- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Oslo Court Rules Norway Violated Mass Murderer Breivik's Human Rights

© AFP 2023 / POOL / HEIKO JUNGEAnders Behring Breivik (file)
Anders Behring Breivik (file) - Sputnik International
Subscribe
Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik, who is undoubtedly Norway's most notorious prisoner, has won his lawsuit against the state, as the Oslo District Court sided with his claim of "inhuman treatment."

Today, the Oslo District Court ruled that Breivik's prison conditions constitute "inhuman treatment," noting that the rightwing extremist had been held in isolation for almost five years. As part of the ruling, the state will have to pay Breivik's attorney fees of some 330,000 kroner (roughly $40,000), Norway's national broadcaster NRK reported.

Anders Behring Breivik listens to the judge in the courtroom, Friday, Aug. 24, 2012, in Oslo, Norway - Sputnik International
Oh the Humanity: Court to Determine if Norway Violated Breivik's Rights
Norway's most infamous inmate is currently serving a maximum 21-year sentence, which may be extended if he is still recognized as dangerous.

In July 2011, Breivik killed eight people in a bombing outside a government building in Oslo and then proceeded to murder another 69, most of them teenagers, in a shootout rampage at a Labor Youth camp on the island of Utøya. During his shooting spree, he methodically stalked and murdered future members of the Labor Party, which he blamed for the rise of multiculturalism in the Nordic country.

Since the day of his arrest, Breivik has been held apart from other prisoners and his contacts with the outside world, including visits and correspondence, have been strictly controlled.

At the Skien Prison located some 130 kilometers from Oslo, Breivik has three cells at his disposal: one for living, one for studying and one for physical exercise. He also has a TV-set with a DVD player, a games console, a computer without Internet access, as well as books and newspapers, approved by the authorities.

Anders Breivik - Sputnik International
Mass Murderer Breivik Whines About Prison Treatment, Norway Rejects Claims
All this time, Breivik has been bombarding the prison administration with numerous complaints, ranging from cold coffee and microwaved frozen dinners (which he called "worse than waterboarding") to hundreds of daily strip-searches and headaches supposedly caused by his solitary confinement.

Earlier, the state lawyers argued that incarceration was necessary as Breivik was "extremely dangerous," arguing that his conditions fell "well within the limits of what is permitted" under the European convention.

Ironically, Norway prides itself on its humane penitentiary system, which is rather aimed at rehabilitation than punishment. "The crimes my client was accused of are irrelevant," attorney Øystein Storrvik told the court when presenting the 37-year-old's lawsuit against the Norwegian state.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала