Other memorials and symbols
At Utøya, the place of memorial is called ["the clearing"] Lysninga; a
part of it is ("the ring")
Ringen
Utøya – Hegnhuset
Newspaper display case that was damaged during the
explosion. In 2020 the display case was moved back to where it was in 2011.
Memorial in Mo i Rana
by Nico Widerberg [no]
At Utøya, the place of memorial is called ("the clearing")
"Lysninga"; a part of it is ("the
ring") "Ringen" – a "ring
of steel [that] hangs between trees and here the names and age of the majority
of those 69 killed are engraved"; "it lies at the highest point of
the island"; It was unveiled during summer 2015.
Hegnhuset was inaugurated in 2016.
"The Iron
Roses" Jernrosene is located at Domkirke-parken in Oslo. The memorial
has around 900 [metal] roses; they were donated by persons in various
countries; one rose was created by a survivor, and some by others who were
bereaved.
A newspaper display case that was collaterally damaged has
been left unrepaired with its glass fractured but not dislocated by the shockwave
of the bomb. In 2020 the display case was moved back to where it was located in
2011—outside [the building at] Akersgata 55, the headquarters of Verdens Gang.
The installation is referred to by the governmental organisation KORO, as
«Relocating the past: ruins for the future». Artist Ahmad Ghossein took the
initiative to create a memorial from the shattered display. The newspaper
edition from the day of the bombing is still on display.
One monolith stands in each municipality. There are
memorials created by the artist Nico Widerberg [no] in the 53 affected
municipalities in Norway who welcomed the same sculpture, funded by a private
donation.
A minnestein ("memorial
stone") to commemorate the attacks at Utøya is located at a roadside
rest area with a view of Utøya that is located on E16 at Nes in Hole (municipality).
Proposed memorials
A monument at Stensparken [no] in Oslo has been proposed,
including metal roses. It has not been authorized, as its planned dimensions of
34 meters (112 ft) by 20 meters (66 ft), with a height of 3 metres (9.8 ft),
were judged to be too overwhelming.
The canceled national
memorial at Sørbråten
As of September 2016, Hole Municipality has stopped case
work regarding the request for permission to build a national monument at
Sørbråten [no]; media said that the case work could be arrested for around two
and a half years or longer. The government is scheduled to be a defendant in
court during a three-week trial, starting 25 April 2017; the underlying lawsuit
aims to deny construction at the planned location.
Previously, in March 2016, the location for a planned
national place of memorial was moved from Utøya to Sørbråten – located on the
mainland 350 m (1,150 ft) from Utvika and 900 m (3,000 ft) from Utøya; in
September 2014 the Hole municipal council had refused a memorial at Sørbråten.
The names of several of the victims are reportedly being denied (as of 2016, by
next of kin) as inscriptions on the planned monument.
A committee, Kunstutvalget for minnestaden for 22. juli,
chose a design by Jonas Dahlberg for the monument, and Karin Moe has called the
planned monument at Sørbråten — "Breivik's
Memorial Place". Later, in a Klassekampen article Moe said that "Many of the [local] inhabitants have
described [...] the design as a violation, even a rape of nature [that is in
place] at Sørbråten. Such is the intensity of how the memorial is being felt,
that physical pain is felt merely by imagining having to face the memorial
every day. The traumatized neighbors re-live the acts of terror through the
brutal cut into the mountain slope ... a reminder of who acted: Anders Behring
Breivik. Here his misdeed is carved in stone. No wonder that fear lies in the
reactions. ... The baffling thing for the locals is this: ..., but we were
supposed to be honored – not re-traumatized. Why must this incurable
memorial-wound be inflicted on us, so close to [our bodies or our] life".
Furthermore, she said that "Long
time was needed before the September 11 memorial place on Manhattan was in
place. Now an encompassing – in regard to ethics and aesthetics – pause for
thinking is needed – both for the placement and the final design of the
memorial". A later article suggested that "we create the monument as envisioned, but fill the scar with rock
and beautify the surface", inspired by kintsugi. A later article said
that "What many of us don't
understand is why these plan, apparently not well-considered, now are pushed
through. ... Is it [because of] prestige or out of consideration to the
artist"?
Minister of Local Government and Modernization has been
criticised for announcing – while Breivik was a plaintiff in a 4-day trial –
the [current] decision to construct the monument.
