As expected there were death sentences today as well. The spy charges were dropped. This sends indirectly a clear message that the trials against the boys never should’ve been held in a military court, but a civil court. Another matter is that someone else should be taken to court instead of the boys. And think! Norway is not going to be 5 million or was it 5 billion dollars poorer afterall!
If this case had been held in Kinshasa there would probably be even fewer death sentences, but in Kisangani they probably couldn’t risk it. The boys are important leverage. I assume that the revolver/gun Joshua all of a sudden had with him, that they say in this trial is the murder weapon, is the gun that Tjostolv carried when it was taken a picture of him outside the residence of the crown prince wearing a guard uniform. The weapon belongs in the guard booth, and it has been in Norway the whole time.
The motive for the murder (see transcripts from the trial in the media) is maybe logical in the raw and brutal everyday life in the Orientale Province, where killing a man to rob a car for a few hours is not so unlikely. But for the two Norwegians to rob a pick-up after killing the driver to just leave the car on the Ugandan border (they would never get it across the border) is completely illogical.
News of the death sentences has been on CNN – international version today with a picture of the two Norwegians, and the organization Reprieve in England used the phrase “military show trial” when they’ve referred to the trial today.
There have been some reactions after Foreign Minister Støre’s statements on the news (in Norwegian) this evening. Several feels that his tone of voice and his expressions can be interpreted that he thinks the boys could be guilty of murder. “They’ve been convicted for a very serious crime”. The verdict is not enforceable yet, and people are innocent until proven guilty. There is also such a thing as convicted innocently – something that has also happened in Norway.
Kari Hilde French June 10th 2010
