Now, Tjostolv and Joshua have been in captivity in Kisangani for 2 and half years. They are sentenced to death for murder without any evidence. As the Foreign Ministry knows very well, and sentenced to death for espionage in advantage for Norway, of course without evidence. A pure fraud. The Congolese have sentenced the Norwegian state in solidarity with the boys to large settlements.
During the years of 2009-2010 and in 2011 Norway has contributed with about 240 million a year in addition to some of the UN’s expenses in Congo. In total it would be close to a billion NOK. During this period there has been negations with Congolese government and several promises has been made, nothing happens. Congolese government members are lying directly to Norwegian diplomats and the Norwegian Foreign Minister. They don’t respond to diplomatic notes and hold Norwegian citizens captive sentenced to death as spies. The list of insults is long. The diplomatic behavior Congo has against Norway is unheard of. This at the same time as Congo has received almost a billion NOK from Norway. More money than they’ve asked for, at least in the latest “sentence”.
It’s valid to ask what’s going on. Norwegian diplomacy can’t be this weak. It’s a charade unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Norwegian diplomacy has achieved nothing in 2 and half years. What’s wrong? I live abroad myself and have contact with people from many countries. When I explain the case the reaction is always the same: here is something strange. The diplomacy in such a rich country can’t be this amateurish. The Congolese serves insult after insult to Norway and Norwegian diplomats, and we just stand there and take it and give out hundreds of millions to this nation! What’s the logic in this? Doesn’t the Congolese government know what Norway contributes with in Congo? There is no doubt that there is something fundamentally wrong here. Not even food and clean water and medication have they an agreement on. They sit captured as “Norwegian spies” and don’t even get clean water, food and medication! Not even this matter which is a severe human rights violation have Norwegian diplomacy managed to solve in 2 and half years. It’s amazing. It takes 2000 dollars a month for food, water and medicine. They get 200 dollars a month from the Foreign Ministry, which isn’t possible to survive on!
Hundreds of millions can be given as aid in Congo, but they can’t keep two Norwegians alive who are sentenced to death as Norwegian spies. It has to do with principals apparently! What kind of principals is this based on, and isn’t it about time to rethink some of these principals? It can’t be more important to keep principals than saving human lives?
Fredrik Græsvik (a Norwegian journalist) wrote in a blog that Moland and French only chance to get out is through the Foreign Ministry. He is right of course, but it doesn’t look good. Græsvik goes on by saying that it will be hard to hold them incarcerated when they return because they’ve been sentenced without evidence in a farce of a “trial”, and if they sit a couple of more years it’s easier to let them go because they’ve endured a long prison stay under difficult conditions. I refuse to believe that Norwegian authorities have this agenda, that they obstruct the case so it’s easier for the authorities when they come home. To risk Norwegian citizen’s lives like that would be all mothers of scandals! There is no doubt that Norway has good cards on their hands in this case. Norway contributes with large amounts in Congo. We are apparently giving 500 million to the rain forest fund. We support the civil part of UN’s business in Congo. Norway has one of the largest foreign services in the world in relation to its size. Norway is involved in peace keeping in different conflicts all around the world, and has a lot of good diplomats. Still we take insult after insult and let them harass us for years. There is something wrong here! They should be able to solve this case, preferably while they are still alive.
Knut Moland, October 19th 2011