On 14 April 2016, media said that a "report has indicated that the place of memorial will create great
mental strains on the persons living in its close proximity"; the
report, Nasjonalt kunnskapssenter om vold og traumatisk stress a/s, was
completed in April 2015. A later newspaper article asked "And why should the little island [sic], [Sørbråten be punished
with the jötunn cut – what wrong has the island done?" On 16 April 2016
media quoted board member Anne-Gry Ruud of neighborhood association, Utstranda
Velforening: "I don't think that the
work of art honors all who were killed, but symbolizes only pain and open
wounds. ... If this work of art gives any associations, then they are to
terror, death, pain and the inadequacy of society. ... This is not just a small
cut on a point – it is an area of 1.2 decare [that will become surrounded by
water].... I don't think that the [local] inhabitants have a responsibility to
provide a location for a memorial at Sørbråten. Especially in the summer we
experience a steady flow of tourists on a pilgrimage to Sørbråten. Some take
selfies with Utøya in the background. Others stop the inhabitants and ask what
they did that day and how we contributed. ... We have two schoolbuses that drive
back and forth every day on the road just above, others passes on their way to
the store, leisure activities, work or municipal center ... 260
inhabitants".
The national convention of the Progress Party decided to say
"no" to place the memorial
at Sørbråten.
On 25 April 2016 Hole Municipal Council decided to fund
Norwegian kroner 25,000 to Utstranda Velforening, for a proposed lawsuit
against the government.
In a 14 May 2016 Aftenposten article Stig Andersen [no], a
film director and -producer, said that the monument of the original contest was
supposed to have a price limited to Norwegian kroner 20 million; now that the
government has estimated the price to 70 million including relevant extra
expenses, the contestants that operated within the original price limits have
been deceived.
In May 2016 the government wrote that the ongoing lawsuit
about [placing] the monument [at Sørbråten], will not change the government's
plans; the letter was signed by Minister of Local Government and Modernization
and Minister of Culture.
In an 11 June 2016 Dagbladet article Hans Normann Dahl was
quoted, "The monument itself is
incomprehensible, and the idea so crass that it contains a negative and
destructive material".
An 18 June 2016 Dagbladet article quoted (writings of) one
mother (Gunn Rusten) who lost her daughter:
"My daughter's name will NOT be displayed on any memorial at Sørbråten,
but it is displayed at Utøya". She added that "Why should all the phenomenal persons living there, and who put
their lives on the line that day – to save as many as possible of those on
Utøya [who were later rescued from the lake] — have this as a lifelong, daily
reminder of the fateful Friday when police and those in charge let a crazy man
walk around for around an hour and a half – and kill at will – without
intervening". Furthermore, another mother (Mai Britt Rogne) who lost
her daughter said that: "We already
have the grave, [and] Utøya, and one monolith in every municipality. How many
places of memorial do we need"?
On 24 June 2016 the government was sued (in Ringerike
District Court) with a claim that "The
government is being denied construction of the memorial Memory Wound, including
a parking lot, a footpath, and auxiliary developments at Sørbråten and Bergli
[both] in Hole".
As of September 2016 the government has offered to ditch the
"Memory Wound" draft for a
monument; the site for a national memorial at Sørbråten, remains unchanged.
Swedish psychiatrist Per-Olof Michel said "I have been thinking why the government
was in such a hurry. In Sweden one will be unveiling the Tsunami Monument next
year – 13 years after the fact. Regarding something that affects so many
people, one should let time pass and go thru things again".
Bodil Cappelen said in a Klassekampen article that "Centuries will pass ... Oh, yes. Here
they have cut off a point—from the mountain mama. A landscape was not that much
worth—then".
Regarding "Memory
Wound" possibly being plagiarism of one of 300 candidate proposals for
the pre-qualification in the contest for monument design, art historian Tommy
Sørbø [no] said that "My first
impression was that this is closest [to] plagiarism"; "But when the
idea is so similar, I think one should examine the case further"; [the
final written work for the master's degree,] masteroppgaven, of architect
students Kristin Ulrikke Rønnestad og Hildegunn Slotnæs had already been
published on NTNU's website, and had been exhibited in Trondheim, and had been
mailed to around 200 persons and offices. So far the case has led to:
government agency KORO [no] informing Dahlberg and the Department of Culture of
potential allegations of plagiarism; Dahlberg denied any knowledge of
masteroppgaven; student Rønnestad met with the director of KORO in April 2014.
