Here’s one for ya. Anders Breivik, who committed the horrifying white nationalist attacks in Oslo which killed 77 people, has won a case against the Norwegian government claiming that his rights were violated during his incarceration by keeping him isolated from other inmates and outsiders.
The judge, Helen Andenaes Sekulic, agreed with him. “The prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment represents a fundamental value in a democratic society. This applies no matter what — also in the treatment of terrorists and killers,” she said. The state has to pay Breivik 331,000 Norwegian crowns (about $52,090).
It’s not an argument she pulled out of thin air – it comes from the country’s participation in the European Convention on Human Rights.
However, she did not rule in favour of Breivik’s claim that his right to private and family life was restricted. The state had argued that restricting his mail is completely normal and necessary procedure – especially seeing as he wanted to send mail to far-right extremists.
This comes after a number of reports of Breivik’s interesting prison demands over the past few years, such as his allegation that being denied a PlayStation 3 to replace his ageing PlayStation 2 constituted torture. Scandinavian prisons are known for being much more accomodating than, say, Australian prisons, but they weren’t buying that argument.
Lawyers for the state are considering whether to appeal, and haven’t made a decision.
Source: News.com.au.
Photo: AFP.
