Challenges
There is nothing new that mothers have next of kin in prison with all the challenges it involves. The extra challenges for us is that my son Joshua French and his friend Tjostolv Moland have been sentenced to nine death sentences combined, and are incarcerated on another continent and in a country that is known to be one of the most unsafe in the world. In Congo more than 5 million people have lost their lives since 1996. The government forces and the rebel forces ravage the country. Rape, looting and other forms of abuse is part of the civilian people’s everyday life in the east region of Congo. In the rich mineral mines people work as slaves. The conditions in the prisons are inhumane. The interrogation methods are often against human rights. Joshua and his friend Tjostolvs safety have with every right been very important to us and the Norwegian authorities. This case has also been unique in many ways, especially since it’s the first time since World War 2 that two ethnic Norwegians have received the death penalty in addition to lifetime sentences. Factors like atonement conditions and rules of law have given us a lot of concerns.
Other challenges we have faced in this Congo-case is problems with information, communication, geographic distance and big cultural differences. Corruption and blackmail in the community and the legal system have been difficult to deal with, especially when it comes from a place we didn’t expect. There are quite a few who have tried to take advantage of this situation to make a profit. The press has been a challenge as well. There have been many different actors to relate to, the two charged with murder and espionage, the families and friends, Norwegian authorities, the media, the support system and the different parties in Congo.
On top of that this case has been very unpredictable and with a dynamic that drives it forward, often in ways you didn’t expect. Just when we think we can “rest” for a few days or a week or two, something happens that you didn’t think of at all. This can also be good surprises, like the anonymous gift to lawyer Furuholmen on behalf of the two Norwegians, that made him start work on the case.
As a family we have been dragged into a situation that has given us experiences others may profit from. It’s to my advantage that I have lived in Africa. I can better understand how things work, and it’s not completely strange to me. Below I comment on some of the challenges we’ve had to face.
Information
From day one we met obstacles when it had to do with information. It’s not easy to know what’s right and what’s wrong from everything we’ve heard, read, and seen in the media or received on sms or mail. The information has come to us from many parties. To separate correct information from incorrect has been an important job. A lot of information has been conflicting and confusing. The unpredictable situation with a new crisis after another has not made it any easier. When Norwegian authorities got a representative in Kisangani, the family got access to information more regularly. But even in this context we have experienced a lot of frustration. Contacts with the press and the support system have been helpful. But we can’t help wondering if we can trust the information we get.
Especially in the first period there was a huge gap in the information. After a lot of hard work I got a message in the beginning of the case from the local attorney and the consul that my son was “alive” and “safe”. Not exactly reassuring information when you know a little about how prison conditions and the interrogation methods are in Congo.
In addition there have been periods where information has changed from hour to hour. That makes us very nervous. There have been several situations where the two boys have been in danger and we have been within our right to be scared for their lives.
An example was the day the guys were moved from the military prison to the Central prison in Kisangani. Within a few hours the messages switched from the Foreign Ministry to the media. The Foreign Ministry said they weren’t going to be moved, the media said the opposite. At last I got a text message from a journalist who told me that they had been moved and eventually the Foreign Ministry confirmed this on the news. A transfer like this involves a big risk for their safety. On the phone with the Foreign Ministry the next day I was told that there had been a few “situations” throughout the first night. One newspaper reported that other prisoners yelled: “kill the whites, kill the whites!” Joshua and Tjostolv were also physically attacked at first in the Central prison, but eventually they have earned huge respect from the other inmates.
Another example was all the confusion around the charges. The last Friday of July the Norwegians signed the indictment without having it translated from French into English. That same evening the family and all of Norway’s press had it in our hands. The next day we could read in an online newspaper that the indictment was not yet handed over to the court. It got even more confusing when we read that the president, that turned out to be the court chairman and not actually the president was to arrive Saturday, so the investigators couldn’t hand over the documents before after the weekend. The media had contradicting information the whole time. It wasn’t until the Wednesday after we had read the indictment that the Foreign Ministry could with certainty confirm that the charges and all the documents had been delivered to the court; five days after it was public in Norway.