The lawyer (from the architects' trade union) that accompanied Rønnestad there
said that KORO showed "a quite
condescending attitude towards her". Other views regarding the case
include the view of Arve Rød, art critic of Dagbladet, saying about the
sketches "The likeness is peculiar,
and impossible to overlook. It is difficult not to conclude that these are two
completely alike ideas, but I cannot from that claim that Dahlberg has
plagiarized the work of the two students"; he thinks that it is quite
remarkable that [two] ideas, so alike, were found in the same contest and
situation, in the same place and at the same time.
In November 2016 news broke that case work regarding the
request for permission to build the monument at Sørbråten, had been arrested in
September; Hole municipality's justification, cited in part the upcoming court
case. In June 2017 the government cancelled the project.
Attempts at art
creation
A 2016 Norwegian news article said that "Most of those that work in the field of art, probably were aware
of the support group's ["the national support group after the 22 July
incidents", or Nasjonal støttegruppe etter 22. Juli-hendelsene marked
attempts at stopping the Danish playwright Christian Lollike when he wanted to
stage a drama based on the terrorist's manuscript. Artists are in fact not as
daring, as many like to think".
Legal proceedings
The police initially kept the choice of counsel secret after
request from the attorney. Attorney Geir Lippestad elected to act on behalf of
Breivik's defence; Breivik had specifically requested that Lippestad become his
attorney.
On 25 July 2011, Breivik was arraigned in Oslo District
Court. The police feared that Breivik would use the hearing as an opportunity
to communicate with possible accomplices. Because of this, the arraignment was
held completely closed to the media and all other spectators. Instead, Judge
Kim Heger held a press conference shortly afterwards where he read the court's
decision. The practice of completely closed court hearings is extremely rare in
the Norwegian justice system.
The debate over which criminal charges to file was fierce.
Many police attorneys wanted high treason or crimes against humanity. The
prosecution ended up indicting Breivik on terrorism charges. Breivik admitted
to being the gunman at Utøya and the perpetrator behind the Oslo bomb, also
admitting all the other actual events. Nonetheless he pleaded not guilty,
stating "I do not recognize this
justice system". District Attorney Christian Hatlo asked that Breivik
be detained for eight weeks without mail or visitation. The judge ruled in
favour of the prosecution, stating "the
accused is an imminent danger to society and must be confined for the safety of
him and others. It is highly probable that he is guilty of the alleged crimes
and imprisonment is necessary to prevent destruction of evidence". In
accordance with the prosecution's wishes, Breivik was remanded to eight weeks
detention without mail or visitation, four of those in complete isolation, to
be renewed no later than 19 September 2011. He was immediately transferred to
Ila Landsfengsel, a maximum security prison.
On 13 August 2011 Breivik was taken to Utøya by police to
recreate his actions on the day of the massacre. Neither the media nor the
public was alerted to the operation. The police explained that the surprise
walk-through was necessary because Breivik was to be charged and tried for all
77 murders individually. The police deemed it less offensive to the survivors
to do it before rather than during the trial. Despite the many police boats and
helicopters, none of the civilians who had come to lay down flowers on the
shore that day perceived what was happening just a few hundred metres across
the lake from them for eight hours. On the evening of 14 August the police held
a press conference about the reconstruction. It was reported that Breivik was
not unmoved by his return to Utøya, but that he showed no remorse. Inspector
Pål Fredrik Hjort Kraby described Breivik's behavior and indifference on the
island as "unreal", as he
had over the course of eight hours willingly showed the police exactly how he
had carried out all of the 69 murders.
The trial began on 16 April 2012 and lasted until 19 June
2012. 170 media organisations were accredited to cover the proceedings. Breivik
acknowledged that he had committed the offenses but pleaded not guilty as he
believed the killing was "necessary".
The main issue for Breivik was that he was not to be deemed "insane" or "psychotic", because that
would lose the meaning of his message.
On 24 August, Breivik was found to be sane by the panel of
five judges. He was sentenced to preventative detention (forvaring), a sentence
of 21 years in prison which can be repeatedly extended by 5 years as long as he
is considered a threat to society. This is the maximum sentence allowed by
Norwegian law, and it is the only way to allow for life imprisonment.
Aftermath
Coop Norway, a chain of retail stores in Norway, removed
several games from its shelves as a result of the attack. Some of the titles include
games like Homefront, Call of Duty series, Sniper: Ghost Warrior,
Counter-Strike Source and World of Warcraft. Some games were also temporarily
removed from the Norwegian Wii Ware catalogue, including an on-rails shooter
game.
In the days following the attacks, Norway's largest
represented political parties noted a significant increase in interest for
membership from young people. The Norwegian Young Conservatives and the
Progress Party's Youth, as well as the Workers' Youth League (AUF) had signed
up a significant number of new members after a few days. The mother parties
also reported an unusual increase in new member applications, with the
Conservative Party and the Progress Party having signed up almost 1,000 new members
each by early August, while the Labour Party reported over 6,000 new members at
the end of the month.
Far-right groups such as Stop the Islamization of Norway
(SIAN) and the Norwegian Defence League (NDL), as well as the Democrats, had
reportedly witnessed a boom in their memberships and interest by mid-August,
with the Democrats party having signed up around one hundred new members, and
the NDL around three hundred.
In the September local elections almost two months after the
attacks, gains were made by the Conservative Party (up 9% to 28%), and to a
lesser extent the Labor Party (up 2% to 32%). On the other hand, setbacks were
witnessed by the Progress Party; the party Breivik had been a member of, (down
6% to 11%) and the Socialist Left Party (down 2% to 4%).
In the Gjørv Report, received by the prime minister in
advance of a press conference on 13 August 2012, it was concluded that more
actions could have been taken by authorities, to stop Breivik, to track him, or
to interrupt his attacks. It also criticized the police action, in stark
contrast to an internal report issued by the police earlier. A few days later,
national police chief Øystein Mæland submitted his resignation, citing a lack
of clear support for his position from his superiors and saying: "If the [justice] ministry and other
political authorities do not clarify this matter unequivocally, it will become
impossible for me to continue." His resignation was accepted and
announced by Justice Minister Grete Faremo.
Vegard Grøslie Wennesland, a survivor of the incident, ran
for parliament on a Labor Party ticket in the 2013 Norwegian parliamentary election
A further 33 Labor Party candidates in the election were Utøya survivors and of
those, Åsmund Aukrust, Stine Renate Håheim and Fredric Holen Bjørdal were also
elected. However, the result brought a coalition government of the Conservative
party and the right-wing Progress Party, of which Breivik had been a member
from 1999 until 2004, to power.
In 2013, former AUF local leader and Labour Party cabinet
advisor Ivar Fjeld released the pamphlet Den rødgrønne terrorøya ("The Red-Green Terror Island"),
which documented how Utøya over several years had been used to build up support
for anti-Israel politics and Palestinian terrorists. In the book he documents
among other things that AUF had allowed far-left Red Youth to arrange camps on
Utøya, who collected money for and welcomed representatives from the Popular
Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) on the island. Fjeld claimed that
his purpose with the book was to warn the Labor Party about the activities of
its increasingly radicalized and Islamized youth organization.
Embezzlement from
terror attack victims fund
In 2016, one person was sentenced to 120 days in prison for
embezzling 300,000 Norwegian kroner from Støttegruppen etter 22. Juli, a
Norwegian NGO; the money was supposed to have gone to victims of the terror
attack. The perpetrator was a steward of the NGO.
Semi-automatic weapon
ban for hunting and Mini-14 rifle ban
On 28 February 2018, Peter Frølich of the Norwegian
parliament's committee on judicial affairs said a proposal to ban
semi-automatic weapons proposed the year prior now had enough political support
to become law by 2021. The law will ban the Ruger Mini-14 rifle model that was
used in Utøya massacre and other semi-auto rifles for hunting. However, using
semi-automatic firearms for shooting sports is still legal for sportsmen who
have permission for practice and competition shooting from Dynamic Sports
Shooting Norway (DSSN) or the Norwegian Reserve Officers' Association (NROF).
