Norway: Racism and fascism (1)
01 January 1991
Norway: Racism and fascism
Courts round-up
Four Norwegian youths have received sentences ranging from one
to three years for a vicious attack on a Tamil family in Hareid
in 1993. During the attack, the youths, wearing masks, burst into
the family's home in the early hours of the morning and attacked
the father with iron bars in front of his children. Two of the
youths later attacked and threatened to kill a Norwegian youth
they suspected of informing on them (Klassekampen 10.3.94).
A court in Kristiansand ruled that two youths who set fire to
a car belonging to a Vietnamese family in Vennesla were racially
motivated. One of the youths had attempted to win the courtØs
sympathy by saying that the Vietnamese had got access to an
apartment at their expense (Vennesla Tidende 9.3.94). Witnesses
have confirmed that three Norwegian soldiers attacked and
racially abused a dark-skinned soldier in Finnsnes (Nordlys
6.5.94).
Police see no reason to investigate vicious racist attack
An attack which left an Iranian man with a broken jaw, arms and
legs was deemed by the police not serious enough to investigate.
A group of Norwegian men had come to Mohamed Akbari's apartment
where they accused him of breaking into a house before demanding
that he gave them a sum in excess of $400. When Mr. Akbari
refused to hand over the cash, and denied any knowledge of the
burglary, the attackers grabbed hold of his 3-year-old daughter
and lured Mr. Akbari to another apartment where two other men lay
in wait. They proceeded to beat Mr. Akbari with a rod and
racially abused him before pushing him out of a third floor
window (Dagbladat 27.5.94).
Tonsberg: centre of neo-nazi activity
Neo-nazis in the district of Tonsberg set fire to the home of SOS
Racism spokesperson, Knut Erik Anderson, in Stokke, spraying neo-
nazi symbols and racist slogans on the outside walls. The
attackers are believed to be members of the Aryan Brothers and
White Aryan Resistance. Tonsberg district has a reputation for
neo-nazi activity with racists setting fire to wooden crosses in
the gardens of immigrant families and spraying nazi graffiti on
walls (Aftenposten 30.3.94).
IRR European Race Audit no 9, July 1994. Contact: Liz Fekete
Institute of Race Relations, 2-6 Leeke Street, London WC1X 9HS
Tel: 071 837 0041