvist, former party secretary in the Social Democrats, shared an apartment with Sweden’s municipalities and regions’ psychiatry coordinator Ing-Marie Wieselgren in Almedalen. He did not notice any signs that Wieselgren felt persecuted or threatened.
– The conversations I had with Ing-Marie did not in any way indicate that she was threatened. She really enjoyed the event. Here she was like the fish in the water. The last time I met her, she was enthusiastic about a seminar she had been to, told about the openings she looked forward to after the meeting.
“Fought for young people”
Stjernkvist says that he was in contact with the police after the murder. Today he feels the need to tell the public about what she stood for as a person.
– Like no other, she fought for young people to get the support they need to avoid suffering from mental illness and other problems. That she then suffers from this madness is a bottomless tragedy.
“She was a fiery soul”
Alexandra Charles, chairman of the 1.6 and 2.6 million club, held a seminar in Visby on mental illness where Ing-Marie Wieselgren participated. According to Charles, she had appeared before the association on previous occasions as well.
– I first want to say how terribly unhappy you become that such an act happens. Ing-Marie was an asset to psychiatry. She was a fiery soul who burned for her mission. She had new ideas for how to improve and further develop the area. That is why it is so tragic that she was killed. She really was a warm and living representative of the work to improve psychiatry.
Minister of Social Affairs: “Will be incredibly missed”
Minister of Social Affairs Lena Hallengren (S) says that most people who work in Swedish psychiatry knew Ing-Marie Wieselgren and that many appreciated her work.
– She was able to gather many around questions concerning what was previously more stigmatized. She could talk about it and take action going forward. She will be incredibly missed. Many will miss her commitment and her knowledge.