Communication
It took about three weeks before I heard Joshua’s voice on the phone, and then only for a minute. In the communication department we have met a lot of obstacles. The contact over the phone for example depends on a lot of things. If the guards are “nice”, the line is good or bad, and the possibility to borrow a phone. The level of noise in the prison is sometimes so high that it’s impossible to hear each other. I’ve tried to send Joshua a text message every day, and sometimes an e-mail through our Congolese support system or others who can bring him the message. When the seaman’s chaplain was in Kisangani he bought a mobile phone that those who bring the boys food took care of. When they’re in the prison they try to bring the phone in so that the guys can send a text message and we can call back on the same number. Another aspect with that is that they need prepaid cards for the phone, and that has been challenging at times.
The communication is challenging in regards to the administrative language in Congo is French. No one in our family speaks French. Most of the Congolese lawyers don’t speak English. On the Foreign Ministry’s recommendation we got a Norwegian lawyer. Through him we were able to get in contact with the two lawyers who were appointed for the two boys in Congo, and finally we got the important papers concerning the case etc. After the verdict we got a criminal lawyer – Morten Furuholmen. This was more a coincidence, and happened because of an unpredictable good surprise. An anonymous person engaged Furuholmen and opened a client account for the guys.
The two Norwegian prisoners have had to relay on interpreters the whole time. We know now that both under interrogation and through the court proceedings the interpretation has been a huge problem. Some interpreters have even deliberately interpreted wrong. This has led to a very poor or total lack of security in the trial for the two Norwegians. The last four hours on the day the “verdict” came in the appeal, nothing was translated for the Norwegians, not even the sentencing.
Communication with the practical “support system” in Kisangani has also been problematic because of the language. In addition there is a lot of communication between the different parts in this case and it’s inevitable that misunderstanding sometimes will happen between us.
The support system
You feel really helpless when you get the message that your son is in prison and the geographical distance is so huge. Congo is one of many countries where the inmates are totally depended on their families and friends to survive. Myself I have visited foreign prisoners abroad, and helped them with food, drink and money in order for them to survive. The solution for our family was to find missionaries or Christian congregations in Kisangani who could help out in an emergency. The first weeks missionary Bregård was our helping hand with the practical things. He brought the two inmates food, drink, medication and toiletries. Rune Edvardsen was another helper. Congo’s bank system is in poor condition, and both the Foreign Ministry and Edvardsen has helped us with money transfers. In addition Edvardsen through the Dina-Foundation his organisation runs in Congo for raped women and children, provided a monthly payment for the widow and her children. Edvardsen also arranged for a delegation to travel to Kisangani with Mathilde Moland (Tjostolvs mother) and others.
When Bregård went back to Norway four of his Congolese friends took over the practical assignments. One problem that occurred in the good service was the food they got. They react badly to the local food, and got very upset stomachs in addition to malaria, typhoid fever and pneumonia. For a period they got food from different restaurants – the helpers were also afraid that they could be poisoned. It was brought in twice a day. The food was expensive but the boys were healthier. Another aspect to this was the hungry inmates. After a while the two Norwegians got the opportunity to make their own food in their cell, but someone still needs to purchase it from the marked and bring it in to them. Through people who have gone to Kisangani we have been able to send food in cans and bags etc. Joshua and Tjostolv have shared with their inmates the whole time with the things they have, but it’s not enough in a big prison with 300- 400 inmates. They initiated after a while the support account “Inmate to Inmate”. There is now food in the prison for the other prisoners too, bought with the money from the support account.
Providing medicine for Joshua and Tjostolv when they get sick has been very difficult. Once the medical treatment almost came too late when Tjostolv got sick with brain-related malaria. The prison management says that Joshua and Tjostolv get so much “special treatment” already. But the reason for the “special treatment” is to keep them alive. A lot of people are sick and have died in the prison while the boys have been there. The doctor who treated Tjostolv and saved his life was later arrested and had to flee because of it.
Other helpers are the Norwegian government, our lawyers and not to forget the Seamen’s Church who have been involved to help the boys and the two families. Two Norwegian doctors have also provided their time and help in Congo for the two boys.
The Foreign Ministry and the embassy have among other things made sure that the atonement conditions are as safe as possible for the two Norwegians, and given other help in different ways. The conditions haven’t been easy for them either. They have met difficulties when trying to get medical help and necessary medication. During the first trial one of their representatives was hit in the crowd the day Joshua and Tjostolv were paraded through the streets of Kisangani. One was also accused of trying to help the two Norwegians escape.
Our helpers, lawyers, both local and Norwegians have difficult working conditions in Kisangani. The local lawyer expected to be arrested during the appeal, and lawyer Dietrichson was accused of driving to the prison on a motorcycle in the middle of the night were the purpose was to climb over the prison wall to poison the two Norwegians!