Copycat incidents
Polish copycat
On 20 November 2012, the Polish authorities announced the
arrest of a 45-year-old lecturer in chemical engineering at the Agricultural
University of Kraków under suspicion of preparing a similar attack. According
to the authorities, Brunon Kwiecień [pl] was an admirer of Breivik and was
further inspired by the Oklahoma City bombing. Poland's Internal Security
Agency (ABW) first found out about Kwiecień after it launched investigation
into Breivik's Polish contacts when it became known that Breivik had ordered
some of the chemicals for his bomb from Poland via internet. According to ABW,
Kwiecień was preparing an attack against the Sejm, the lower house of the
Polish parliament, using a car bomb. Apart from targeting the parliament,
Kwiecień was also preparing murders of Monika Olejnik, an influential
journalist, and Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, the mayor of Warsaw.
Kwiecień tried to arm himself in 1997; however the
authorities refused his application for a firearm permit. He later started
arming himself illegally, mostly with weapons bought in Belgium. He had
recruited four other people for his cause, however at least two of them were actually
ABW's secret agents. He was convicted and sentenced to nine years of
imprisonment on 19 April 2017, later dying in prison on 6 August 2019 from what
is believed to have been a suicide.
Christchurch mosque
shootings
Brenton Harrison Tarrant, the Australian-born perpetrator of
two consecutive mass shootings at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, said in
his manifesto "The Great
Replacement" (in reference to a far-right theory from France by Renaud
Camus) that he was in particular inspired by Breivik and claimed to have been
in "brief contact" with
him, as well as meeting with his organization, the Knights Templar. The
shootings took place at Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Center during Friday
Prayer on 15 March 2019, killing 51 people and injuring 40 more.
Depiction in popular
culture
The poem [These memories have no time to wait] Desse minna
har ikkje tid til å vente (2021), by Frode Grytten
Films
[To the Youth] Til ungdommen (2012), directed by Kari Anne
Moe
Utøya: July 22, directed by Erik Poppe, was released in
2018.
22 July, directed by Paul Greengrass, was released in 2018.
[The legacy of 22 July] Arven etter 22. Juli, directed by
Tommy Gulliksen (Simple English Wikipedia), was released in 2021
Music
Laleh performing with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra at the
National Memorial Concert 2012 in Vika in Oslo
The 2012 single "Some
Die Young" by the Iranian-Swedish musician Laleh became closely
associated with the national mourning process, with newspaper articles,
university lectures and a number of fan videos to this effect emerging. Laleh
was invited to perform as one of only two international artists at the official
memorial concert in Oslo on the first anniversary of the event in 2012, and
later performed the song at the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize Concert. The song went
on to peak at number one in the Norwegian charts for eight weeks and was
certified fourteen times platinum in the country by IFPI Norway. In a 2017
episode of Sveriges Television's music documentary series Hitlåtens historia,
Laleh is invited to visit Utøya for the first time and meet survivors,
reflecting on the significance her song took on as part of remembrance
activities.
The Austrian black metal band Harakiri for the Sky released
a song titled, "69 Dead Birds for
Utøya", on their 2014 album Aokigahara.
Dutch symphonic metal band Epica released a song entitled "Internal Warfare", on their
2012 album Requiem for the Indifferent. Singer Simone Simons stated in an
interview that it was about the Breivik attacks in Norway.
Norwegian pop singer Aurora released a song entitled "Little Boy in the Grass", on
her 2015 EP Running with the Wolves, which is about the tragedy.
Norwegian singer Anette Askvik released a song entitled "Liberty", on her 2011 album
Liberty, the official video for which contains images of the tragedy and the
dedication, "Til Minne om ofrene
etter terrorhandlingene 22.07.2011" ("In memory of the victims of the
terrorist acts on 22 July 2011").
A 2016 song performed by the Norwegian pop-rock band
deLillos, "Vi ser dere nå"
("We see you now"), was written about the attacks; one verse says:
"... He set off a bomb, to go to an
island, where he gunned down youth, as if it was fun".
Television
Season 6 of Seconds from Disaster premiered on the one-year
anniversary of the 2011 Norway attacks (aired 22 July 2012), with the episode
titled, "Norway Massacre: I Was
There".
The Futurama episode "The
Cryonic Woman" was briefly changed on some syndicated reruns,
including the DVD rerelease, because a moment in the episode included a screen
saying "Prime Minister of
Norway". This was later changed to "Chainsaw
Juggler".
A TV miniseries, 22. Juli (TV series) [no], about the
respondents to the attack premiered on NRK 5 January 2020.
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