Utøya survivor says 7/22 support group not true to ideals of more openess and democracy

Eivind Rindal, a former county secretary of the Nord-Trøndelag chapter of the Labor Youth Organisation (AUF), said to Verdens Gang (VG) that he is tired of the numerous statements made by the 7/22 support group that do not take into account the diversity of opinion that exists among the victims of the 7/22 attacks.

“I cannot stand behind the uncompromising approach of the support group in the media. It is apparently not the policy of the group to represent a nuanced picture of the different opinions that the survivors and next of kin actually have. It [the 7/22 support group] is not true to the ideals we talked about in summer, about more openness and democracy,” Rindal said to VG.

Trond Henry Blattmann, the leader of the 7/22 support group, made strong statements to the Norwegian media last week requesting that the Norwegian press not publish a series of photos by Swedish photographer, Niclas Hammerström, which won a prize in World Press Photo competition.

Rindal reacted to Blattmann’s statments and called him up and asked him to understand that not everyone shares this view. “We have to remember that similar pictures are taken by Norwegian press photographers abroad, and that such pictures win prices year after year. I asked Blattmann if he to a greater extent could take into account that there are different views when making statments such as these, but I did not feel that he was willing to listen.”

Responding to the critique Blattman said to VG: “There are potentially 10,000 members of the support group, and it is completely unthinkable that everyone is in 100% agreement about everything. But we try to be balanced in our view of the media’s use of pictures, leaks and other information, and mostly experience positive feedback on that. Our media strategy is regularly discussed by the board [of the support group].”

Blattmann was formerly leader of the Vest-Agder Labor Party and was political advisor for the Labor coalition government from 2009 to 2011.

Google translation:

Utøya-hero critisizes support group
02/15/12

AUF is Eivind Rindal ask the national support group become more nuanced in their media initiatives.

“I’ve seen me sad in a series of initiatives from the national support group that does not take into account that there are many different views among the survivors and bereaved,” says Rindal….

Original article: Utøya-helt til angrep på støttegruppen
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Related post: Utøya survivor strongly defends freedom of speech, press freedom

Utøya survivor strongly defends freedom of speech, press freedom

In an opinion piece in Aftenposten, Utøya survivor, Bjørn Ihler, delivers a strong defense of freedom of speech and press freedom, and argues that the 7/22 victim support group promotes a form of censorship that is not supported by all the victims of the 7/22 attacks.

Ihler criticizes the support group for frequently going to the media and requesting that the press not write about leaked material from the police investigation. Ihler says than rather than to criticize the press for doing its job, critique of leaked information from the police investigation should be directed towards those responsible for the leaks.

“The mandate of the support group is to support those affected by the events on 7/22. To censor the media is, as I see it, not within this [mandate]. Believe me, I know how it feels to have to face the front pages of the newspapers, I was actually there too. But for me the interests of society stands before my own. The society needs more openness. Particulary in a case like this, where not just we who are directly involved, but society as a whole was under attack,” Ihler writes.

Ihler, who himself studies and works with theater, also reacts that spokespersons for survivors are against the performance of a play in Denmark based on Breivik’s manifest. In Ihler’s opinion, art should be free, and it is misguided to attempt to prevent the theater to perform what they wish. Ihler says that the theater wishes to point to the madness in the manifest in order to prevent something similar from happening again.

According to Ihler, those directly affected by 7/22 and the nation as a whole are at fork in the road, and many are already heading in the wrong direction, away from democracy and openess. Ihler writes that if one truly wants more openness and democracy, one has to embrace these values fully. If one, on the other hand, wishes to censor the media, theater and the arts, one should say so.

Ihler writes that, even if he were to leave the 7/22 support group, the public would probably still perceive someone speaking on behalf of the group as representating all of the victims. So at the very least, it should be made clear that not everyone affected by 7/22 shares the same views, he says.

The leader of the 7/22 support group, Trond Henry Blattmann, was formerly leader of the Vest-Agder Labor Party and was political advisor for the Labor coalition government from 2009 to 2011.

“It is completely impossible for all members to be in agreement, the world is not so simple. The support group does not wish to be closed, but we have clear views about what we think about the publication of leaks and photos,” said Blattmann in response to Ihler in an interview with Aftenposten.

Google translation:

My frustration

If you wish, as others apparently want to censor the media, theaters and art, you could say that. But they can not put it on my behalf….

Original article: Min frustrasjon
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Google translation:

“We disagree with the filming in court”

Trond Blatt Mann believes the boundaries being pushed on all the time. The head of the national support group does not agree with Bjorn Ihler that group stands for closed….

Original article: - Vi er uenige i filmingen i retten
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Related post: Leader of 7/22 support group negative to Breivik interview

Related post: Justice Department considers law change that will make Breivik book illegal

Discrepancies between media reports of assaults on immigrants on 7/22 and police records

Following the 7/22 attacks, several media outlets, including the Norwegian newspaper, Dagsavisen (“former party organ of the Norwegian Labor Party”), reported cases of immigrants being attacked during the hours immediately after the bomb went off in front of the Prime Minister’s office before it was publicly known who was responsible for the attacks.

Aftenposten asked the police from all twenty-seven police districts around the country to check if any of these events described by the media had been reported to the police and has found that not a single case of harassment was reported.

Google translation:

Hunt for racist violence after 22 July
28.jan.2012

Is it true that immigrants were beaten up after the bomb went off 22 July?
The country’s 27 police districts have searched in the logs and found not a single event

Aftenposten has contacted the sources of the most media talked about the episodes, and asked to meet with people (even anonymously) that must be experienced to be chased, beaten or physically harassed. We have not succeeded….

Everyone has heard something. But no one has so far linked names to the stories….

There are 27 police districts in Norway. Aftenposten has asked them to search the Police log for assault / harassment / violence against immigrants in the hours after 22 July explosion. All 27 have responded. Conclusion: The police has not registered a single case. Neither of the reviews or logs (events that do not need to be reviewed). Not even the police in Oslo have registered cases of violence against immigrants in these hours.

“The figures speak.” According to the guard log the police received no such messages, says communications Roar Hanssen….

Original article: Jakten på rasistvolden etter 22.juli
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Related article: No recorded cases of immigrant safety 7/22 (Ingen registrerte tilfeller av innvandrerhets 22/7)