NORWAY: Acts of hostility and violence targeting Jehovah’s Witnesses denounced at the OSCE
HRWF (27.11.2024) – At the last annual OSCE conference on human rights in Warsaw, Jehovah’s Witnesses filed a report about public hostility targeting their community in Norway. Here are some excerpts of it:
Physical and verbal assaults
On 4 February 2024. (Oslo) Outside a Kingdom Hall (Bjørnerudveien 20), an unknown man in a car confronted a Witness who was going to drive home after a meeting. The man got out of his car, prevented the Witness from leaving, and spat on his car.
On 23 January 2024. (Horten) One or two men with air guns shot at a Kingdom Hall where some 100 of Jehovah’s Witnesses were attending a religious meeting. The police were notified, and armed officers immediately came to investigate. The officers went to a suspect’s home and confiscated at least two air guns. A similar incident had occurred in October 2023.
On 19 October 2023. (Kristiansand) A man forced open the main entrance door to one of the Witnesses’ Kingdom Halls (places of worship) and threatened those in attendance. The police arrived shortly after the incident and filed a report. The same perpetrator had previously carried out religiously motivated hate attacks against Jehovah’s Witnesses. (See October 16-19 entry, above.)
On 16-19 October 2023. (Kristiansand) A man attacked a mobile stand with Bible-based literature belonging to Jehovah’s Witnesses, overturning it and punching a male Witness in the arm. The incident was reported to the police. The next day, the same man attacked two mobile carts with Bible-based literature while shouting obscenities at two female Witnesses.
He threw one of the carts at a car driving by and the other at a parked van, damaging both vehicles. The incident was reported to the police.
The following day, the same perpetrator attacked carts with Bible-based literature, knocking over one cart and kicking the other, almost hitting a little girl and her father who were walking nearby. The incident was reported to the police. The perpetrator receiveda restraining order, but later the cases were dismissed.
On 9 October 2023. (Kristiansand) A man shouted hate speech as he walked past two female Witnesses who were standing beside mobile display carts with Bible-based literature. Subsequently, the man returned and threw the carts across the pavement, scattering the literature. The incident was reported to the police.
In September 2023. (Hjartdal) Two of Jehovah’s Witnesses were sharing their faith with others when a bystander became aggressive. The Witnesses tried to calm the man down, but he seized one of them by the neck, trying to choke him. The Witnesses calmly appealed to the man, and he eventually let go. The incident was not reported to the police.
Vandalism
On 23 September 2023. (Oslo) Outside a Kingdom Hall (Bjørnerudveien 20), several stickers with slanderous accusations such as “Jehovah’s Witnesses protect pedophiles” were fixed to lampposts.
In September – October 2023. (Kristiansand) On three occasions, unknown individuals broke into the Kingdom Hall. They overturned chairs, shelves, cupboards, tables, and the lectern. Mobile carts with Bible-based literature were thrown down the stairs, and a chair in the hallway was smashed.
All the incidents were reported to the police.
On 28 May 2024, an unknown person posted offensive signs with defamatory accusations about child sex abuse outside the same Kingdom Hall.
Anti-cult associations
Hjelpekilden, an anti-cult association, describes itself as an organization that provides “assistance to people from closed or strict religious environments.” Of eight directors, at least three have a history of attacking Jehovah’s Witnesses. The media often contacts this organization when writing articles about the Witnesses. The General Manager of Hjelpekilden testified as a State Witness when the Oslo District Court upheld the 2022 decision by the County Governor of Østfold, Buskerud, Oslo and Akershus, to revoke the legal registration of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Norway.
As a member of Frivillighet Norge, Hjelpekilden receives financial support from public funds. The association is also affiliated with the umbrella organization Council for Mental Health.
Hostile fake news
On 12 March 2024. The newspaper Dagen published an article accusing Jehovah’s Witnesses of unlawfully sending large sums of money out of the country.
A member of Parliament, Mr. Abid Raja, stated that an investigation should be conducted.
Minister of Children and Families, Ms. Kjersti Toppe, later concluded that “there is no reason to believe that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have transferred grants received under the Religious Communities Act, abroad.” She further explained: “Jehovah’s Witnesses’ accounts for the above-mentioned (and previous years) have been audited by a state- authorized auditor, and that the County Governor shall have verified that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have used the grants in accordance with the requirements of the Religious Communities Act.”