Different Cultures
There are many challenges with the difference in our cultures in this case. It’s not easy for people in Norway to understand the conditions in Congo and vice versa. Statements from Norwegians regarding certain things in this case show that it’s difficult to understand conditions that are very different than here in Norway. For example, in Norway two prisoners accused and convicted in the same case would not be placed in the same cell. In Congo there has been a necessity that the two were placed together. Greater chances for survival. For the Congolese defends attorneys it’s difficult to understand that Norwegian press is free and independent, while we expect it to be like this. It’s not easy for the regular Congolese to understand our travel ways. That Norwegian people like to go hiking in their spare time, and that we bringing compass, maps and maybe GPS is difficult to understand for them. In Congo these things are suspicious and have been used during the trial as evidence that the two Norwegians are spies. The Congolese doesn’t believe it when the Norwegian authorities assure them that the two Norwegians are not in active duty, even though they had military ID-cards on them when they were arrested. In Norway it’s not uncommon that ID-cards are still used after completed service. It wouldn’t be possible in Norway to convict someone of espionage unless there was technical evidence to support the accusations.
And when the president for the military court assures that it would not be possible to bribe either parties it shows that bribery is common in the Congolese legal system. This is strange for us to think about. Bribery is in every magnitude. Big and small. In our expense account for food for the guys, there is money for the guards included. This is thought of as a kind of wage, they often don’t get paid their salary for months. The judge in the first trial wanted money to give a lighter sentence. They didn’t get that.
Some interrogation methods, including presenting prisoners for a crowd to mock and ridicule is estranged to our culture, but resembles the gauntlet we had in earlier days in Norway.
I was also told by a person who know Congolese conditions well that one feather often becomes five hens, and the five hens becomes reality. We’ve seen several examples of that in this case. And the five-hen-reality is the one they relate to. Of course this is very serious in a case that involves life- and death sentences.
The press
There has been large media coverage in the Congo-case, with a lot of tough headlines and pictures to relate to through many months. Our family was nearly ambushed by the press at first and still is when “big” things happen. One example was when the verdict came in the first trial. The strain has been grand. Some medias pushed the family too far, which have resulted in a sour climate between the parties. I still remember a Friday evening when my daughter had to call Kokkvold in the press, academic selection (PFU) to ask him for help.
At the same time the press coverage in this case has been helpful for the two in Congo. With the amount of media attention the investigators couldn’t do what they wanted. Physically, the presence of journalists in Kisangani has been protective. Media attention is also a pressure for Norwegian authorities to not “forget them”. The result has probably been that they have received more help than they normally would have gotten.
After a while we found a solution that worked out regarding the press. We developed contact with some journalists that we kept in contact with. Then we could tip the press, and they could give us information. This has been very helpful when the Foreign Ministry couldn’t tell us anything. Two medias have on a few occasions prepared us in advance before some stories have been published. That has given us a chance to inform the family. Unfortunately some of our contact reporters have also proven themselves untrustworthy. But a cooperation like this has proven to be very useful and still is where the trust is intact.
We understood early that investigators and the prosecutors had their “informants” in Norway. They’ve passed on information that has been written. The problem is that they don’t understand that the press is free and independent. Reporters can speculate and make their own theories that not necessary are pure facts. Investigators and judges in Kisangani have actually paid more attention to stories in the tabloid press than what’s been sent from the Norwegian authorities. Some of the ideas and hypotheses by the press have been presented as “evidence” against the two Norwegians during interrogation. The same has happened with negative statements made on Norwegian blogs.
Another solution for us in regards to the media has been to open our own website. We had good help from others. The website has given us the opportunity to write our perspectives and points of views, especially in cases where the media has shown poor judgement with source criticism and when they are unwilling to go after clues that are important to the case. An example is that the media knew in August that the two weapons the prosecutors claims the Norwegians took with them in to Congo is actually in Norway. One of these weapons is the so called “murder weapon”.
Finally I would say that since May we have made both good and bad experiences.
A lot of the experiences we could have lived without, but on the other hand we have learnt a lot and some things have made our lives richer. We have learnt that there is so much goodness in people, both in Congo and in Norway. This goodness comes in different shapes and has in different ways helped us through this state of exceptional existence that we have lived with for 7 months now.
Kari Hilde French December 10th 2009
