We have for a long time now experienced how Congolese authorities are good with words and promises, but so far no action has been put behind the words. Josh and Tjostolv are still in the Central Prison in Kisangani. Minister Alida Endresen is in Kinshasa now. She had a meeting on April 1st with the Cabinet Chief in the Justice Department who says that they are working on the transfer. She is going to Kisangani as well.
The meetings ambassador Vea had in Kinshasa on March 16th-18th with several important people, he experienced as positive and all agrees that it’s important to transfer the two Norwegians. The expenses with the transfer will be covered by Congolese authorities, but if necessary we will cover it, or that the Foreign Ministry will pay and we pay them back. A while ago we were told it will be about 2000 dollars.
Joshua and Tjostolv have been tormented by a lot of noise in the prison the whole time. Because of this they turned the day around to get some use out of the “quiet” hours as well as they could. There was some quiet time late at night. Now a disco has opened outside the prison, and they don’t spare the noise. From seven in the evening to four at night disco music bangs all over the prison and around Josh and Tjostolv’s ears and it’s even more difficult to get some sleep than before.
A person from the Red Cross was recently visiting in the prison and told the two Norwegians that an outburst of cholera has hit Kisangani. If this is something that can be kept a handle on it’s not clear at the moment. There will be crisis if anyone in the prison gets cholera, because the prisoners live so close together. I experienced in India once to transfer a patient who had cholera to a school building out on the countryside where every cholera patient after an epidemic was placed together to prevent more outbursts. I’ve smelled a lot of horrible smells in my life, but nothing like the smell of cholera. The patient I brought survived but a lot of them didn’t.
In Dagbladet and NRK we’ve read that one of Edvardsen’s helpers in connection with the negotiations with the widow has gotten in some trouble. He has been a driver for the Foreign Ministry, journalists and lawyers. It’s the widow’s lawyer and probably others who wants money and a lot of it.
Kari Hilde French, April 2nd 2011
